SNP article about working together for education

Acting alone, schools cannot prepare students for workforce

Critics of education like to refer to the Rip Van Winkle story to illustrate how slowly education changes. After 100 years of sleep, Van Winkle only recognized the schools because they had not changed at all. Our current global economy paired with the speed of growth in technology is forcing education to change, but many traditional public schools do not have the flexibility or funding to keep up.
Consider this explanation of technology’s future by Ray Kurzweil, a prominent inventor, mathematician, and entrepreneur: “An analysis of the history of technology shows that technological change is exponential, contrary to the common-sense ‘intuitive linear’ view. So we won't experience 100 years of progress in the 21st century -- it will be more like 20,000 years of progress (at today's rate).”
Schools cannot stay current, let alone act as visionaries. They do not have the funding, support from the business community, or time in their curriculum to stray from standardized test prep to adequately engage students in technology. The public is noticing. eSchool News reports that “a recent poll commissioned by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills shows the vast majority of U.S. voters believe students are ill-equipped to compete in the global learning environment, and that schools must incorporate 21st-century skills such as critical thinking and problem solving, communication and self-direction, and computer and technology skills into the curriculum.”
Bill McInturff with Public Opinion Strategies told eSchools the recent poll reveals that voters believe students are not workforce-ready, don't have the breadth of skills needed to succeed in today's world, and are not well-rounded enough.
Failing to teach these 21st-century skills is expensive for the end user, the student. In fact, a recent report by the National Science Foundation found that many of our newest scientists and engineers actually need skills-based training from a community college to be competitive. The report found that 50 percent of the science and engineering graduates who attended a community college went there to, “gain further skills and knowledge in an academic or occupational field.” These college graduates lacked the hands on, practical skills needed to be competitive in their fields. They didn’t have the right training in high school or in college, and now they must attend specialized programs on their own dime, or their company’s dime if they are lucky enough to get a job.
So what do we do? We work together to bring change.
The public needs to educate itself about the educational options out there for their children. They need to force partnerships between their school districts, career centers, local businesses and local colleges. School districts need to focus their finances on what they do well, and outsource what they cannot fund. Students need to have the opportunities for hands on experience through apprenticeships and internships, experiences that can enrich their college education by making the academic information relevant. The path to professional success is changing, and it can be revised to be much more efficient and affordable.
Our economy is global. Our business world is multi-cultural and multi-national. One company may have designers in the United States, manufacturing plants in Mexico, and customer service in India. But, our schools continue to try to do it all in one building with limited resources. That model is not effective, and it will not teach our students how to function in their future careers.
We need a partnership council, and we need one now. Who will join me?