During this election year, nearly every candidate will support improving Hawaii's educational system. Just how to do that is open to debate, and debate there certainly has been over the schools budget, quality of teachers, quality of students and standard and SAT scores.

My purpose here is not to address all such needs. Instead, it is to suggest that the goals of our public schools (kindergarten-12) must be integrated, and that the transition of students from our schools into our work force should be seamless.

I strongly believe that it is time for Hawaii to expand vocational education in the public system. Many employers in the state are concerned that isle graduates are not adequately prepared for the job market. Despite their enthusiasm, job seekers right out of high school are at a disadvantage, primarily because of the lack of vocational training in our high schools.

SAT scores are important, of course, to students whose objective is college preparation. For students who have no intention of going to college, however, entry to the work force requires that they have the knowledge and practical employment skills. Therefore, rather than comparing test scores, all elected officials and educational leaders should be asking: “;What should we expect of our students after a certain level of education?”;

The answer is that we expect them to be industrious and productive. We expect them to be able to contribute to our economy. We expect them to add new blood and renewed enthusiasm to our work force. We expect them to supplement, not detract, from our collective business endeavors. In this respect, public schools should understand the economic and business vision of our state and produce graduates who can carry that out.

For several years the state Department of Education has teamed up with the business community to teach students what it takes to be successful in the business world. However, this program alone is not sufficient. A renewed and expanded focus on vocational training is needed.

For example, much has been written about the competitiveness of the Japanese high school. But what has been overlooked is that in the Japanese high schools, there also is a strong system of technical, commercial and vocational curricula. It attempts to provide skills that are immediately useful to students upon graduation.

Especially during the last three years of public high school in Hawaii, student curricula should be tailored to each student's ability and aptitude. If diversified agriculture is significant, we should train students in that field. Likewise, we should train them in aquaculture, high technology, nursing, accounting, culinary arts, aircraft mechanics and much more.

There is no doubt that minimum levels of knowledge and academics are essential. But vocational objectives should also be considered. We must help students make the transition from schools to the business community.