Re-Envisioning Asia

"(...) How is the twenty-first century different than previous centuries and what can colleges and universities throughout the world do to prepare students for these differences?

Kishore Manhbudani:
The twenty-first century will be enourmously different from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, essentially all the decisions that affected the world were made either in Europe or in North America and world history was driven by decisions made in the West. In the twenty-first century, Asian societies will regain their natural weight in the world, and by the year 2050, of the four largest economies in the world, three will be Asian. The four largest economies will be, number one, China, number two, the United States, number three, India, and number four, Japan. So, in a sense, the center of gravity of the world will move back to Asia, as it was before the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Colleges and universities should reevaluate their priorities in light of this historic shifts, About a million students study French in the United States and only about 40,000 study Chinese. This is one example of how the languages taught in U.S. schools and colleges are a reflection of priorities of the past and not today's priorities. For a start, U.S. colleges and universities need to inject deeper understanding and a greater study of Asian countries, Asian history, and Asian culture into their curriculum.(...)

International Educator