The+Significance+of+the+Global+Achievement+Gap

The Global Achievement Gap is significant to all Americans, especially students today. While American schools are focusing on teaching students facts and memorization, the rest of the world’s developed nations are teaching their students the skills that they need to be successful in the 21st century in a global marketplace and economy. Wagner (2008) points out that students who do not have the necessary skills will not be able to “[compete for] good jobs or be active and informed citizens in our democracy.” (p. 256). We will focus on these two areas of significance, as well as how this gap brings about the need for education reform in the United States.
 * Global Achievement Gap Significance for Contemporary Learners**

In 2009, McKinsey & Company released a report titled “The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America’s Schools”. This report states that “for many students (but by no means all), lagging achievement evidenced as early as fourth grade (see figure 2) appears to be a powerful predictor of rates of high school and college graduation, as well as lifetime earnings.” (p.5) Since even America’s best students are well behind students from other countries, as stated in our analysis of the Global Achievement Gap, the gap between America’s lowest students and those in other countries is staggering. If the gap continues to widen, the United States will continue to fall further behind in the global economy. McKinsey & Company also found that “the underutilization of human potential in the United States is extremely costly”(p. 5) Jobs are being offshored because other countries are producing better thinkers and innovators, leaving the United States in a weak economic condition. McKinsey & Company also states that “If the United States had closed the international achievement gap between 1983 and 1998 and raised its performance to the level of such nations as Finland and Korea, US GDP in 2008 would have been between $1.3 trillion and $2.3 trillion higher, representing 9 to 16 percent of GDP.” (p.17) The future of the United States economy and its place in the world economy is in the hands of contemporary students, most of whom lack the skills necessary to compete for the skilled jobs that can bring the United States back to economic prominence.
 * Economic and Job Significance**



One of the primary roles of education is to prepare students to be active and informed participants in society. McKinsey & Company’s research in 2009 shows that “education levels are also linked to civic engagement. High school graduates are twice as likely to vote than people with an eighth grade education or less. College graduates are 50 percent more likely to vote than high school graduates.” (p 20). This suggests that if the current dropout trends in the United States continue, the education system is not fulfilling one if its main goals. If the education system can produce students who are able to think critically and analyze information, this country is going to be filled with informed voters who can have a deep impact on it and the direction that it heads.
 * Social Significance**

The Global Achievement Gap, and the awareness of it, will hopefully bring about education reform in the United States. Wagner (2008) mentions that “in the age of the Internet, using new information to solve new problems matters more that recalling old information.” (p. 257) He also puts forth the idea that “today’s youth are //differently// motivated when we compare them to previous generations.” (p.257) Contemporary learners have a deep desire to learn, but unless teachers and schools start focusing on what matters most (critical thinking, analysis, teamwork, etc.), students will continue to be unengaged in the classroom. A 2009 Gallup Poll shows that only 50% of students are engaged, while the other half are either just going through the motions or even actively undermining the teaching and learning process. Through education reforms that focus on making learning engaging and meaningful, students will hopefully begin to thrive in a new system that makes learning applicable and attractive.
 * Education Reform**