<p>I find this whole discussion disquieting. What should high schools be doing to respond to this?</p>
<p>Around here, high school students can go to nearby vocational centers or career centers for half-days their junior and senior years. It is a major decision and has significant impacts on that student’s curriculum choices from that point on, because the vocational schools obviously offer different classes than the regular high school. However, it also means that the kids who remain at the high school do not have access to any of the special offerings of the vocational school. In other words, you can’t mix and match course offerings; you’re a vocational kid or a college-prep kid. I think this misses the mark for some of our students but I’m not sure what the answer is.</p>