Tech Prep: a good educational idea; will it work?

Using federal funding through the Perkins Acts, teachers and administrators in secondary school districts around the nation are implementing “Tech Prep” programs. The concept is straightforward and is aimed at improving the preparation of the 50% middle ability group of students so they can enter a work force with increasing requirements for technical education. The author describes this new educational concept, and argues that it must be monitored, mentored, encouraged, and spread. One of the authors´ purposes in writing this paper is to encourage colleagues to get involved with their state and local secondary educational institutions to aid in this effort. This especially can be of help to secondary teachers by showing them the application(s) of the subjects most of them learned to teach without application