To compete in world, U.S. must reform education

The World War II generation created the quality of life we have enjoyed — and are now losing. When America was threatened, they willingly went to war. When they came home to rebuild their lives, they also worked to make America the leader of the industrial world, with education as the foundation. They simply saw it as their duty: sacrifice, work for the common good and loyalty to country. That's why they're called the "greatest generation."

Now, our nation is facing a new challenge — the ability to adapt to a world that is undergoing rapid change. And a new kind of education is needed, one that prepares knowledge-workers rather than assembly-line workers.

Unlike the greatest generation, some of us are now walking away and finding other ways of educating our children. Many have worked hard to make education better, but the bureaucracy ignores them. Experts tell the public and lawmakers that all they need is more money to fix education. But it's not necessarily broken; it's just old. We should put it in the Smithsonian where we can recall how the greatest generation made America an industrial giant.

Other nations understand the importance of building their education systems to produce the knowledge-workers needed to compete in a digitized global economy. Some are already surpassing us. However, we continue to be in denial, living off our past accomplishments and letting special interests keep the status quo. Rather than trying to fix an outdated and costly education system, we need to restructure it to produce the knowledge-workers necessary for the new economy.

Utah is no different. We know other nations are passing us by, yet those charged with managing our public education seem content with mediocrity. When asked by lawmakers to create world-class math standards comparable to nations such as Singapore, state administrators responded that Utah is above average on international standard tests. Education administrators seem content with 60 percent effort. We need excellence!

All too many of us are busy benefiting from the largesse of our society, with few promoting our nation's well-being and that of our grandchildren. This generation is blessed with talent and a "just do it" slogan that cuts both ways. We have the gift to get things done; however, we don't seem to have the patience needed to bring about social change. We live in a nation with many comforts where the values of the greatest generation are being replaced with a culture of self-interest.