HAROLD BYLER JR.: U.S. ranking in world leaves little room for complacency

Globalization is affecting all of us, whether or not we realize it.

I'm sure you've noticed most of our products are not only produced in foreign countries now, but also designed in foreign countries by multinational corporations. It's causing deep-seated political changes with a shift in power, away from the nation state, toward multinational corporations.

An example of globalization in the United States is the outsourcing of labor, both blue collar and professional, to countries with lower wages. We can't blame industry, as it must use lower costs to make its products competitive in the world market.

Our high labor costs are the result of past unions' inflationary wage increases. This is causing a major loss of jobs today, as American workers cannot accept lower wages because of the inflated cost of living that accompanied their wage increases.

We're seeing formerly poor countries, such as India, starting to prosper because of increased investment in education. Globally marketed schools, worldwide information and worldwide publishing corporations may transform and displace local cultures, even affecting religious beliefs.

A good higher education today includes some study in a university of another country. Globalization challenges us to rethink not only how much education is needed but also its ultimate purposes.

In the past, the quality of secondary schools in the United States varied significantly from state to state. Nationalized testing has improved standardization of these schools substantially in the last two decades; however, it has created a problem of "teaching to the test" instead of to the subject.

An additional problem appears to be the recent inclusion of political indoctrination in the standards. Politics and religion should never be taught in public schools, except as they relate to historical events.

With the substantial growth in the international student market, the issue of standardization of international education systems arises. Lack of regulation is a major problem with the globalization of higher education.

It is estimated that the number of students seeking university degrees worldwide will roughly double over the next two decades to as high as 250 million, with most of this growth in the developing world. In the U.S. during this time, foreign students will get more than 50 percent of all Ph.D.s awarded in all subjects, and in the sciences, that figure will be closer to 75 percent.

In recent years, there has been a dumbing-down of primary and secondary schools in affluent countries because of a socialistic attempt to equalize all students, which is not possible. U.S. universities have made a concerted effort to expand by lowering acceptance standards, with the support of the U.S. government's financial assistance to students. Instead of improving our educational system, it has actually been detrimental.

Easy financial credit has caused overwhelming student indebtedness. Too many universities lower their standards to accept unqualified students for financial reasons. This is particularly prevalent in schools that are not well-endowed financially.

There needs to be a standardization of university academics and entrance requirements, both in the U.S. and internationally.

The U.S. is still leading the world in education facilities, but is slipping backward in education systems. The U.S. does not have the highest level of adult education; Canada does with 50 percent of its adults having postsecondary school educations.

The top 10 in order are: Canada, Israel, Japan, United States, New Zealand, South Korea, United Kingdom, Finland, Australia and Ireland.

A recent international assessment indicated that adult literacy skills are lower in the U.S. than in 12 other countries, while numeric skills are lower in the U.S. than in 18 other countries. The assessment showed socioeconomic background had a greater effect on education in the U.S. than in other countries.

At this time, there appears to be a need to shift our education policy to increase admission standards for university students and include more trade schools for other students. The U.S. ranks 23rd internationally in the number of students who finish high school.

Although we are ranked fourth in percentage of college-educated adults, the United States is ranked 18th in education systems. The top 20 are: Japan, South Korea, United Kingdom, Singapore, Russia, Finland, Canada, Netherlands, Ireland, Israel, China, New Zealand, Norway, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, U.S., France and Portugal.

It is generally accepted that the major problem in the U.S. education system is lack of discipline in primary and secondary schools because of lack of parental support, causing a decrease in the quality of education. Parents must understand and support the need for discipline in the schools.

I would add to that, there's a need for parents to motivate their children to want to learn and create a life for themselves, instead of relying on their parents or the government to support them. A credit-card mentality has replaced motivation.

Education is a privilege to be earned and the only given right is the opportunity to earn it. If our country is to maintain its status, we must recognize globalization, take advantage of the changing times, and consider them an opportunity.

Harold Byler Jr. lives in Brady. This article is excerpted from a speech he gave recently.

Follow us on Twitter