EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Evolution of a Global Economy

The development of global economy was greatly accelerated by the

process of industrialization beginning in the second half of the eighteenth
century, although its basis was established much earlier. The global system was
a capitalist system which originated and developed in quite specific geographical
locations.

On the one hand, there was local trade - short distance, mainly
concerned with basic necessities - the kind of trade focused upon the medieval
market towns . On the other hand there was the much smaller volume of long-
distance in luxury goods and rare items for a very tiny fraction of the population:
the spice and fine-cloth trade, for example, together with the exotic goods from
distant parts of the world.

During the late fifteenth and late sixteenth centuries, however, the
geographical extent of trade increased dramatically as a result of the expansion
of a smaller number of European maritime nations which came to form the core
of an evolving world economy. By the middle of the seventeenth century
economic leadership was centered on northwest Europe. The development of a
world trading system over a period of several centuries laid the foundations for a
process which was to have an even more far-reaching effects: industrialization.
In turn industrialization greatly accelerated expansion of world trade and further
transformed its character. As the nineteenth century progressed the nature and
geographical pattern of world trade changed to one in which the core (initially
Britain) exported manufactured goods throughout the world and imported raw
materials from the colonies.

Industrial production became pre-eminently a core activity, a process

reinforced by the political process of colonization. The process of development
of the world economy is not a continuous, uninterrupted sequence of events. By
its very nature it is a discontinuous process; periods of rapid growth of
production and trade and geographical expansion are punctuated by periods of
stagnation and recession.

The shaping of the new economic system persisted until the Second
World War (1939-1945).Manufacturing production remained strongly
concentrated in this industrialized core. This relatively stable and long-
established structure was shattered by the Second World War, which devastated
the global economy. However, although the world economy was rebuilt anew
after the devastation of the Second World War such rebuilding did not take place
on completely fresh, unbroken ground.
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The extent of education in any society is tied to its economic development.

In low-income and middle-income countries which are home to most of the
world’s people, families and communities teach young people important
knowledge and skills. Formal schooling and especially learning that is not
directly connected to survival, is available mainly to wealthy people who do not
need to work. After all, the Greek root of the word school means “leisure”. In
ancient Greece, famous teachers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle taught
aristocratic, upper-class men. The same was true in ancient China, where the
famous philosopher Confucius shared his wisdom with a privileged few.

Today, the limited schooling that takes place in lower-income countries

reflects the national culture. In Iran, for example, schooling is closely tied to
Islam. Similarly, schooling in Bangladesh (Asia), Zimbabwe (Africa), and
Nicaragua (Latin America), has been shaped by the distinctive cultural traditions
of these nations.

In industrial societies, since lawyers, physicians or professors cannot

pass credentials on o their children, higher education is the path to occupational
achievement. At the top of the list are industrialized European countries whose
young people stay in school until they are, on the average, 22 to 24 years of age.
Higher education, whether from university or college, expands career
opportunities and increases earnings. Employment among 25 –to 44-year-olds
increases with educational attainment. Obtaining a university degree, as
opposed to a college diploma, decreases the likelihood of unemployment two
years after graduation. As one progresses from bachelor’s degree, through
master’s to doctoral degrees, the likelihood of being unemployed is further
reduced.

HOME SCHOOLING

Home schooling is gaining popularity in North America where about 2

percent of school-aged children are educated at home. Advocates of home
schooling point out that, given the poor performance of many public schools, no
one should be surprised that a growing number of parents are willing to teach
their own children. In addition, this system works on average, students who learn
at home, outperform those who learn in schools.