The Demand for New Skills in the Workplace
Innovations in technology have made it possible for millions of people to live,
work, learn and be entertained in ways that were never thought possible twenty years ago.
The immediate access to media and information through the use of the Internet has
globally connected people and their ideas. In addition to making our lives more
convenient, technology has played an economic role in leveling the playing field for other
industrialized countries allowing for growing prosperity and global economic
competition (Daggett, 2005). At the end of the Cold War, new nations began
industrializing, tipping the scales for the United States (Tapscott, 1998). The United
States, a major economic powerhouse, finds itself rigorously competing for goods and
services. As the world speeds on the 21st century knowledge super highway, today’s
young people will have more opportunities to use technology for inquiry, analysis and
self-expression that will contribute to their success.