A 1995 Gallup Survey reported that a majority of Americans believe our youth need help making a successful transition from school to work and that the public expect high schools to provide that assistance. Information gathered from a large sample of eighth graders found that approximately one-third of those students stated they know little about the world of work in their communities and see only a minor connection between school activities and future work plans. Employers and policy makers are increasingly aware that economic development is interconnected with workforce development and a strong system of secondary and postsecondary education because employee skill levels, attitudes and ability to respond to change are directly related to productivity and profits. Thus, parents, students, educators, employers and policy makers are all seeing a need for changes in the education system to prepare students with the skills and knowledge they need to be successful in the world of work. One strategy which has proven effective is organizing schools around career pathways .
Pathways help make learning more relevant for students.
Pathways prepare students with academic, employability, and occupational skills needed for entry into broad career pathways to provide opportunities for different anticipated job-entry points based on varying levels of training and education. Pathways connect the K-12, postsecondary and workforce development systems. Pathways provide a way to organize labor market and occupational supply and demand information that is relevant to the K-12, postsecondary, and workforce development systems. There are a variety of ways in which high schools can structure career pathways. In this approach, some students choose a pathway and enter self contained subschools within the larger high school around an occupational theme.