State and federal legislation has combined with grassroots efforts to address issues of integration. Oregon has lived up to its tradition as a state of pioneers by being among the first states to legislate a variety of initiatives aimed at linking academic and vocational practices. Recent amendments to the Carl D. Perkins Act promise to bolster what is already a burgeoning effort at the state level. The Challenge for Educators While diverse educational stakeholders are reaching a consensus that integration is an appropriate next step in reform, there are a wide variety of motives and models for implementation. Although the stimulus to integrate academic and vocational strands may have been generated at a governmental level, it's up to educators at the building level to translate that injunction into a vision and methodology appropriate for the needs and resources of individual schools.
Many reformers believe that integration requires monumental restructuring of high schools.
Integration requires a significant investment in capacity-building and staff development as well as unwavering support from administration. In addition, educators must continue to wrestle with questions of assessment, regulatory constraints, and procuring the necessary time and money. Although integration shows great promise as a means for focusing a variety of education reform issues and has demonstrated notable results in many programs, as a movement it continues to be faced with a number of barriers and considerations that must be continually reexamined as the process of integration continues. These barriers and some possible ways around them are the subject of chapter 3. In the next chapter attention turns to the many different paths educators are following to reach the goal of an integrated curriculum.