There's something bewitching about Brooklyn's Pathways in Technology Early College High School.

Politicians become entranced by it. Inspired.

US President Barack Obama was so impressed by P-TECH, as it's known, that he hailed the school in his 2013 State of the Union address as a model to emulate.

"Let's also make sure that a high school diploma puts our kids on a path to a good job," he said.

"At schools like P-TECH in Brooklyn - a collaboration between New York Public Schools, the City University of New York, and IBM - students will graduate with a high school diploma and an associate degree in computers or engineering."

Prime Minister Tony Abbott emerged equally impressed when he toured the school in June. This week, Mr Abbott announced the government will spend $500,000 on a pilot "technology early high school" program in Geelong.

Like at P-TECH, students at the Geelong pilot school will study computer programming, undertake workplace visits and internships alongside normal classes. The business partner – yet to be announced – will help write the curriculum and offer pathways to employment for graduates.

Predictably, the Left was furious.

"Schools aren't sweat shops for churning out entry level workers," said Labor's Kate Ellis.

"Do we really want our kids learning nutrition from fast food companies?" asked Greens Senator Penny Wright. "Or being taught the science of climate change by big polluters?"

When asked whether companies such as McDonalds could be involved in the program, Mr Abbott said this was not likely but "if it's about the application of engineering principles to the fast food sector, maybe conceivably there could be some role".

There are important values at play. How appropriate is it for business to help write a school curriculum? Should young children be shepherded towards a particular career before they have graduated high school?

Just as important, though, is the question: will this work?

Based on the P-TECH experience, it's too early to tell.

The school only opened in 2011, meaning its first class of students won't graduate until 2017. So there's no hard data about how many students graduated, how many got a job, where they work and whether they stayed employed.

But the early signs are exciting.

Sixty per cent of students have earned college credits equating to a semester; 40 per cent have completed the equivalent of a year of college.

Meanwhile, only a quarter of New York high school students graduate ready for college.

And results show P-TECH's students – most of whom are black and Hispanic boys – are performing better than expected in English and mathematics exams.

Professor Stephen Dinham, President of the Australian College of Educators, praises the government for focusing on science, technology, engineering and maths in schools.

These schools could make a big difference for a small number of students, he says.

But Dinham's priority is for universities to train more specialised maths and science teachers; for high-quality teachers to be spread more evenly around the country; and for more targeted funding for schools in poor and regional areas.

"A third of 15 year olds are taught maths by an untrained person," he says.

"A few high-profile flagships are nice but there are bigger, more systemic issues to tackle.

There are now 16 similar schools in the US and enrolments are booming.

It would be a mistake to ignore such success - or to see it as a solution to broader problems in education and employment. 

smh.com.au