Publications and Presentations

GSF Fact Sheet 1: The State of Global Studies in the United States

The statistics below derive from multiple sources and are available in Struggling to Grasp a Moving Target: Global Studies in the US and Emergent International Landscapes, a recent research report published by Dr. Chris Harth, President of the Global Studies Foundation.

Core Subject Knowledge: Few American high school seniors are proficient in subjects like civics (30%), geography (25%), or US history (11%), the most widely offered and taken social studies class in the US. In fact, more students perform at "below basic" levels on NAEP tests in all three subjects: civics (35%), geography (29%), and US history (57%). A national assessment in world history is not even scheduled until 2010. While growing numbers of students are taking SAT II and AP tests in these areas, their performance is not keeping pace: AP scores in the social sciences and history, for instance, declined 3.9 % from 1997 to 2003, with a 5.7% drop in macroeconomics and an 8.1% plunge in US government.

Applicable Skills: Many American students are not developing the skills required today for educational and professional success. In both writing and reading, 26% of American students are performing "below basic" levels on NAEP assessments. In PISA comparisons with other countries, the US finished in the bottom half in all categories but reading (10th of 29 OECD members), with poorer results in science literacy (16th), math literacy (20th), and problem solving (21st). Language skills are similarly underdeveloped, with only one in three college students studying a foreign language (representing 8% of course enrollments, half of which is Spanish), the same number of 18-24 year olds who claim to speak a language other than English. Of those college students who claim skills in another language, more report proficiency in Latin (4%) than in Chinese (2%) and Arabic (1%) combined.

Educational and Professional Preparedness: Recent studies have shown that one in three American high school students are not graduating on time. Similar numbers take remedial classes if and when they get to college, with more than one quarter not returning for their second year and less than 30% graduating. Roughly 40% of students, college faculty, and employers alike identify gaps between high school preparation and expectations at college or in the work force, causing two of three college faculty to spend time reviewing high school-level material and requiring additional investments of time and money from employers to get underprepared workers up to speed for the 85% of jobs in the US economy that now are classified as "skilled."  

Global Awareness: Many young Americans lack rudimentary knowledge of international affairs, with the US finishing second to last in a recent international comparison of 12 countries. Large numbers of 18-24 year olds cannot locate significant places on a world map, including the US (11%), the Pacific Ocean (29%), China (37%), Russia (39%), India (56%), Japan (58%), UK (69%), and Saudi Arabia (76%), to say nothing of Iraq and Afghanistan (both 87%). Nor are they well versed in current events, with 43% unable to identify Mexico as the largest source of American immigrants today and 56% unaware that the EU is the organization sponsoring the Euro. Only 25% can identify India and China as countries with one billion people (although 30% estimate the US population as 1-2 billion) and only 19% can name four countries with nuclear weapons, with 17% not knowing the US possesses them. Even more troubling is that roughly two of five Americans believe that world population growth does not affect them; that global climate change will be gradual so we can deal with it gradually; and that because the world is so big and complex the US should solve problems like terrorism and the environment on its own.         

Public Support: Almost all Americans (93%) believe that international knowledge is important, with three in four favoring college requirements in international courses, language training, and study abroad. While student support for such requirements is somewhat lower - 65% favor international courses, 53% language training, and 58% study abroad - faculty numbers are similarly high. More than three in four Americans also are concerned with the lack of emphasis and assessments in non-NCLB subjects and support more rigorous graduation requirements, with two thirds both endorsing a standardized national curriculum and preferring school reform to overhauling the system and 58% willing to raise taxes to avoid education cuts. At the same time, however, nearly one in three students and faculty continue to see international education as useful but not necessary and as detracting from the "basics."

International Activities and Investments: Participation and investment in international programs fall short of the widespread rhetorical support. Only 10% of undergraduates actually study or work abroad, with the top eleven destinations all in Western Europe or the Americas and 43% spending one month or less. Similarly, only half take an international course or express interest in participating in international activities on campus. A comparable participation gap plagues faculty, with relatively few using foreign authors (52%), foreign guests (50%), or technology to bring the world into the classroom (42%). Even fewer teach classes with international content (41%), collaborate with foreign scholars (24%), or accompany undergraduates abroad (16%). Nor are many institutions actively supporting such activities, with only 47% earmarking funds for international activities and 35% for student study or work abroad. Institutions provide even less support for faculty, with few earmarking funds for workshops on internationalizing courses (29%), faculty study or work abroad (27%), or faculty language training (16%). Even less offer recognition awards for international service (12%) or consider international activities as part of the tenure and promotion process (4%).