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Discuss: What should the rising generation know about the world?

Feb 1, 2010

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This week, President Barack Obama--who advocates a world-class education for every American student--announced he will ask Congress to authorize $4 billion for education. Money will go towards bolstering math, science, and other programs that have proven results.

In an ever-shrinking world, some argue that it is critical to put international studies, language proficiency, and knowledge of global systems into the definition of a world-class education.

Discuss: What does a rising generation need to know about the world? What do you wish you learned about the world in your own education?

Jesus Christ | 02:18:10 09:44pm

My dream is to see kids build i-pods, radios, calculators, and computers to take home with them. I also would like to see kids play sports/recess 1 hour or more a day. Lastly, kids should know 3+ languages at the time of graduation.

Barocca | 02:17:10 11:04am

I wish I had had more map learning, along with languages, to learn the many physical connections and travels between cultures and culture.

Jane | 02:04:10 11:57am

I wish I had the opportunity to learn an Asian language beginning in elementary school. I also wish the study of other cultures was included in more of my classes and not just in the one World History class I had in high school!

aliya | 02:03:10 07:04pm

THere are definitely more than one lingua franca in the world. It would be great if everyone in the next generation can speak at least two. Of course, it's important to have linguistic diversity, too, especially for security reasons. Does anyone have statistics on how programs like Skype help create immersion environments without travel? thanks--aliya

alternator | 02:02:10 02:15pm

Peace education. Peace should be studied and practiced and emphasized starting at a very young age.

Alice Peters | 02:02:10 09:41am

Children graduating five or ten years from now will need sharper analytical abilities to consume and to produce new knowledge, especially in the sciences.

Sean | 02:02:10 09:21am

I wished that I had the encouragement to learn more than middle school Spanish. I wish I were multilingual.

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Discuss: What should the rising generation know about the world?