Globalization: U.S. governors say transform education

According to the AP's Governors Push to Keep U.S. Competitive (2-27-07), the nation's governors acknowledge that globalization has come to every hometown, every school and every workplace. However, American students and workers are ill-prepared.

The governors ended a 4-day National Governors Association's meeting with a call for a "national commitment to change."

Instead of calling for counter-productive measures such raising barriers to trade and closing borders to immigrant workers, the governors have rightly focused on the need "a sweeping transformation of education, worker training and economic development."

Here are some of the strategies the governors propose:

Refocus on science, technology, engineering, math and foreign language proficiency. They are seeking programs to encourage students and teachers in those subject matters.

Make worker training more flexible, coordinate training with regional needs and make progress measurable.

Create federal ''competitive innovation grants'' to encourage states to develop regional hubs that build on existing strengths, like computer development in North Carolina's Raleigh-Durham area.