I am glad that someone with respected ideas and a good voice to express what he sees has expressed what I have felt for years. America is falling behind, and no one seems to be really doing anything about it. I beleive that the advances in promoting STEM education for preparation in STEM careers is great, but I am afraid that it is not enough. Even worse, I fear that STEM is an idea that is not fully supported by US entities. I have noticed that when there is a gap in education, experts will come up with a solution, slap and acronym on it, and think that makes it official enough to bandaid the problems. The problem is that bandaids to do not last, and neither do the solutions that America frequently creates. Unfortunately, educators frequently latch on to these ideas and run with them which basically "enables" our government to continue avoiding the problem and coming up with bogus solutions (Friedman, 2010).
Friedman had it right when he accused America of having its interests in oil and other lands (Friedmand, 2010). Why will America send troops overseas with guns-a-blazin' to protect our oil interests, risking lives and billions of dollars, yet won't fight just as hard a war to promote the kind of education that our children need to compete in a global market just a few short years down the road? It does not make sense now, and it certainly won't make sense when other countries who ARE targeting their funds to such ideas are strong enough to make sure the USA is no longer the big dog on the block.
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