Businesses demand an educated and innovative workforce, but colleges and universities have not supplied the graduates, argues columnist Tom Still of the Wisconsin Technology Network. International students receive more training and earn more doctoral degrees in the United States than residents.
MADISON, WIS. -- One of the best economic stimulus plans for Wisconsin may have less to do with federal pump-priming than with building on proven ways to turn on today's students to science, technology, engineering and math. Some first-rate educational programs are working in Wisconsin, but progress is far from universal and even the best schools can't do it alone. It is important to align the needs and resources of private business with what schools can, and should, offer all students.
Matching business "demand" with school "supply" is a goal of Educating a Tech-Savvy Workforce, a series of public meetings that began last month at UW-Stevens Point. The series will explain why it's important to build a competitive workforce in Wisconsin, highlight best practices and offer ways for business leaders and others to get involved close to home.
Although polls indicate most Americans believe children are getting about the right amount of science and math education in elementary, middle and high school, others are not persuaded those students are uniformly getting a high-quality education. Some national figures help to explain the concern.
There has been a slow but steady decline in the number of U.S. college graduates with so-called STEM degrees as measured against other nations. In 1975, the United States was third in per capita science-related degrees; today it ranks 17th. In 2006, 62 percent of the doctoral degrees awarded in the United States were given to foreign nationals -- most of whom return home.
Part of the slide is due to the rise of market economies in nations such as China and India; they're simply cranking out more STEM-educated children to meet the demands of their own economies. But the failure to keep pace begins in our own classrooms. Fewer students are engaged in science or math courses beyond the core requirements, in part because they're not always exposed to the latest teaching techniques or a hands-on experience that highlights the fun and opportunity of science.
That's a problem for many reasons, starting with the needs of 21st industry. Today's manufacturing sector worker is more likely to be a technology worker, a member of a team and a problem-solver than yesterday's assembly line worker. Whether it's healthcare, information technology, biotechnology or bio-products, all of those sectors will require workers who understand science, math or even engineering.
It is vital to our economic competitiveness -- as well as our national security -- that American workers remain the best educated and most innovative. Losing that edge will cost the nation in ways that can only be imagined as productivity, per capita income and quality of life fall into a spiral.
For the complete story, visit the Wisconsin Technology Network.
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