There are three basic terminologies that are widely used for the continued education and these three terminologies are discussed and compared below:
- tech prep-articulation arguments
- dual credit
- dual enrollment
Tech prep-articulation arguments
Tech prep-articulation arguments are considered as one of the important aspects as far as continued education is concerned. These arguments were quite helpful in integrating the activities because they actually provide a solid framework for implementation. In the similar manner it can be said that an additional feature of these arguments was the linkage of secondary and primary programs. However, in most of the circumstances it can be said that the articulation is concentrated more at the secondary school level and that is the reason why the burden falls on counselors, administrators and teachers of high schools in order to implement these programs.
Dual Credit
The terminology of dual credit and dual credit courses are quite famous in the scenario of colleges and universities. These dual courses are widely used all around the world and these courses in certain cases also count towards the high school requirements. As far as teaching of this course is concerned then it can be said that these courses are taught by a high school teacher with certain appropriate credentials and it might also be taught by a permanent faculty member of a college or a university. The student who has actually taken a dual credit course earns dual credit for the course. Usually the student earns the credit of the high school or college credit for a particular course. In the similar manner it can also be said that both the high school and the college work together to award credit to the student upon the completion of the course (Townsend and Twonbly). In the similar manner another characteristic of dual courses is that they last for a shorter time and these courses are less costly as compared to other courses. Therefore, it can be said that dual credit is quite different from concurrent enrollment and it actually coordinates the credits of both the high school and the college. Similarly, the high school that offers dual credit courses must sign an agreement to enter into the list higher education institutions that offer these courses. In the similar manner this agreement must be updated by the governing body of each institution on a manual basis.
Dual enrollment
As it is implied by the name the dual enrollment is actually a program where the student is enrolled in two different and separate programs but the academic institutions in this scenario are related to each other. However, in most of the scenarios it is not commonly used. This enrollment is usually considered as a strategy that saves the money of the parents and if it is implemented properly then it is beneficial in both the short and the long run. The core difference between dual enrollment and dual credit is that in the scenario of dual credit students receive credits from a single course while in the scenario of dual enrollment a student get him/her enrolled in two different academic institutions (Townsend and Twonbly). This phenomenon is adopted by many individuals all around the world and different institutes offer them.
Works Cited
Townsend, B and S Twonbly. Community Colleges: Policy in the Future Context. Ablex Publishing, 2000.