Barbarians At the Gates

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. October 14, 2008

MARCH 13, 2007. Like scenes from a never-ending story, where there in endless halls and huge chambers, dark robes and heavy cloaks slide, stern men in attire ready to quip and stab gather, a decorum of strained hostilities and false grins, and somewhere there, they greet the wizard of the century, the one who pauses, takes a posture and then sharply raises his voice and addresses the chamber: "Sire, your children are in trouble, failing in education while you are shutting doors on highly skilled magicians from far away lands...open the gates and let the talent march in, or this land is in trouble." In quick response from the very high altar, the hooded men shout unison: "Close the doors; they are nothing but barbarians outside the gates. Orchestral sound takes over the scene. Popcorn time.

In reality, and on a much smaller scale, this scene was replayed during one of the US Senate Committee hearings, headed by Senator Edward Kennedy, focused on "Strengthening American Competitiveness for the 21 st Century", with Bill Gates as the principal witness. Chairman Gates, one of the wealthiest and most admired men of our times has been rightfully candid on this issue, as he criticized the blockage of bright, highly educated foreign students for seeking opportunities in the US after their graduation. The newly-implemented immigration policy has rejected both domestically-educated engineering and science graduates, and foreign professionals who seek to enter the US

The main problem lies in American education at the high school level, being at the lowest among the industrialized nations, which can likely result in a shortage of domestic human resources in the professional sphere. What should the US do to address and overcome this new challenge? This is what Bill Gates had to offer:

"When I reflect on the state of American competitiveness, my feeling of pride is mixed with deep anxiety. Too often, it seems we're content to live off the investments previous generations made, and that we are failing to live up to our obligation to make the investments needed to make sure the U.S. remains competitive in the future...

The U.S. cannot maintain its economic leadership unless our workforce consists of people who have the knowledge and skills needed to drive innovation. The problem starts in our schools, with a great failure taking place in our high schools. Consider the following facts:

---| The U.S. has one of the lowest high school graduation rates in the industrialized world.

---| Three out of 10 ninth-graders do not graduate on time... Of those who do graduate and continue on to college; nearly half have to take remedial courses on material they should have learned in high school."

Gates' description presents a clear picture of the academic shortcomings of the US, as he acknowledges that the domestic sphere will ultimately be left behind without the contribution of foreign professionals:

"Our goal should be to double the number of science, technology, and mathematics graduates in the United States by 2015. This will require both funding and innovative ideas. We must renew and reinvigorate math and science curricula with engaging, relevant content. For high schools, we should aim to recruit 10,000 new teachers and strengthen the skills of existing teachers. To expand enrollment in post-secondary math and science programs, each year we should provide 25,000 new undergraduate scholarships and 5,000 new graduate fellowships.

The question before us today is: 'Do we have the will to ensure that the generation that follows will also enjoy the benefits that come with economic leadership?"

Today India is IT

Now, speaking of engineers and technology, India is on the forefront, with one million new highly skilled engineers and growing it is charging on all fronts. "IT now stands for Indian Talent" says Hadi Al Alawi, Chairman & CEO of Al-Hayat Group, one of the largest privately held business empires in Bahrain, and investing heavily in major projects in India. "There is a shift in talent pools while there is a serious blockade in the US for foreigners. Indians are bringing intellectual and human energy back home" he further adds, "Indian talent is now going to take over the world" Most CEO's in Asia would agree with this claim and are making adjustments in their long term plans. Supporters of the current US immigration policies claim that allowances of foreign professionals will hurt American jobs and threaten national security.

The image and national identity is also becoming a big issue. Today, most media outlets in the US will not hesitate to portray India as being poor with shanty homes and peasants riding broken down bicycles, while ignoring the massive and successful developments which have now led India to have a middle class as large as the entire population of United States. Over there the TV media is very happy to show the types of Jerry Springer and his guests being cajoled into having fierce onstage fistfights while the jeering female crowd gets free beads for displaying naked breasts. What effect does television have on national image, our youth and how has it created a global image world war? This is certainly not the way to brand nations. India is only one such example of a fast turnaround, as there are dozens of other countries with similar situations.

To most academia outside the US, they say that almost like a conspiracy, the American education system was out to destroy a generation. Having witnessed a better standard of education in their own countries, these people sincerely hope that America addressed the problem as they notice this large discrepancy. There is a major crisis looming now and this was clearly identified again and again by various American thinkers, leaders and organizations over decades but some how it has been just kept broken.

Today, it would demand an iron fist to correct the problem and to fix it properly would demand massive funding on all fronts, certainly a small change compared to other wild spending adventures. The youth have always been ready to absorb new knowledge, while the government has ignored this simple fact. If other countries with a much smaller GDP can outperform and produce world-class education, so what has been stopping the US from addressing a problem so clearly obvious and left hanging for too long, but why?

The future of American economic strength via educational means is in danger, and if not corrected, the dysfunctionalities will become widespread and then, the gates will have to be closed to tame the barbarians within. The numbing orchestral sound starts all over again. Popcorn time.

Naseem Javed is recognized as a world authority on Corporate Image and Global Cyber-Branding. Author of Naming for Power, he introduced The Laws of Corporate Naming in the 80's, and also founded ABC Namebank International www.abcnamebank.com , a consultancy established in Toronto and New York a Quarter century ago. Currently, Naseem is on a lecture tour in Asia and can be reached at [email protected]