Rhem-Westhoff
Assignment VII – Rules of Coping With Globalization
EDT 646
02/16/06
In chapter 10 of the World Is Flat, Thomas Friedman outlines seven ÔrulesÕ that he believes can help companies survive and thrive in the flattening world. I have identified the seven rules below in conjunction with how they can be applied to school systems. School systems, like individuals, will not be immune to the effects of the triple convergence and the sooner they can find a way to adapt to the changing rules of the flat world, the better. Following the section examining school systems and the seven rules, I have ranked (in my opinion) the rules regarding the importance and implications they have for schools.
When the world goes flat – and you are feeling flattened – reach for a shovel and dig inside yourself. DonÕt try to build walls.
To implement this rule most effectively, I believe schools need to harness some of the energy that is spent on non-value-added activities and use it for creative solutions and problem solving. I have been back and forth between the computer industry and education my entire career and it never ceases to amaze me how inefficient the bureaucracy is in education systems. The time that is spent on the most ridiculous activities in order to comply with the unending flow of new standards is astounding. I refer to these seemingly constant standard changes/orders/requirements as the Òflavor of the monthÓ syndrome. If industry made it as difficult as education does to hire and keep competent, capable people, this country would have bigger problems than adjusting to the flattening world. I am referring to a mandate passed down from the D.O.E. for example that suddenly deems an outstanding teacher to be Ònot highly qualified.Ó Standards and requirements have their place of course but the extent to which education attempts to ÒfixÓ things by constantly sending teachers back for more training rather than addressing the real issues is detrimental. The schools not measuring up to No Child Left Behind (NCLB) more often than not, service children who live in poverty. Our countryÕs leaders have got to get in touch with the fact that if they continue to cut services to these poor families at the same time they raise standards and requirements, more and more children will be left behind. That is not to say that higher standards arenÕt necessary, they are but they cannot, or should not be mandated in a vacuum. To grab the shovel and start digging means to solve the greater social issues surrounding why so many children are struggling in school.
Another obvious way to reach inside and address the problem(s) is to collaborate with other schools for new ideas and problem solving solutions. Collaboration should take place not just locally, but regionally, nationally and globally. Video conferencing provides an affordable way for educators to share Òbest practices.Ó The online world greatly simplifies networking with other professionals provided we take advantage of the technology to that end.
And the small shall act bigÉOne way small companies flourish in the flat world is by learning to act really big. And the key to being small and acting big is being quick to take advantage of all the new tools for collaboration to reach farther, faster, wider and deeper.
The power of pooling resources both tangible and intangible is the key to getting the most out of what you have to work with. Schools have already begun to share services and pool their resources in an answer to budget cuts. As the world flattens, schools should increase the practice of sharing resources so all students are able to receive the best education possible. This should be true in small rural areas or poor inner city areas as well. Another way to offer more flexibility in offerings, particularly in smaller school systems, is to go to a trimester system in the high schools. Or perhaps the entire school year needs to be rethought. The traditional September through June school year is based on the need many years ago for children to be available to work the fields in the summer. Online course offerings can allow a small school system to offer many more academic choices without needing to have the brick and mortar space available. This is also true in regards to staff development. Staff development opportunities that make use of online or distance learning offer a way to deliver quality content without the cost of travel or the travel time.
And the big shall act smallÉOne way that big companies learn to flourish in the flat world is by learning how to act really small by enabling their customers to act really big.
Mentioned above are the benefits online class offerings can offer for both students and educators. This is true for Rule #3 as well in the sense that the customers are the students. Online opportunities coupled with their face-to-face class time allows them to experience the range of class offerings and opportunities formerly only available to students at large or elite schools. The career tech center where I teach allows the customers (students) hands-on experience that is career relevant while incorporating the traditional academic subjects. Students have access to state of the art equipment, job shadow and internship opportunities as well as articulation to area colleges. Leaving their high school campus for career related training each day is a small way to give them a significant head start. I do not have any experience with Charter or Magnet schools and despite the bad press Charter schools have had recently regarding MEAP scores, etc., I know many people are of the opinion that they are one way for the big to act small. Individualized instruction and focused training, reduced class sizes and again trimesters, are other ways to allow the customers or students to benefit from ÒbigÓ even if they are from a small school system.
The best companies are the best collaborators. In the flat world, more and more business will be done through collaborations within and between companies, for a very simple reason: The next layers of value creation – whether in technology, marketing, biomedicine, or manufacturing – are becoming so complex that no single firm or department is going to be able to master them alone.
Once again, schools and Intermediate School Districts (ISD) who pool and share resources benefit not only from the cost savings, but also from the collaboration of best practice ideas. Value creation for the content delivered to the learner will be reaped when collaboration is sowed. Team teaching not only within a building but also perhaps with other schools using distance learning technology is one possibility. Schools who cannot afford to have an expert in every field on staff can share a person. This is already common in districts where the music teacher may ÒfloatÓ between several schools. Imagine however, sharing resources globally! Classes could take virtual field trips to the Capitol during government classes, or learn about the Muslim people and culture from a teacher in Iraq using todayÕs technology. This would add higher value to the ordinary history lesson. Along those same lines, teachers could create global communities who collaborate on/with curriculum development.
In a flat world, the best companies stay healthy by
getting regular chest X-rays and then selling the results to their clients.
In rule #1 I comment on the insane amount of seemingly pointless standard revisions that educators have to deal with. The key is to find the right balance. Accountability is key but the accountability has to be in the right areas and measured in a manner that is meaningful. Standardized tests have their place – or do they? If you are a realtor in Spring Lake, the Standard & PoorÕs ratings and MEAP scores are a phenomenal asset and selling point. But what if you live in Muskegon Heights? Children in Muskegon Heights are also very bright but their overall socioeconomic status is heartbreakingly low. I do not believe we should eliminate all of the NCLB requirements or testing but I believe we need to strive for a more accurate, apples-to-apples method of measuring what the results indicate. Particularly in the flat world it will be more important than ever to have a process for determining how our schools are doing and what we need to do to improve.
The best companies outsource to win, not to shrink. They outsource to innovate faster and more cheaply in order to grow larger, gain market share, and hire more and different specialists – not to save money by firing more people.
In the face of budget cuts school systems have begun to reorganize and outsource some of the administrative tasks. For example some school districts now hire a private company for custodial services and bus transportation. The debate in the local papers over whether this is the right thing to do mimics conversations one might hear regarding the outsourcing of jobs to India or Asia. It is imperative that schools play smart with their use of funds, not only in light of budget constraints but to stay competitive in the flattening world. Freeing up money where and when it makes sense allows it to be spent on better educating our kids to be successful in todayÕs world. Some school systems have been completely taken over by private companies. I do not have enough data to know whether that is a good thing but I tend to think not, at least not the way it has been done in the past. I read recently about parents hiring private counselors to help their children get into a specific college. I do not agree with that on the surface but it could be part of a larger trend to privatize and outsource some part of the education experience. The decision to outsource in education as in business does have its place. The loss of one job usually does create another job, albeit a different one.
Outsourcing isnÕt just for Benedict Arnolds. ItÕs also for idealists.
Social entrepreneurship in education could present a mission field that takes on many shapes and sizes. It could mean tutoring or mentoring at the local school or joining the Peace Corps or Job Corps to share oneÕs talents in faraway places. Allowing faculty to take sabbaticals that include teaching illiterate people in developing and third world countries to read is an example. Thinking less globally as far as geography for a moment, imagine a program of teacher sabbaticals to help our own inner city kids learn to read. Though geographically local, the ramifications of upgrading the education of our own kids canÕt help but have global benefits. The approach whether global or local must be to ÒTrain the TrainerÓ in order that when the teachers leave, there are those left behind who now can teach other people to read. Installing technology that allows Internet access for online learning with grants from companies such as Microsoft or Intel, is a way to jumpstart education in poor rural areas both locally and globally. The field of education obviously is not limited to instructors. The administrators, network managers, counselors, etc., also have talents that are much needed in remote areas of the world. The ripple effect of empowering through education is as they say, priceless.
1. Rule # 1 – To attempt to close the borders and shut out the world would be the worst
possible way to react to the flattening of the world and the most costly in
the long run.
2. Rule # 4 – Collaboration, collaboration, collaborationÉ..It has got to happen and we
need to become experts at it or risk being left behind for the indefinite
future.
3. Rule # 2 – Collaboration is the key again here allowing companies to pool
resources to assist them with meeting the challenges of the flat world.
4. Rule # 3 – Empowering the end user, (learner or customer) through collaboration
is what this rule is about.
5. Rule # 5 – How are we doing? It is imperative that this question be asked by those
in charge at a more frequent rate than ever before. The flat world
results in factors affecting the daily life of all of us to occur at an ever
increasing rate.
6. Rule #6 – My mother told me as we were pushing my newborn daughter in
the carriage through the mall and saw a two year old across the way having
a tantrum, ÒYou see, it doesnÕt get easier, it just changes.Ó J We have got
to stop being afraid of change. We must find ways that make sense to help
people retool and gain new skills because inevitably some will lose their jobs
as the work changes and becomes more specialized.
7. Rule # 7 – I would love to see this rule as number three or at least number five but
I think that until we have the Òbills paidÓ as far as figuring out how to
function in the flat world, it may be difficult to afford the charity in great
measure. Understanding of course that the positive results of social
entrepreneurship will probably be returned to us one hundred fold.