That's why we must also focus on another sort of global competition — building students' brainpower.

There are all sorts of comparisons of American students to their peers internationally. And there are all sorts of flaws with those comparisons.

One is we're not using the same yardstick as the rest of the world. American students not only aren't taking the same tests, but we're literally using different yardsticks.

The rest of the world has converted to the metric system, but Americans stubbornly stick to the old English system of measurement. Unless you drink, or do drugs, or compete internationally, the metric system probably doesn't mean much to you.

Americans, and Hoosiers in particular, are nothing if not stubborn.

For example, not until late in a Hoosier student's education career is a foreign language introduced. That's not the case in other nations. The ideal time to learn language skills is when children are much younger.

Yet when was the last time anyone did a monumental shake-up of what skills should be learned when?

If you want to remain a world leader, you have to step up your game. But that requires keeping an eye on your competition. It requires a broad perspective.

You don't notice these things when you confine yourself to your own county and perhaps the one next door. But as the steel industry knows, there's a whole other world out there. Are we preparing our children and ourselves to face it?

Editorial Page Editor Doug Ross can be reached at (219) 548-4360 or (219) 933-3357 or Doug.Ross@nwi.com. Follow him at www.facebook.com/doug.ross1 and on Twitter @nwi_DougRoss. The opinions are the writer's.

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