In Search of Vocational and Technical Teacher Education

Aggregated program and enrollment data about specialized vocational and technical teacher education programs as they currently exist in our nation's colleges and universities are presented. Some analysis is provided about the future supply and demand of vocational and technical education teachers. It is concluded that our nation's colleges and universities have greatly diminished their capacity to prepare teachers for vocational and technical education programs. Even with the decreasing supply, it is doubtful that there will be a large demand for traditional vocational teachers. There may be a shortage of teachers well prepared to teach in new or modified work-based education programs, technology, and technological applications. Further, a clearly focused conceptual framework undergirding vocational and technical teacher education in our nation's colleges and universities has yet to be developed.