The Relationship Between Biotechnology CTE Students and Non-CTE Peers with Respect to Self-Efficacy for Achievement, Attendance Support, and College and Career Readiness

Urban education settings often struggle to meet the academic needs of students to best prepare them for postsecondary study or career readiness (ACTE, 2015; Gordon, 2014; Treschan & Mehrotra, 2014). Consequently, students who enter college may not have the baseline skills to be successful and may take longer to graduate, or may drop out altogether (ACTE, 2015; Stone & Lewis, 2012; Treshcan & Mehrotra, 2014). One program shown to improve student preparedness for college and career is Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs in urban areas.;In examining difference between students in an urban high school Biotechnology CTE program and non-CTE students with respect to self-efficacy for achievement, attendance support, and college and career readiness, this convergent mixed methods design addressed the following research questions: 1. Is there a significant difference between students in an urban high school Biotechnology CTE program and non-CTE students with respect to self-efficacy for achievement, attendance support, and college and career readiness after controlling for initial differences in self-reported grades? 2. Is there a significant difference between students in an urban high school Biotechnology CTE program and non-CTE students with respect to the following demographic variables: self-reported grades, gender, and race? 3. How do students in an urban high school Biotechnology CTE program and non-CTE students describe their school experience with respect to self-efficacy for achievement, attendance support, and college and career readiness?;Quantitatively, a survey determined if significant differences existed between 12th grade students in an urban high school Biotechnology CTE program (n=21) and non-CTE (n=69) students. Qualitatively, conducted focus groups further determined if differences existed between CTE students (n=14) and non-CTE students ( n=14).;Quantitatively, there were no significant differences found within dimensions. Qualitative findings indicated that CTE students felt more prepared for college and career than non-CTE students. CTE students reported that challenging teachers prepared them for college and career, while non-CTE students reported that encouraging teachers prepared them.;The findings from this study may help school, district and national educational leaders increase CTE programming in order to provide students with more job-embedded training and a more contextualized approach to traditional course-offerings.