I just read an interesting article in the New York Times this week about China's effort to share it's culture here in the United States. Many Chinese teachers are now heading stateside to teach Chinese to Americans and their observations on American life provide an interesting perspective on the American way of life.
Noticeably many of these teachers remarked on the lax educational standards and the obliviousness of many American students about life outside our border. One line in the article remarked on a girl's question:
"Where is France?"
That one question alone I think is quite sobering for any American. In China according to teachers there students spend an exorbitant an=mount of time studying all the way through high school up to 14 hours a day. WOW! I certainly hope that our education system will continue to improve.
Recently President Obama recognized the fact that a High school diploma is no longer the green light to the American way of life that we are all so enamored with.
It's becoming ever more important that we recognize that the world has indeed caught up to America in many walks of life and that increasingly we are going to have to invest in our education system like never before to enjoy even a remnant of a leadership role we often take for granted in the world. Just a thought!
Noticeably many of these teachers remarked on the lax educational standards and the obliviousness of many American students about life outside our border. One line in the article remarked on a girl's question:
"Where is France?"
That one question alone I think is quite sobering for any American. In China according to teachers there students spend an exorbitant an=mount of time studying all the way through high school up to 14 hours a day. WOW! I certainly hope that our education system will continue to improve.
Recently President Obama recognized the fact that a High school diploma is no longer the green light to the American way of life that we are all so enamored with.
It's becoming ever more important that we recognize that the world has indeed caught up to America in many walks of life and that increasingly we are going to have to invest in our education system like never before to enjoy even a remnant of a leadership role we often take for granted in the world. Just a thought!
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