New math: Educating the 21st century workforce

Counselors, teachers, and leaders from industry and the community recently met at a conference sponsored by ASU's Center for Research on Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology (CRESMET). The agenda: to discuss how educators and businesses must collaborate to prepare students for learning and career paths appropriate to today's global marketplace. Their observations are pointed at Arizona, but are instructive nationwide.

The global marketplace is a single, level playing field where competition has become a matter of survival of the fittest, according to Thomas L. Friedman in his best-selling book "The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century." This new reality creates a different set of challenges for businesses, and it changes the rules for students, job-seekers, and the educational institutions charged with preparing them.

Counselors, teachers, and leaders from industry and the community recently met at a conference sponsored by ASU's Center for Research on Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology (CRESMET). The agenda: to discuss how educators and businesses must collaborate to prepare students for learning and career paths appropriate to Friedman's flat world. Their observations are pointed at Arizona, but are instructive nationwide.

"Math and science means business throughout Arizona," says Dennis Hoffman, director of the Seidman Research Institute and Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research. "It is key to achieving economic prosperity throughout Arizona." A flat world means that more than ever before, education is an imperative, Hoffman said. Education and industry experts at the conference spelled out what's needed:

• Parents, teachers, and counselors must continuously encourage students, beginning at an early age, to develop knowledge of science, technology engineering and mathematics — a combination of disciplines that educators refer to as STEM education.
• Businesses need to recognize their vested interest in STEM education, and to assist students in exploring and developing those interests.
• Businesses and research organizations alike must spell out the tangible economic benefits of acquiring STEM capability, and reinforce the intangible, psychological factors that compel students to pursue high-tech careers.
• It is not enough for graduates to enter the workforce with "hard skills" knowledge. To compete in the flat world, professionals must possess excellent "soft skills" — management, team-building, etc. — which enable them to compete for positions and advancement within an organization.
• The demand in Arizona for professionals with advanced science and mathematics qualifications is accelerating at the same time that numbers of qualified veteran workers are reaching retirement and exiting the employment rosters. Critical labor market imbalances are looming.

New competitive environment; new kind of competitor

Mary Vanis, director of the Center for Workforce Development at Maricopa Community Colleges, said that 21st-century employees must be more flexible than their parents and understand the changes that the global marketplace has brought to career planning. "While inevitably the global economy is redefining our workplace, what's important [to realize] is that it's a redefinition, not an elimination," she said. "The day and age of all of us staying with one company and in one city for 30 years is probably long gone."

Tantamount to acquiring and maintaining a job in the global economy, Vanis said, is the ability to transfer skill sets as the work environment evolves. Representatives of Boeing, Raytheon, and Resolution Copper made it clear that the ideal candidate comes to the table armed with more than the technological firepower.

What matters more is that candidates also demonstrate interpersonal skills that enable them to contribute in a team environment. "Soft skills" back up the "hard" knowledge acquired from a technical degree program. These qualities include but are not limited to effective verbal and written communications, objective and critical thinking, a finely-tuned ethical and moral compass, and organizational, problem-solving and leadership abilities.

Another wrinkle: thousands of opportunities with companies like Boeing and Raytheon exist where the project scope — whether for the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government proper — demands the security clearances available only to U.S. citizens.

Not all the high-tech opportunities are being delegated to cheap offshore labor. In a post-conference interview, Hoffman said parents are key players in making the educational imperative succeed. Parents should not stand by and assume counselors and teachers will make career decisions for their children, he said. Parents must steer their charges into a clearly defined, challenging education regimen.

"If the student understands the stakes in the game, and how important it is to embark on a quest for higher education, embrace more rigorous programs of study, and greater preparation in skill and talent development, everybody will win," Hoffman said. In the end it is not just about "getting good grades," it is about acquiring knowledge and mastery of challenging subjects.

Arizona's K-12: A struggle for credibility

Arizona's poor performance in highly publicized rankings of public education complicates the efforts of researchers like Hoffman and organizations such as CRESMET. The recently released Morgan Quitno Press Education State Rankings 2006-2007 earned the state a headline in The Arizona Republic proclaiming it the nation's "dumbest" state.

"I was really discouraged," said Martin L. Schultz, vice president of government affairs for Pinnacle West Capital Corporation and chair of the Arizona Bioscience Roadmap Steering Committee. Shultz acknowledged that some of the criteria used in that study — particularly regarding the underfunding of education and teachers' salaries — were correct, but he added that sensationalized headlines don't help to paint a realistic picture of the educator's efforts or intentions.

Hoffman noted that the Morgan Quitno rankings weighted both performance metrics and spending metrics. Spending more will help in these surveys as will efforts to make sure more dollars find their way to the classroom. Soon after, the Arizona Department of Education's school accountability program, Arizona LEARNS, released statistics painting a much rosier picture: that 90 percent of the schools are rated as "performing" or better.

However, the East Valley Tribune pointed out that the findings exclude key demographics that would drive down scores, including special education and English as a second language (ESL) students who have attended state schools for three years or less. Such discrepancies diminish the state's credibility in the eyes of high tech businesses operating in Arizona and those looking to establish a presence in the state.

"If we don't have a talented work force and the businesses don't perceive that there are enough talented workers in the region, we're going to be very hard-pressed to get new skill-seeking businesses to move here, and frankly, we may be at risk for losing some of these businesses," Hoffman said.

Practice what we preach

The challenge of growing a talented workforce is borne by the post-high school education system as well. Albert L. McHenry, interim vice president and provost at the ASU Polytechnic campus, sought to dispel the misperception that science, math and technology are taught via lecture and homework. A specialist in digital electronics, McHenry said that the tenets of the STEM education program are the cornerstone of Polytechnic's mission statement.

The goal, he says, is to collaborate with industry as broadly as possible. "We are trying to produce a graduate who can have an immediate impact on the economic bottom line for industry," he said. For example, students in some of the programs at Polytechnic are placed into project teams that mimic the environment they will encounter on the job.

Examples: an aviation program featuring over $32 million in state-of-the-art flight simulators, or the 15,000 square feet microelectronics fab (fabrication plant) capable of producing product-ready chips. The fab, McHenry emphasized, would not exist without what he calls "the substantial largesse" of companies such as Intel, ST Semiconductor and Microchip Technologies Inc.

The collaboration at Polytechnic is just one example of private enterprise becoming actively involved in shaping the minds of future employees. Other examples include:

• Project Lead the Way, which introduces a rigorous college preparatory math and science program to middle school and high school students interested in STEM educations and careers.
• For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST): Steve Sanghi, president and CEO of Tempe-based Microchip Technology Inc., brought this robotics competition, founded by Segway inventor Dean Kamen, to Arizona in 2002.
• Science Foundation Arizona (SFAz): This recently formed nonprofit consortium of public and private enterprise will provide grants, according to its web site, "intended to deepen scientific, engineering, and medical infrastructure that will result in transforming Arizona into a state that is even more innovative and enterprising.

One such grant envisioned by SFAz CEO and President William C. Harris offers paid summer research opportunities to math and science teachers, who can then take their experiences back to the classroom. Harris commented that it is important for teachers to know the importance of their role in building a civil and innovative society.

Math Moves U: Sponsored by Raytheon Company, the web site offers scholarships and incentive programs, and features sports and teen culture celebrities such as soccer star Mia Hamm and Olympic speed skating medalist Apolo Ohno demonstrating how math and science are incorporated into their 'fun and cool' interests. Raytheon also supports the MATHCOUNTS program.

Panel members also shared their means of "paying it forward," such as mentorship programs offered by Salt River Project and Intel. Professionals engaged in the classroom advise and judge science competitions and provide career guidance to counselors, teachers and students alike.

A future so bright

As an economist, Dennis Hoffman proclaims himself a big fan of "proper incentive alignment." He believes that a combination of corporate altruism and state government carrot-and-stick incentives will increase corporate/educational collaborations and address the concerns of the educational imperative. The challenge will be to insure that the dollars find their way to those pursuits with the highest return on investment.

However, corporations and educators alike find themselves at a crossroad. The educational system is in dire need of funding even as some say Arizona is poised for the greatness that will create an explosion of opportunities within the state. Martin Shutlz and Biodesign Institute Research Professor Guy A. Cardineau both report that Arizona is poised to become the next biodesign mecca on par with San Francisco, San Diego and the Boston/Cambridge region.

Shultz reports that the 10-year plan established for the Arizona Bioscience Roadmap is currently two years ahead of schedule. The major players such as the Boeings, the Raytheons and the Honeywells in the state may stand to reap the most benefits from improving the quality and quantity of Arizona's math and science students and they also may be best positioned to make needed investments.

But at some level, businesses large and small will benefit from having a highly skilled workforce. Albert McHenry further elaborates. "Business can serve as good citizens and help with these activities, but the outcomes that we are seeking must be carried out by the professionals within the school system, with the direction and help of the state political apparatus that's interested in education."

Hoffman responds favorably to the idea of expanding corporate tax credits to public schools, perhaps targeted toward building math and science skills. "I think it's politically savvy," Hoffman said. "The timing might be right to allow corporations to do this." But Hoffman adds, "We can't lose the primary message to parents and students. Regardless of the structure or the resource base, it will be hard to meet the labor market challenges we face unless students and parents realize the imperative."

"This will come from being dedicated to mastering science and technology skills and confronting tough classroom challenges. And parents need to understand that the highest rewards will come from encouraging their students to take these demanding classes."

Bottom Line

• The U.S. Department of Labor reports that, by 2008, six million jobs will be unfilled in the United States because people will lack the required science and technology background.
• Former U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley said that none of the top 10 jobs that will be in demand in 2010 exist today. Furthermore, these jobs will employ technology that has yet to be invented — and these jobs will be created to solve problems that do not exist at the present time.
• The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that, while the percentage of professional workers in the marketplace has remained consistent over the past 50 years, the percentage of required skilled workers has increased threefold at the expense of the number of required unskilled workers. Dennis Hoffman predicts that, even at the services-oriented business level, workers will need to be technology-savvy.
• Businesses need to take more proactive roles in career advisement programs. A January 2006 collaborative study conducted by Salt River Project, Maricopa Community Colleges and the Industry Stakeholder Groups reports that less than 25 percent of participating companies indicated that they were engaged with the K-12 and/or community college system in building career awareness.

"I think to simply strip disadvantaged students out of the metrics and pretend they're not here masks the challenges faced by Arizona educators," Hoffman said.