As Indiana school buildings are ordered closed until May, hands-on classes in career and technical education are being forced to adapt. The Indiana Office of Career and Technical Education gave some answers Wednesday on how educators can still meet course requirements.

Anthony Harl is the assistant director of Career and Technical Education for the state of Indiana. He says his office will offer guidance and resources as necessary, but CTE teachers shouldn’t wait to start finding alternatives to hands-on learning.

“This is new territory for all of us,” he says. “I think the best people to decide how to make e-learning work for them, in their course, in their classroom, are really the local instructors.”

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Students won’t be penalized for staying at home and local school districts have authority on how to award high school credit.

For 61,000 students getting college credits in high school, things will be a bit different for at least the next month. Dual enrollment students will attend class online, while dual credit classes will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

For certifications, some industry exams are allowing testing online while others have shifted to appointments only.

High school students in work-based learning experiences are asked to follow the school’s schedule and not report to their worksite. Instead, their work hours may be prorated to meet standards.

Anyone with questions about CTE programming should email cte@gov.in.gov.

Contact Justin at jhicks@wvpe.org or follow him on Twitter at @Hicks_JustinM.

This is a rapidly evolving story, and we are working hard to bring you the most up-to-date information. However, we recommend checking the websites of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Indiana State Department of Health for the most recent numbers of COVID-19 cases.