Lessons From India

By Daniel Bennett

Increasing educational opportunities is a hot topic this election season. Most Americans would agree that the youth of this country need an education to improve their job skills and prospects for the future, although there is considerable debate as to the approach that should be taken. One side would argue that we need to increase spending to make college accessible to a larger proportion of the population. Another argument, similar to the one made by the likes of Charles Murray, would be to focus on providing career and vocational training for a larger share of the population.

The debate over the path to a more prosperous future for all will likely continue to no avail for some time. In the meantime, the U.S. could learn a lesson or two from abroad. Take India for example, a country that was highly impoverished not long ago, but has since emerged has one of the hot spots for high tech jobs and manufacturing. Pundits will argue that India is siphoning American and western jobs by way of an unfair advantage of cheap labor and a lack of environmental standards.

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