What does education mean to you? Let us turn our attention to solving one of the nation’s greatest problems, education. Education is one of the most important foundations, if not the most important, to be instilled in today’s children. The fact is, all parents dream of seeing their children choose and ultimately achieve a higher level of education. Are we being overtaken by other countries, are they fast becoming the world’s leading authority and provider of higher education?
It is clear that we need a higher education. We are in an economy that is based on education, we have doctors, lawyers, engineers, scientists and the list goes on. If we cannot hire workers with the training and skills we require, large companies will find it necessary to relocate to the countries where the talent resides. To simply list the position in the simplest way possible, we must hire the best workforce in the world to remain competitive. We are outsourcing our needs because we do not have the level of experience that is required to maintain our own economy.
The need to outsource is only considered a last resort because we cannot keep up with the rest of the world. Many times we don’t have many options; we need raw materials and advanced technology to compete and that only comes with advanced education.
So how do we maintain our education and not sacrifice our economy? We must first develop self-discipline and give teachers the necessary tools so that they can have a positive impact. We must do more to ensure that teachers have the necessary training to teach the subjects they present with a deeper understanding of the curriculum. The fact remains that “America has the lowest high school graduation rate in the world.” If we are to compete in a knowledge-based economy, we must dedicate more resources to our teachers. Teachers must reflect a greater focus on science and math to better prepare students and enable them to compete globally.
While other countries are graduating scientists and engineers at an impressive rate, our students are drifting away from these fields. We have many students looking for a quick solution. They are not willing to put in the time and effort to really understand the curriculum. I witnessed this firsthand when I was in high school and in college. Many students who did their homework the night before didn’t put any real research or effort into their work. I remember many students who had great memories and were able to retain enough to survive.
Understanding is the key to success in whatever you do, if we complete our work without deep understanding; We will not be prepared for a higher education based on the “University”.
Our level of education will play an important role in whether or not our future will be successful in today’s competitive marketplace. If performance and test scores are declining, who should step in and take charge? Should it be our parents, our schools, our government, or a combination? The debate and the dilemma will continue until this growing problem is addressed.