Hella Winston

Another negative book review from me. For Reskilling America: Learning to Labor in the Twenty-first Century by Katherine S. Newman and Hella Winston, the problem is not a lack of research, but rather that the book, like American society in general, has no real way to grapple with the fact that some kids aren’t as smart as others. Any vocational ed program in the United States is going to have a problem with averages that we aren’t capable of resolving.

Freddie deBoer or Paige Harden will be happy to point out why this is so. If that isn’t enough, consider that someone who writes a book like No, You Can’t Be an Astronaut that does attempt to grapple with this in a constructive way, does so under a pseudonym.

Until something big changes, vocational education programs will keep getting proposed, and keep dying for this big, but largely unacknowledged reason. All of the carefully assembled research cited in this volume means nothing until that happens.

I received a free copy of this book through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.… (mehr)

America needs to increase and systemize vocational training, say authors Katherine S. Newman and Hella Winston. They address a general adult audience, but this book would appeal to mostly to people involved in the triangle of players the authors speak of: government officials over education, industry leaders (including unions), and educators in high school and college (vocational/technical schools and community college), and perhaps parents.

As a homeschooling parent of a high schooler would rather attend a trade school than a four-year college, I perked up my ears to catch the title of this book while listening to Michael Medved interview one of the authors on his radio show. Then I ordered the book.

The education system of the United States, with its focus on "college for all," is harmful for several reasons, states Reskilling America: Learning to Labor in the Twenty-First Century.
First, many manufacturing jobs that left the US a few decades ago are returning, and industry can't find enough qualified employees to fill positions. Next, many students, primarily from the lower working class families or those who prefer working with their hands instead of academic work, need another option other than a four-year degree or a "McDonald" job. Moreover, if America is going to be competitive in the global market, it needs to change its negative attitude toward middle-wage, blue-collar work.

The authors are enamored by the German education system, in which students are tracked for vocational or college work. The vocational track gives the students much more training time in a factory and allows them to receive more school credit for that work than in the US system. The authors agree that due to cultural differences, the US cannot fully adopt the German system, but call for a modified, nationally standardized system for apprenticeships in the US, asking primarily the federal government to foot the bill like it is done in Germany.

I disagree with that last belief. The US once was the industrial leader in the world by the power of the private sector. Therefore, apprenticeships should be left to the private sector.

Overall, the book is easy to read and provides a different viewpoint on educating our young people. However, it did bother me that all their examples of programs in the US were in the East, South, and Midwest. No mention of programs in the West, where I live. Furthermore, I wish they had included more information on how an individual can be involved in making concrete changes in one's own community.

For years, I've been concerned that most appliance repairmen are old. Who will fix my dishwasher 20 years from now? Too many young people are in college who don't belong there and end up dropping out and wasting time and money. By growing the trade schools, many will benefit across the nation.
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