I found this piece by Friedman both interesting and confirming. The interesting part is the question why are we going to spend $1 billion dollars to fix Georgia's roads and schools? Seems to me we have schools and roads that could use an influx of cash a lot closer to home than Tbilisi. The confirming part is the discussion of the importance of innovation.
"That focus needs to be on strengthening our capacity for innovation — our most important competitive advantage. If we can’t remain the most innovative country in the world, we are not going to have $1 billion to toss at either the country Georgia or the state of Georgia."
The focus we are creating for our young people promotes innovative thinking, problem solving, and working collaboratively on issues of importance to students and our global community. Though the article also includes the usual swipe at public K-12 schools falling behind, I don't think we are deserving of this label. I don't know much about other public schools, but I think we are focused and moving in a direction to support what this article is identifying as important to the future of our country's ability to maintain its place in the world. I get tired of the public school bashing knowing how committed our teachers and staff are to learning and teaching. Is the bashing deserved? Are we that different than others that result in this bashing? It would sure be nice to read something positive about our work that didn't come internally or from another educator.
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