Suzy laughed when I told her I was going to write my feature article this month on the book, “The World is Flat.” To be honest, I think my friends are getting sick of me talking about things I garnered from Thomas Friedman’s tome about business (and education) in the 21st century. Since I bought five copies of it to share with those on my Christmas list in 2005, you get a picture of how strongly I feel about the insight Friedman has into the challenges facing America in a global economy.
It was just as bad a number of years ago after reading Friedman’s “From Beirut to Jerusalem;” an account of why things are as they are in the Middle East.
“The World is Flat,” in my opinion, should be mandatory reading for all American high school freshmen—not to mention the rest of us. Essentially, Friedman points out that American students are not matching up to the high academic standards of students in China and India—where high school students are required to pass biochemistry before they graduate from high school. Most of our students are having a hard time getting through basic algebra!
Friedman talks about radiologists in India reading our films, American tax returns being prepared in India and Indians answering phones for American companies. But more importantly, he talks about an educated Indian population that exceeds the entire American population in numbers. He talks about the five universities in India where if you don’t get in, you are taking a step down by going to MIT. And that’s not to mention what’s happening in China.
So, next time that student in your life complains about the work they’re required to do, remind them of those students in China who are required to complete not one--but two years of biochemistry--while still in high school. And ask your student how they plan to compete in a world that has been flattened by instant global communications.
Some of this information is included in a PowerPoint presentation that a friend in the healthcare industry sent me recently. It takes about six minutes to run and it's well worth the time: didyouknow
Finally, I read something while studying at Fresno State a few years ago that really struck me as being a revelation. It said that the great inventions of the past were all done in isolation. People didn’t have the means to collaborate on projects others than through telephone calls, snail mail and maybe traveling to conferences. In today’s world, collaboration with someone across the world is as easy as a keystroke. Just think of the opportunities that presents.