CCTC FAQ

FAQs about the Common Career Technical Core

If there are additional questions that should appear on the FAQ page, please send the questions to CCTCinfo@careertech.org.

What is the Common Career Technical Core initiative?
The Common Career Technical Core (CCTC) initiative is a state-led effort to develop high expectations for Career Technical Education (CTE) programs through a set of common standards that will include:

• Standards for Career Ready Practice (10-15 Career Ready Practices)
• Career Cluster Anchor Standards (8-15 common standards with application to each of the 16 Career Clusters)
• Career Pathway Standards (10-25 standards specific to Career Pathway, industry benchmarked when possible
• Built from the industry and post secondary validated Career Cluster™ Knowledge and Skills statements

Who is coordinating this initiative?
The initiative is being coordinated by the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), which represents the state and territory heads of secondary, postsecondary and adult CTE across the nation. The state members of NASDCTEc are leading the development of the CCTC. Business and industry and members of the Career Readiness Partner Council (CRPC)—an organization of leading education and workforce organizations—will provide guidance and feedback during the development of the CCTC.

Why do we need a set of common state standards for CTE?
Standards help to ensure that all students are prepared for the rigors of postsecondary education and the workforce by setting clear goals for teaching and learning. Common state CTE standards also help to ensure that students receive a high quality education in every state, and ever school across the nation.
Nearly 14 million students are enrolled in CTE—encompassing every state, with programs in nearly 1,300 public high schools and 1,700 two-year-colleges. A set of common standards will help to ensure that all students are well-prepared for postsecondary education and the workforce by setting clear goals for teaching and learning. Common CTE standards also help to ensure that students receive a high quality education in every state, and every school and college across the nation.

Building a common connection among states through common CTE standards:
• allows for a stronger foundation of consistent rigor;
• supports equitable access for students, no matter their geographic location, in preparing for high skill, high wage, and high demand occupations in the broad spectrum of existing and emerging career areas; and
• works to integrate the expectations of college and career readiness that support the implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).
The significant goal of the CCTC is a contribution to define career readiness for all students.

How are standards for CTE currently determined?
Each state has a unique process for developing, adopting, and implementing standards. As a result, standards for student learning can vary greatly from state to state—and school to school. States use a variety of methodologies including the use of the Career Cluster™ Knowledge and Skill statements, discipline standards developed by national and state organizations, industry certifications or resources, as well as creating a state specific set of CTE standards.

Don’t we already have a common set of standards for CTE in the National Career Clusters™ Knowledge and Skills statements?
The National Career Clusters™ Knowledge and Skills statements are a comprehensive collection of industry-validated expectations of what students should know and be able to do after completing instruction in a career program area. These statements reflect the expectations of postsecondary education and business and industry for entering into a variety of careers—and are used to guide curriculum development, assessment, and program planning. The National Career Clusters™ Knowledge and Skills statements will be used as the foundation for the development of the more broadly defined and state-developed CCTC.
To that end, not every state uses the Knowledge and Skills statements and resources in the same way, if at all, in their process of standards development and implementation. The CCTC will serve as the agreed upon base set of expectations developed by the states, for states, and informed by industry that will provide a common expectation among by the states of what students should know and be able to do.

What if my state already has CTE standards?
Most states already have some form of standards for CTE. In many cases, these standards fulfill the role of curriculum standards or course standards. The purpose of the CCTC standards is to ensure that a core set of expectations is identified across a Program of Study and provides the opportunity for states’ to align the priorities of the state to an agreed upon common set of standards across states.

Are the standards for secondary, post-secondary or adult CTE?
The standards are intended to identify secondary expectations of what students should know and be able to do in a specific Career Cluster™ area. The standards create a base of expectations to support a more consistent and coherent transition into postsecondary education and allow for a strong and robust basis for articulation and other systems that are in place.

Our state uses industry standards, developed by existing discipline consortia. Will these standards replace those?
No. The significant advantage of the CCTC is to provide a common expectation among the states of standards, yet still supporting the depth of instruction that can exist in the multiple methods of instructional delivery occurring in states.

Will a draft of the CCTC be available for public comment before being finalized?
Yes, a draft of CCTC standards will be available for public review and comment. In addition, the Career Readiness Partner Council, comprised of national organizations, researchers and thought leaders, will also provide feedback on the draft standards.
Public feedback will be instrumental in the development of high-quality, rigorous standards. We encourage the public to submit comments and feedback on the standards.

How does this initiative align with the Common Core State Standards Initiative led by the National Governors Association and the Chief State School Officers?
The Common Career Technical Core initiative is intended to be complementary to the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI), facilitated by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The common standards for CTE will demonstrate alignment and support for English Language Arts and mathematics standards already developed and the goals of college and career readiness.

What is the process and timeline for developing the Common Career Technical Core?
Subject matter experts from across the country in all sixteen Career Clusters ™, along with a writing team have already begun to lay the foundation for the CCTC through revisions of the National Career Clusters™ Knowledge and Skill statements—a comprehensive collection of industry-validated expectations of what students should know and be able to do after completing instruction in a career program area. These statements reflect the expectations of postsecondary education and business and industry for entering into a career, and are used to guide curriculum development, assessment, and program planning.

The timeline and process for the development of the CCTC follows:

November 2011	States begin the process of committing to the creation of a Common Career Technical Core.
January 2012	The inaugural meeting of the Career Readiness Partner Council (CRPC) occurs.
March 2012	The 16 working groups will develop the first draft of the CCTC building from the industry validated and benchmarked Knowledge and Skill statements. The working groupls will include subject matter experts nominated from states committed to create the CCTC
April 2012	The 16 working groups will incorporate feedback from the states and develop a second draft for review.
	A draft will be provided for open public comment.
	Public comments reviewed and incorporated into final draft
May 2012	The state work groups will approve the CCTC standards.
June 2012	The common CTE standards will be released
	Individual states will move to adoption and implementation of the CCTC.