Literature Review #2

This article summarizes and reports the findings of a study of four trade schools, two in the United States, and two in Europe. These institutions are specialized to certain fields, which the author recognizes as "clusters," because they interact very closely with the companies of their industry from the local area, who help develop and provide funding for the programs. These institutions provide an opportunity for students to gain experience and training in their trade, as most of them provide (or require) opportunities to work while they are in school. After graduation, many students in the United States go on to work for the same companies that they work for in college or other large companies in their industry, while many students in Europe go on to create their own small business.

About the Author: Stuart A. Rosenfeld currently serves as the president of Regional Technology Strategies in Long Hill, North Carolina, and also serves an organization of community and technical colleges in the southern states and Europe called the Trans-Atlantic Technology and Training Alliance. His involvement in both the technology industry itself and training of students looking to enter into some sort of trade or technology industry make him extremely knowledgeable about trade schools, both in the United States and Europe.

Rosenfeld, Stuart A. “Community College/Cluster Connections: Specialization andCompetitiveness in the United States and Europe.” Economic Development Quarterly,vol. 14, no. 1, Sage Publications, Feb. 2000, pp. 51–62.

Key Terms:
Cluster: Rosenfeld uses the term "cluster" to refer to the relationship that trade schools have with local industries in the towns in which they are located. These clusters are important because they allow the schools to develop training programs under the guidance and standard of the companies with equipment that these industries provide and maintain.

Co-op Placements and Apprenticeships: An important feature of the relationship between these community colleges and the industries in the surrounding areas is it allows the students to have a place to work during and after their schooling.

Quotes:
"Although educational institutions are charged mainly with addressing needs of individuals, not economies, many of the colleges that provide postcompulsory but less than baccalaureate education and produce the midskilled workforce have explicit economic development missions" (52).
"...European colleges instead act as brokers, working hand in hand with other agencies that deliver the services" (56).
"Personal interest ('matches interest') was more important to European students (67% and 88% in Denmark and Ireland, respectively) than to U.S. students (28% and 6% in California and Mississippi, respectively), suggesting a weaker economic motive and a stronger personal motive in Europe. Supporting that view, both 'employment opportunity' and 'potential to advance' were more important to U.S. students (a combined 63% in California and 94% in Mississippi)" (57).

This article is valuable to my research because it provides important insight into the community college and trade school aspect of higher education, which is a less frequented choice than a traditional four-year university, but plays just as much of a role in deciding where students would like to continue their education. The comparison and contrast made between trade schools in the United States and Europe in this article is also very important because it relates them directly, and gives statistics from the study that show what types of students attend these institutions and what their goals are.