13.1: Education in Global Perspective

 13.1: Education in Global Perspective 

Education: Transferring Knowledge and Skills To understand how education is related to a nation’s culture and economy, let’s trace the development of universal education and then compare education in three countries at different levels of industrialization. Education in Global Perspective 13.1 Understand how education is related to the culture and economy of a nation, and compare education in Japan, Russia, and Egypt. Have you ever wondered why people need a high school diploma to sell cars or to join the U.S. Marines? You will learn what you need to know on the job. Why do employers insist on diplomas and degrees? Why don’t they simply use on-the-job training? In some cases, job skills must be mastered before you are allowed to do the work. On-the-job training was once adequate to become an engineer or an airline pilot, but with changes in information and technology, it falls far short of what is needed today. This is precisely why doctors display their credentials so prominently. Their framed degrees declare that an institution of higher learning has certified them to work on your body. 418 But testing in algebra or paragraph construction to sell sheets at Target or to serve burritos at Chipotle? As sociologist Randall Collins (1979) said, industrialized nations have become credential societies. By this, he meant that employers use diplomas and degrees as sorting devices to determine who is eligible for a job. Because employers don’t know potential workers, they depend on schools to weed out the incapable. For example, when you graduate from college, potential employers will presume that you are a responsible person—that you have shown up for numerous classes, have turned in scores of assignments, and have demonstrated basic writing and thinking skills. They will then graft their particular job skills onto this foundation, which has been certified by your college. The cartoonist captures a primary reason that we have become a credential society. Watch South Africa School Offers Migrant Children Rare Lifeline Play WatchSouth Africa School Offers Migrant Children Rare Lifeline