The Association of Woodworking & Furnishings Suppliers participated in the fourth U.S.-China State and Provincial Education Leaders Dialogue: Technical and Vocational Education and Training at the Department of Education in Washington D.C., on Oct. 30-31, 2018.

The trade association was invited as a result of AWFS education director Adria Salvatore’s role as Chair of the Association for Career and Technical Education’s Business & Industry Advisory Group.

The summit consisted of constructive dialogue and information sharing from both countries, alternating presenters from the U.S. and China. In summary, the countries agreed that there should be multiple pathways and options for students, ways for students to apply their learning, and industry participation for well-rounded learning opportunities, according to the AWFS.

“We learned about the structure of Technical and Vocational Education and Training and the role of industry and the federal, state and local government in the process in China,” says Salvatore. “There were identifiable similarities and differences between the approaches of the two countries. However, the U.S. and China are able to learn from one another and there was valuable information shared that will help us all strengthen Career Technical Education.”

Attendees included officials from the U.S. Department of Education and the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China, U.S. State and Chinese Provincial Education Chiefs, CTE directors and providers and CTE-focused industry representatives.

For more, visit www.awfs.org.

This article originally appeared in the January 2019 issue.