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1 1 (April 2018)

handle is hein.amenin/aeiaajq0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Key Points * Previous research shows that students who select into career and technical education (CTE) tracks have, on average, lower test scores than their peers. Yet that same body of research finds that, after controlling for test scores, CTE course takers have higher high school graduation rates, overall educational attainment, or earnings. Our analysis reaches similar conclusions, implying that CTE students have an advantage in noncognitive skills that test scores fail to capture. * We find that students who take large numbers of CTE courses by 12th grade had significantly lower 10th-grade test scores. They also have lower self-esteem and motivation in reading and math. These patterns align with conventional perceptions of CTE students-namely, that they are not as academically engaged and adept as their peers. * However, we also find that CTE course takers have other noncognitive skills that are higher than otherwise-similar students. Based on behavioral measures of noncognitive skills, we observe that CTE students exhibit more effort on a routine task (e.g., taking a long and boring survey in school). According to teacher reports of student behavior, CTE students are just as attentive as their peers, just as likely to complete their homework, and much less likely to be absent from class. Career and technical education (CTE) programs are diverse. They differ in substance and structure. But, historically, they have all carried a common stigma: They are not academic. The loose set of programs and policies that com- prise CTE all aim to provide students with skills needed for a particular career. CTE can refer to specific programs such as vocational schools or career academies or more vague offerings such as technical education classes or shop class. Whatever the label, CTE historically has been seen as an alter- native to academic programs. This nonacademic stigma brings on a stereotype, especially for high schoolers: Students in CTE programs are unmotivated, unin- terested in academics, and unfocused. What truth is there in this stereotype? We seek to explore this question, looking at a national data set of high school students. Questions of motivation and focus get to a person's very character. So we ask: Do noncognitive skills pre- dict whether students will pursue CTE offerings? That is, are students who lack the noncognitive skills generally associated with academic success (e.g., AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE

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