BRIEF: EDUCATION
What kind of education do Americans need today?
Craig Barrett, former CEO of Intel Corp., serves as co-chair of Achieve, a nonprofit, bipartisan education reform organization. The quote below is excerpted from an Op-Ed Piece written by Barrett, “The Case for Common Educational Standards”, published in The Wall Street Journal on April 6, 2010.
“The world has changed considerably in the past century, and our [American] education system must keep pace. In 1950, 60% of all jobs were classified as “unskilled” and available to those with high school diplomas or less, according to research published by the Education Testing Services. Now, more than 80% of jobs are skilled, requiring education and training beyond high school, according to research published by the Brookings Institution [a Washington, DC based think tank]. For example, to work on the manufacturing floor at Intel today, an employee must have an associate degree or higher”.