We have been living a lie for more than five hundred years now. In 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed to India and in the meantime presented the concept of a round world. I even believed it, until now. In reality, the world is flat, despite everything they tell you in elementary school. Recent years have transformed the spherical shape we once knew into a completely horizontal and level shape. Part of this drastic change comes from the technological boom, which allows all countries to be in constant communication with each other. This worldwide integration and development is known as globalization. While the process of globalizing countries has numerous benefits, it poses a key dilemma for Americans: anyone on earth can do your job, at a lower cost. We must take up the challenge to stay ahead of foreign competition. A key way to do this would be to start with higher education early. Currently, the American secondary education system remains at the bottom of the league compared to countries like China and India. We desperately need further development and reconstruction of the current system. In the words of Plato: “The direction in which education begins, a man will determine his future in life.” Our future and our goals are all related to what we do now; Higher education represents a vital factor in our attempts to win global competition. We live in the midst of Globalization 3.0, a term coined by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman since the rapid expansion of technology. “New types of technologies and advanced transportation have enabled the rapid formation and reorganization of local and global connections and networks” (Clark 86). The world is becoming “flat” in the sense that...... half of the document ...... petition. Works Cited: Brown, Bettina L. “Effects of Globalization on Careers. Myths and reality". ERIC (2003). Print.Clark, Gordon L. Global competitiveness and innovation: an agent-centered perspective. Basingstoke [etc.: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004. Print. "Education in India". World Bank Group. 2008. Network. November 12, 2011. "Extracurricular Activities." KidsHealth: The most visited children's health site on the web. Nemours, July 26, 2007. Web. November 12, 2011. Friedman, Thomas L. “It's a Flat World After All.” New York Times Magazine, April 3, 2005. Print.Greenwald, Bruce CN, and Judd Kahn. Globalization: the irrational fear that someone in China will take your job away. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2009. Print. Two million minutes. Director Robert A. Compton. Broken Pencil Productions, 2008. DVD.