The philosophy in Howard County public schools is to prepare all students for the work force, even if they plan to go to college first.
“Whether you go to college first or work, you?re going to need the same skills,” school system spokeswoman Patti Caplan said.
More students who are planning to go to college are taking Advanced Placement exams in such subjects as English, calculus and biology, officials said.
In 2007, 2,574 students took the exams, up from 2,404 students in 2006, they added.
Students who earn a score of 3 or higher up to 5 typically have the chance to earn credit in many colleges.
Not only are more students taking these exams, but students are taking more exams.
In 2007, 5,333 AP exams were taken, compared with 4,885 tests in 2006, according to school data.
In addition, “students are taking their content knowledge and applying that knowledge in the workplace, as opposed to spitting it back out on an AP test,” said Thomas Payne, the school system?s coordinator of advanced programs and fine arts.
About 400 students this year have internships with a professional in fields from music to astrophysics, he added.
For those students who choose not to go to college after graduation, opportunities, including the automotive academy, help prepare students, Caplan said.
The school system?s 22 academies, in areas such as business, culinary arts, and architecture and engineering, offer practical experience for students, said Natalie Belcher, instructional facilitator in the Career Technology and Education Department.
Students in these academies can earn a certified nurse?s assistant credential or be certified as an emergency medical technician, but they also can earn college credit, she added.
“A lot of these students use this certification at work while they go to school,” Belcher said.
