Finding the best curriculum for your schools can be overwhelming when you consider all the available options on the market today. Between the needs of your educators, the desired learning environment for your students and budgetary restrictions, there are also many factors you have to think about to make the right choice for your program.
As a dedicated provider of Career and Technical Education (CTE) curriculum, we’re often asked who are the best CTE curriculum providers. The truth is, which provider is “best” will often depend on the needs of your district.
In this article, you’ll discover five CTE providers, the courses they offer, how much they cost and what their pros and cons are.
The top five CTE curriculum providers are:
- eDynamic Learning
- Savvas / Pearson
- McGraw Hill
- National Geographic Learning
- Apex Learning
By the end of this article, you’ll have all the information to decide which provider meets your requirements and who is the best fit for your schools, staff and students.
1. eDynamic Learning CTE Curriculum
eDynamic Learning is a teacher-founded company, established in 2008 with a mission of helping students find their passion. eDynamic Learning focuses on creating programs of study in pathways that lead to industry-recognized certifications. With nearly 250 courses available, they’re one of the largest publishers of CTE and elective courses.
eDynamic Learning currently offers various courses across 15 career clusters:
- Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources
- Arts, A/V Technology & Communications
- Business Management & Administration
- Education & Training
- Family & Consumer Sciences
- Finance
- Government & Public Administration
- Health Sciences
- Hospitality & Tourism
- Human Services
- Information Technology
- Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security
- Manufacturing
- Marketing, Sales & Services
- Science, Technology, Engineering & Math
In addition to their extensive and comprehensive curriculum options, eDynamic Learning also aligns its Business, Health Science, Education & Training, Hospitality and Information Technology courses to various industry certifications.
How Much Does eDynamic Learning Cost?
Currently, eDynamic Learning does not have pricing listed on its website, so you’ll have to reach out to a sales representative for the most accurate pricing.
What are the Pros and Cons of the eDynamic Learning Curriculum?
With any curriculum, it’s necessary to assess each option's advantages and disadvantages to determine which provider best meets the needs of your students and faculty.
eDynamic Learning Curriculum’s pros include:
- Multimedia content, including videos
- Alignments to industry certifications
- Hands-on digital activities and simulations
- Formative and summative assessments
- Reflective discussion assignments
- Integrations with multiple Learning Management Systems (LMS)
- Access to support teams, guides and resources for teachers
- All courses meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
With flexible, hands-on and interactive features, your students and teachers can engage with this curriculum in a way that best suits their styles. Additionally, with the many resources it offers, your educators are ensured to have the tools needed to adapt the curriculum to their classrooms.
However, as we all know, there isn’t one perfect solution that can meet every student and teacher’s requirements.
Some of the cons of this curriculum include:
- Not every career pathway is fully comprehensive
- No readily available information on pricing
- All curriculum, activities and assignments are digital
When deciding on a curriculum, it’s vital to consider all subject areas your educators teach and the learning journey you want your students to experience. While not all of the cons are necessarily a deal-breaker, eDynamic Learning might not be the best overall option for your school if you’re needing a robust curriculum for all career pathways or needing print resources.
2. Savvas Learning Company CTE Curriculum
Savvas Learning Company is a next-generation education company that combines new ideas, new ways of thinking, and new ways of interacting to create innovative learning solutions. In their partnership with Pearson, Savvas Learning Company offers the 21st Century CTE program to help learners discover career pathways and achieve academic and career success.
The 21st Century CTE program provides 258 courses covering 15 career clusters:
- Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources
- Architecture & Construction
- Arts, A/V Technology & Communications
- Business Management & Administration
- Education & Training
- Health Science
- Hospitality & Tourism
- Human Services
- Information Technology
- Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security
- Manufacturing
- Marketing
- Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
- Transportation, Distribution & Logistics
- Finance
Savvas curriculum includes MyLab from Pearson, a flexible online resource that provides assessments and personalizes course content to address students' individual learning styles. MyLab engages students with interactive media, video presentations, simulations and activities. The platform also enables instructors to manage, customize, and deliver their courses digitally.
How Much Does Savvas Learning Company’s Curriculum Cost?
While Savvas Learning Company does not have their pricing currently listed, educators can request a sample of their curriculum to begin the quoting process with a sales representative.
What are the Pros and Cons of the Savvas Learning Company Curriculum?
Like many curriculum providers, there are advantages and disadvantages to utilizing Savvas’ offerings over other competitors. Depending on your school's requirements, Savvas Learning Company might be a strong choice for your students.
Pros of Savvas Learning curriculum:
- Provides options for both digital and print curriculum
- Allows courses to be filtered by what is accepted by either Perkins V or ESSER funding
- Access to MyLab resource that provides:
- Assessments
- Personalizes course content
- Teaching resources
- Automatic grading for projects
While Savvas Learning Company does provide great benefits with their curriculum, including digital resources for both your educators and your students, it can be inconsistent when it comes to teaching all CTE subject areas.
Some of the cons of this curriculum include:
- Not every course offered is available in both print and digital
- Not all career paths are comprehensive
- MyLab by Pearson is not available for every course offered
In short, depending on which CTE subject area your school offers, Savvas Learning Company has great advantages to utilizing their curriculum. However, they could fall short if you offer a course that they don’t comprehensively cover with their materials.
McGraw Hill CTE Curriculum
Many are familiar with McGraw Hill curriculum and textbooks, but may not realize that they also offer CTE curriculum as well. McGraw Hill focuses on empowering instructors and institutions to unlock the potential of each learner at every stage of life, no matter where their starting points may be.
McGraw Hill’s digital platforms adapt to help meet learners where they are and advance with them as they progress toward their goals. They accomplish this by providing high-quality content and flexible tools to meet different teaching and learning styles.
McGraw Hill offers 17 courses across five career clusters:
- Business
- Health Science
- Criminal Justice
- Personal Financial Literacy
- Early Childhood Education
However, only the Business and Health Science clusters are comprehensive, while Criminal Justice, Personal Financial Literacy and Early Childhood Education are only supplemental.
How Much Does McGraw Hill Curriculum Cost?
McGraw Hill offers a variety of options including instructor materials, digital versions and textbooks. Additionally, McGraw Hill separates each course into its own pricing breakdown so every subject area and course will be priced differently.
Textbooks range from $54 to over $200. While the digital curriculum can range from $57 to $198. There are also 6-year student bundles that include an online and print edition available for purchase typically around $200.
To purchase this curriculum, you can either place an order online or request a quote to get bulk order pricing.
What are the Pros and Cons of the McGraw Hill Curriculum?
While McGraw Hill has a reputation for being one of the best curriculum providers available, there are still pros and cons that you should consider before implementing their materials into your school.
Pros of implementing McGraw Hill Curriculum:
- High-quality curriculum developed by industry professionals and educators
- Custom resources per course like case studies, real-world discussion questions and relevant industry tips
- Access to teaching resources like chapter reviews, practice questions and digital teaching guide
- Advanced reporting from digital platforms
With these great benefits, McGraw Hill might be a strong option for you to consider. However, there are still some gaps in their offerings that should be considered before moving forward.
Some of the cons of implementing this curriculum include:
- Does not offer curriculum for all CTE subject areas
- Pricing and bundles differ for each course within a subject area
- Access to a digital platform will depend if the course is compatible with one of their platform options
- Only a select few of their subject areas are comprehensive
McGraw Hill could be a good choice for you if you’re looking for a comprehensive curriculum for only a select few career pathways, or if you want a supplemental curriculum to accompany your existing lesson plans. Whatever the case, McGraw Hill has some excellent advantages many schools can benefit from.
4. National Geographic Learning CTE Curriculum
National Geographic Learning, a part of Cengage, publishes curriculum developed by authors who draw on experiences as CTE teachers and industry professionals. Their digital solutions are developed by experienced Learning Designers who build interactive activities and assessments that engage students and prepare them for success in their careers.
National Geographic Learning includes courses for four career paths:
- Agriculture
- Health Science
- Business & Information Technology
- Technical Trades
In their partnership with Cengage, National Geographic Learning provides access to MindTap, an online learning platform that gives instructors complete course control through personalized, engaging experiences as well as delivers access to eTextbooks, study tools and resources.
How Much Does National Geographic Learning Curriculum Cost?
Currently, there is no pricing information available for their curriculum. In order to get the most accurate pricing information, you must first request a quote from one of their sales consultants.
What are the Pros and Cons of the National Geographic Learning Curriculum?
When comparing multiple curriculum providers, it’s crucial to consider both their high points and gap areas to ensure your specific student needs are being met. For example, National Geographic Learning Curriculum provides a variety of engaging and interactive resources but they don’t offer curriculum for all career pathways.
Pros of the National Geographic Learning curriculum:
- All CTE courses have optional access to the MindTap digital platform
- Includes engaging and interactive features like:
- Interactive simulations
- Media-rich content
- Real-world scenarios
- Detailed reporting and analytics
- Aligned to industry certifications
With such a great partnership between Cengage and National Geographic Learning, it could be an easy choice to select their curriculum to implement in your schools. However, like any curriculum provider, there could be disadvantages that could influence your decision.
Some of the cons of this curriculum include:
- Doesn’t provide curriculum for all 16 career pathways
- MindTap is not included and must be purchased for each student, per course
- Teacher resources must be purchased separately
If you’re looking for comprehensive curriculum for a specific subject area that aligns with industry certifications and has access to digital resources, National Geographic Learning could be a good option for you.
However, if you’re under budget restrictions or looking for a comprehensive curriculum for all subject areas, this resource might not be a good fit.
5. Apex Learning CTE Curriculum
Apex Learning is a digital curriculum company powered by innovative courses that prepare students for industry exams, engage them in career exploration, and teach them about emerging career paths.
Apex Learning includes courses for 10 career pathways:
- Architecture and Construction
- Arts, A/V Tech & Communications
- Business Management & Administration
- Finance
- Education & Training
- Health Science
- Information Technology
- STEM
- Transportation, Distribution & Logistics
- Project Management
While Apex Learning provides content for multiple areas within CTE, their courses are supplementary and would have to accompany already robust lesson plans and activities.
How Much Does Apex Learning Curriculum Cost?
Apex Learning does not have pricing information readily available. In order to get the most accurate pricing, you’ll have to connect with a sales consultant for more information.
What are the Pros and Cons of the Apex Learning Curriculum?
With so many great curriculum providers, it can be difficult to weigh your options. However, by understanding your school's needs, budget restrictions and the resources your educators require, you’ll be able to make the best choice for your students and staff.
Pros of Apex Learning Curriculum:
- The curriculum utilizes pedagogical steps like Understanding Design and Project-Based Learning
- Aligned to industry certifications
While Apex Learning could be a valuable curriculum provider, there is not enough information provided to determine all of their value adds. In order to get a clearer picture of what it could be like to implement Apex Learning curriculum, you can reach out to a sales consultant for more information.
Some of the cons of this curriculum include:
- No readily available information on additional provided resources outside of the course curriculum
- No features like auto-grading, interactive simulations or real-world scenarios
- No available information on pricing or what is included in your purchase
Apex Learning does have great options for curriculum. However, due to the lack of information available, if you are looking for a curriculum to implement quickly, this might not be the best option for you.
Which CTE Curriculum is Best For My Students?
With so many great curriculum providers, it can be difficult to decipher which is best to meet your school’s demands. Still, by comparing their offerings, costs, as well as pros and cons, you can rest assured that you have the information to make the right choice.
If you’re looking for a fully digital resource that has courses in all career pathways and a full suite of student and teacher resources, eDynamic Learning could be a good fit for you.
But, if your schools require both textbooks and digital resources as well as a customizable digital platform, Savvas Learning Company might be the right choice.
McGraw Hill could be a good option for you if you need high-quality, comprehensive curriculum for a select few areas.
Additionally, if you’re interested in detailed reporting, analytics and engaging features for your students, National Geographic Learning might your best option.
Finally, if you’re looking for a supplemental resource, Apex Learning could be the right fit for you.
However, if none of these options fit the needs of your students, consider iCEV’s CTE Curriculum.
iCEV’s online curriculum platform is changing the way Career and Technical Education programs prepare students for the workforce. With standards-aligned and industry certification-aligned courses, integrated career prep and interactive coursework, iCEV is bridging the gap between education and the workforce.
