I have attached an article that appears in the October 2006 issue of Entrepreneur magazine. The main point of the article is that schools are failing not only the students, but the businesses as well. If students are not up to speed on the changes that are occurring in the world, particularly in the area of technology, businesses will suffer as well. These students after all are going to make up the prospective workforce. Unskilled labor (lack of technology) and cost factors (welfare costs rising) are just a few problems that are discussed.
What I found exceptionally interesting and irritating was that “big business” has not stepped forward to help. If businesses were to rise up and challenge these “bureaucratic regulations” we would have a better chance for a reform movement in education that is long overdue. You would think that a skilled workforce would be a top priority for these entrepreneurs.
C
Education in Motion
Reading is Fundamental
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2 comments:
Chrissy,
That article really shows the recent shift in what we consider to be business training. My experience is that the idea of school-as-business training seems to anger a lot of people. I’ve heard sentiments like “So you want us to train them to be cogs in the machine?”, which is exactly how that article describes the industrial-era approach to schooling.
This new approach, focusing on developing different skills, echoes a lot of what Friedman is saying. The notion of a marketable skill set has evolved, while our attitudes obviously haven’t. I agree that the businesses themselves have a part to play in that development.
Anyway, I’ve read a couple of Alvin Toffler’s books (the guy quoted in your article). He’s got some interesting ideas and insights, even if some of them are outlandish.
Anyway, there’s a quote of his that’s relevant to what we’re doing in class right now: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” –Rethinking the Future
-James
I like the quote that James chose to take from Toffler.
My question is this: who is in control here, the people or technology? We're growing ever closer to the man versus machine "war games." Are we capable of slowing technology enough to give people a chance to catch up? Or is technology destined to grow exponentially, essentially picking up those who are already waiting in station?
In a capitalist society, are we not always training our youth to be more efficient carpenters of profit and more obseqious slaves to big business?
As much as we protest the manipulation of children to fit the mold of society, is it not still necessary?
Could we still function or prosper as a society if all people truly had freedom of choice and flexibility of desire?
It seems to be that some of those things need to be channeled.
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