Education... Immigration... Some Policy Ideas [Part I]

One of the things we are looking at locally is the challenge our kids will face in the new global marketplace. A new documentary, "Two Millian Minutes", talkes about the competition from India and China. US children are clearly nonchalant by comparison, putting in less time and generally aloof in their attentions. Studies begin early in these other countries, and they also run late; Their parents are quite serious also. Whether they come here to work or not, their impact is being felt; their numbers are staggering.

Given that we already see the success they have had [Ask your children and anyone in the High-tech industry how much competition already exists], we clearly need to review our own approach and biases. I would suggest that governmental focus is even in the cards; In our universities, we are educating our competition perhaps better than our ourselves. The costs of secondary schooling are spiraling well beyond our ability to afford them - but failing to educate our children will be more costly still.

There is a lot going on here, of course. A friend and I have differing views, but it is clear that many variables contribute to these issues. She is a single mom and would have her children stay at school a full day year round[Policy Change?]; Tranferring the costs she pays for daycare would easily help establish better resources - and her own logistics would be simplified; Our children need to put the time in also. Our own prosperity can no longer simply be taken for granted - we need to put in the effort and be as disciplined as our competitors.

She also believes that related immigration issues need to be addressed. I agree. Documented foreign workers are contributing to social security [they me be the only thing keeping it afloat], but we also pay in social services. Medical care for the uninsured [and other services], teaching English as a second language(?), and the burden on our schools[both in cost and class size/individual student attention]. Undocumented workers add to the challenge. Citizenship being granted automatically by US birth, we have had to close many border hospitals simply because of those rushing the borders to have their children in the US. [Policy Change?]

We can hardly fault them; We are the children of immigrants ourselves. But we can not absorb and provide prosperity for all - Our own infrastructure and citizens are at risk. And the world needs to be sustainable - Other countries need to create opportunity for their own citizens. Part of the model we provide should represent the need to take care of one's citizens... with prejudice. The free flow of humans and goods should be possible, but not to compensate for the failing of whole countries.

I think adopting english as the national language is an idea whose time has come.[Another Policy Change] I believe in knowing many languages; My own heritage includes a strong German influence [also some American Indian, and others] and I truly delighted in visiting that old community in my childhood. They spoke German first and so much European influence was obvious in their craftsmanship and culture. Most Europeans speak at least two languages.

But at the end of the day, the goal is communication. There was a time when immigrants would gather to practice their English, because they knew it would be a key to success. And on the world stage, English remains the language of money. Many speak multiple languages, but English stands out as key for success. To not speak English limits your future, especially in the US.

I think the beautiful languages of other cultures should be retained, but not at the expense of communicating globally. And actually paying with tax dollars to prolong cultural separation is very counter-productive. Oregon recently began firing senior firefighters for not being bi-lingual - Excuse me ?! In a safety-critical situation, speaking English should have been a hiring criteria. And teaching Spanish to help converse with victims and witnesses is interesting... How many languages do we need to support for this noble cause? (e.g. Chinese, Japanese, Korean, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, .... Do you know how long this list is?) We can not be cohesive as a nation without communication; We can not share vision and direction until we can understand each other.

I do think our educational systems need some contemplation also. We have the technology to support teaching on the internet; And the cost of schools, staff, transportation and other infrastructure is becoming problematic. There are many jobs now that can be done from home because of the internet; I believe schooling may also have some new opportunities. We may also need national standards for education [though anything national seems to cost a lot more - why is that?].

Of course, social skills and individual attention are still important. Parents also are not necessarily the best stewards on study skills and discipline - They have enough on their plate that it does make sense to leverage professionals on this skillset. Schooling completely at home is simply incomplete; Children are often abused - or simply not exposed to enough broad ideas and social interaction - when parents are allowed to isolate them; Children must make an appearance in the real world weekly, being seen by their peers, by adults, and by a diverse group - the world is diverse, after all.

But how we distribute education is due for change. Perhaps we could educate online primarily and drive teachers to problems areas and periodic individual attention. With all the churches we have... those easily could double as smaller schools; I stop short a bit there though - too many would seek to impose/propagate religious views here. We do pay both for schools and for churches though... we are paying for extra buildings, I think; How many churches sit quiet most of the week?

I think the realm of education is due for serious problem-solving. Ideas?