Our Sources Say
How Smart Are We?
A
re Americans the smartest people in the world? Just look at all we produce. Didn’t we invent the computer, telephone, television, light bulb, airplane and so many other things critical to society? Didn’t Al Gore invent the Internet? Doesn’t that mean we are smarter than other people in the world? PowerSouth makes a substantial investment in developing jobs in the communities our distribution members serve. We are deeply involved with the Alabama and Florida economic development communities, investing in efforts to provide a better quality of life for the people we serve. When asked, “What is the most important element of economic development?” my answer is always and emphatically, “A quality education.” Without an understanding of fundamental subjects, knowledge of how the world works, outstanding technical skills and a grasp of business concepts, people will not be successful, cannot compete in a global economy, and will fall short of obtaining the lifestyles they want for themselves and their families. Just how smart are we? The Program for International Student Assessment finds that America’s top suburban schools are in the middle of the global pack. American 15-year-olds with at least
Gary Smith is President and CEO of PowerSouth Energy Cooperative 36 JANUARY 2013
one parent with a college education are 42 percent proficient at math, compared to 75 percent in Shanghai and 50 percent in Canada. The Global Report Card finds that American suburban schools do not perform nearly as well as those in Finland and Singapore. Worse, American urban and rural schools perform much more poorly than suburban schools. If you are reading this article, it is very likely the children in your community fall far short in education compared to many other countries. In fact, the Southern Education Foundation finds that many school systems in rural Alabama graduate less than half the students who start in kindergarten. If true, that record is as disturbing as it is embarrassing. Our adult education record is equally poor, with the percentage of American adults with college degrees ranking 14th out of 29 countries surveyed. Russia, Korea, France, Norway and others rank higher in the percentage of adults holding college degrees than the U.S. A large number of college degrees held by Americans are in the softer areas like business management and not in the technical or production sciences. If studies are correct, American schools are failing students and communities. We are falling behind other countries in preparing our young people for a successful future. Our youth are not receiving the education and experience necessary to find and hold the types of jobs that will support a family in an information-based economy. This is certainly the case in the rural South as low-
end, labor-intensive jobs disappear. We have done a poor job of educating our children in the rural South. It is easy to push blame onto school administrators and teachers, and some of the blame should fall there. However, there is plenty of blame to lay at the feet of politicians who do not provide public support or funding for education; businessmen like me who are not forward-thinking enough to provide infrastructure for education to create good employees for the future; and parents who leave the critical job of educating their children to others. But our greatest shortcoming is apathy about education. Most of us don’t think about education often, and when we do, we don’t care very much about it. We don’t think it is important to us. If we don’t get serious about education soon, our communities, states and country will fall behind in the contest of global competition. Our jobs will be exported, our lifestyles will decline and our communities will die. What can be done? First, define what a quality education truly is. Don’t take my word or an education official’s word for it. Find out what other states and countries are doing in education. Second, become involved in education in your community and insist that our children have the same opportunities as the children in suburban areas and other countries to obtain a quality education. Third, care about the education and future of our youth. It is the only chance they have. Thank you for reading. I hope you have a good month. A
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