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Educators Promote Woodshop

woodworking

After years of cutting back, some educators are placing a new emphasis on woodworking, the Boston Globe reported. These educators are being supported by studies showing clear benefits for youth.

  • Retention rates. A study by Calfornia’s Little Hoover Commission found that woodshop and vocational programs help engage students with different learning styles. According to The Boston Globe:

“(Shop students) stayed in school and graduated at (higher rates), and were more likely to pass the high school exit exam and pursue post-secondary education.”

  • Helps teach other subjects. Shop class gives you more than a neat wooden object. APurdue University study concluded in 2009 that hands-on projects intended to solve problems were the best way to interest youths in engineering and technology from a young age.
  • Prevents boredom. Doug Stowe, an expert in the shop education field, notes on his blog,Wisdom of the Hands, that woodworking engages a youth’s hands and mind more constructively than passive activities on electronic devices.
Image via sxc