摘要
For decades, the United States＇ competitive position in global manufacturing has steadily declined. Analysts point to increasingly automated manufacturing processes, changing domestic demand factors, outsourcing, and over confidence in service export surplnses. However, Asian and European competitors, undergoing the same pressures, have been able to maintain a healthy percentage of their GDP in manufacturing by growing high techjobs while the United States continues to fall behind, Perhaps the most flmdamental and overlooked contribution to this decline is the lackluster performance of the United States education system. After comparing the performance of US students to that of the other G-8 nations in the critical disciplines of math and science literacy, US students rank last. Furthermore, the most recent PISA test results show US students rank in the bottom half of 30 participating nations in the ability to apply math and science concepts to real world problems. This is particularly troubling when one considers that among the compared nations, the US spends the most on math and science teacher compensation. If the US intends to successfully compete in the global manufacturing arena, significant changes to the education system must be enacted. A new strategy aligning the system with real world demands should begin with a national initiative to increase Pre-K enrollments, a paradigm shift from liberal arts to math, science, problem solving and critical thinking, standardized policies aligning high school graduation requirements with college and work place expectations, and standardized college and career readiness assessment programs. These steps combined with more rigorous secondary education teacher certifications, continued education and involvement with universities and manufacturing f＇mns within the community, should more adeq^tely prepare high school students for further study or to enter the skilled workforce. At the post secondary level, federal and state funding should be targeted to R＆D programs specificly to industrial design, engineering, and alternative energy. Industry investment in such programs should be federally incentivized to foster cooperative relationships between business and academia. Such relationships will ensure faculty spend time focusing on how their discipline relates to manufacturing and instilling the necessary skill sets, knowledge and abilities which graduates will need to compete in the global market. Such a revised system will position the US to create and keep high paying manufacturing positions on its way to sustainable economic growth.
