Developing POS Via a Statewide Career-Focused Reform Policy
In 2005, the state of South Carolina initiated an innovative
approach to career-focused education through the Education and
Economic Development Act (EEDA). Developed with the backing of
the state’s business community, EEDA aims to improve student
achievement and preparedness for postsecondary education and
high-skill, high-wage, and high-demand jobs. It does so through a
focus on career awareness and exploration and the creation of
locally relevant career pathways and POS.
As part of an NRCCTE-sponsored project entitled Programs of Study
as a State Policy Mandate: A Longitudinal Study of the South
Carolina Personal Pathways to Success Initiative, researchers at
Clemson University are studying those components of EEDA
implementation that are most relevant to high schools and
investigating the influence of these components on students and
POS development over a five-year period in a sample of eight
South Carolina high schools. This article provides early insights
into how several key elements of the South Carolina policy are
helping these eight sample schools lay a foundation for POS and
POS-like educational components for all students.
Mobley, C., Hammond, C., Withington, C., Stringfield, S., Stipanovic, N., Sharp, J. L., & Drew, S. (2012). Developing POS via a statewide career-focused reform policy. Techniques, 87(1), 24-27.