(The following is an excerpt from Jennifer Kushell’s post on The Huffington Post)
As I sit on my final plane ride of an almost 30 hour trek back to Los Angeles from Singapore, I can’t help but worry about the future of America.
Sure, I watched the debates. Watched the House vote to try to bail our country out of pending financial ruin. Watched TV anchors risk whiplash as stock market plunged and surged. Watched the most prestigious institutions drop suddenly like flies. And I won’t even get into what it was like to watch tourists taking photos of themselves in front of Lehman Brothers last week when I was in NYC.
Amidst all of this chaos, deep in my heart I believe the American spirit will prevail. What scared me most this week in East Asia though, was literally being surrounded by the global emerging workforce — graduating students from dozens of countries around the world… and wondering if the spirit of our young people is strong enough to keep us globally competitive into the future. After all the dust settles, will they really be ready to lead?
The government and corporate world aren’t the only ones in the US who need to clean up their acts and step up their games… click here for the full article
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I read the full article on the Huffington Post as well as the comments.
After studying, living and working abroad for a number of years. I think there is a lot of truth in what Jen says. To address some of the comments: I don’t think that she is necessarily blaming the youth in the USA, rather challenging them, throwing down the gauntlet if you will. The state of our country comes from the society as a whole, the point is the next generation has the power to be a driving force in the future. They just need to step up and take responsibility.
One of the worst things that I have seen in the last decade is an increase in an isolationist attitude. A great is example of this goes back to when I was in college. I remember sitting at lunch in the University cafeteria and reading the USAToday. Arguably not the greatest newspaper in the world, but it was the only one that you could get in the area that covered international news. The guy that I was eating with saw that I was reading the international news so he asked, “Why are you reading that?” I answered, “Because I like to know what is going on in the rest of the world.” His reply, “Why? You’re not there.” I was shocked. This attitude of the rest of the world is inconsequential and we need not be concerned with it is very dangerous. Now, I don’t know if people who take this view do it out of ignorance or arrogance, but the fact is we are not in this world alone. If we don’t pay attention to what other countries and other people are doing we risk the chance of being left behind. We can learn a lot from other cultures. We don’t have to like everything they do, nor do we have to change to be like them. But, learning from diversity can have amazing results. Seeing that there are other perspectives out there can open your mind to solutions you never would have discovered otherwise. That, can only be a good thing.
Something that I believe can combat against the isolationistic attitude is if every student studied abroad. This would give them the chance to see another country/culture and expose them to new ideas and perspectives. It doesn’t have to be something drastic either, an exchange in England or Australia where you don’t even have to learn new language, or even our close neighbor Canada. Just getting slightly out of your comfort zone and pushing your own boundaries will make you a stronger person. It is amazing how exciting and eye opening even just a semester or a year abroad can be. Plus, if you don’t like it, you can go back home after your time is up.
Though, I would be willing to bet that the experience will make you see things in a different light.
You are so right about the value of international exposure and the importance of staying aware of global events. Having worked with college students for years, I agree that many are neither aware nor curious.
Having said that, there is a definite increase in the number of students I see who want to study abroad or do semesters overseas.
I wrote an article titled – Employers Value Candidates who Study Abroad, with tips for students on how to be safe overseas.
Marcie