The Commission staff began the research on which the Commission itself relied 18 months before the first meeting of the Commission and continued the research right up to the last meeting. Each sub-study is briefly described below, and the associated papers listed. In most cases, those papers prepared by our staff and the papers commissioned from others are available on the Commission Web site. Extensive field work was required to complete these studies. A list of the nations visited and organizations visited is also included below. All but one of the Background Papers in the report itself were prepared by the staff. The financial analysis of the Commission’s recommendations was prepared by Augenblick, Palaich and Associates (APA) of Denver, Colorado. The authors of that study were Robert Palaich, John Augenblick, John Myers, Douglas Rose, Amy Anderson, Justin Silverstein, and Amanda Brown.

ECONOMICS AND LABOR MARKET STUDY
This study focused on the flows of the international economy as they affect the prospects for economic growth in this country, with particular attention to the effects on employment and income of advancing technology and the rise of countries that can offer high skills at low wages. The study addressed eight areas, in the following sequence:

• Estimated the contributions of education and innovation (such as patents, R&D spending) to U.S. and global economic growth

• Analyzed the relationship between education and access to middle-class status since 1967 and projected to 2012

• Projected the supply and demand for education in the United States to 2012

• Analyzed the relationship between educational attainment and occupational competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, work styles, work contexts, values, and interests) based on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Information Network (O*Net) data

• Measured educational adequacy against criteria that included employability and middle-class jobs

• Estimated the vulnerability of U.S. jobs to offshoring based on the characteristics of the jobs and the skills of current job holders, as reported in O*Net

• Estimated the stock and growth of the global supply of educated workers

A report, America in the Global Economy, by Ray Uhalde and Jeffrey Strohl, is available on the Commission’s Web site.

INDUSTRY STUDIES
We examined eight industries to understand the forces operating on these industries to produce new winners and new losers with respect to companies, countries, and workers; the prospects for growth and decline for these industries and the specific factors affecting those prospects; and the way in which the availability of workers with specific skills in this country and abroad affects investment and location decisions in these industries. A paper edited by Mark Troppe and Peter Carlson, An Analysis of Market and Skill Changes in Select Industries, 2006, is available on the Commission Web site synthesizing the Industry Study findings as a whole and the findings in each industry including:

• Biotechnology
• Automotive
• Telecommunications
• Textiles and Apparel
• Entertainment
• Health Care
• Personal Computers
• Software

EDUCATION SYSTEMS STUDIES
We have: identified nations that have consistently scored high on international comparisons of educational achievement on the dimensions that our economic studies identify as important; benchmarked education and training policies and practices in those countries that have the potential for producing substantial gains in system productivity in the United States; and reviewed and synthesized the literature on the sources of creativity and innovation in individuals and identified curricula and pedagogical techniques that have proven effective in promoting those qualities. The result of this work is the following reports and commissioned papers, many of which are available on the Commission’s Web site:

STAFF PAPERS
Early Childhood Education: Lessons from the States and Abroad, Lynne Sacks and Betsy Brown Ruzzi

International Education Tests: An Overview, Betsy Brown Ruzzi

Overview of Education Ministries in Selected Countries: Roles, Responsibilities and Finances, 2005, Lynne Sacks and Betsy Brown Ruzzi

Profile of the Indian Education System, Gretchen Cheney, Betsy Brown Ruzzi and Karthik Muralidharan

The Challenge from Asia, Marc Tucker

COMMISSIONED PAPERS
Comparative Governance, Administration and Finance for Elementary and Secondary Education in Selected Countries, Brian Caldwell and Jessica Harris, Educational Transformations Ltd.

Rethinking and Redesigning Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment: What Contemporary Research and Theory Has to Offer, James W. Pellegrino, University of Illinois at Chicago

Educational and Labor Market Outcomes for the Nation’s Teens and Youth Since the Publication of America’s Choice: A Critical Assessment, Andy Sum, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University

High Performance and Success in Education in Flemish Belgium and the Netherlands, Toon Dijkstra, European Orientation Programs, Maastricht University of Professional Education

Improving Teacher Training Provision in England: 1990-2005, Adrian Ellis, PA Consulting Group

Out-of-School Youth, Tim Barnicle

Sources of Innovation and Creativity: A Summary of the Research, Karyln Adams, University of Pennsylvania

The Delhi Public School: A Case Study in High Student Achievement, David Marsh, University of Southern California and Judy Codding, America’s Choice, Inc.

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SYSTEMS STUDIES
The staff prepared case studies of the workforce-economic development systems in 5 states:
Florida
North Carolina
Oregon
Texas
Washington State

The staff also produced the following paper on American workforce development systems:

State and Local Workforce Systems: An Overview, Mary Gardner Clagett

The following paper was also commissioned:
New Foreign Immigrant Workers and the Labor Market in the U.S.: The Contributions of New Immigrant Workers to Labor Force and Employment Growth and Their Impact on Native Born Workers, 2000 to 2005, Andy Sum, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University.

EXPERT INTERVIEWS AND FOCUS GROUPS
We conducted a series of interviews with leaders in education, employment, and training policy and practice in the United States and held two focus groups with international graduate students from around the world to hear from them what it takes to succeed in the global economy and what skills and knowledge they and their peers bring to the table.

EXPERT INTERVIEWS
Roger Altman
Chairman
Evercore Partners, Inc.

Thomas Bailey
George and Abby O’Neill Professor of
Economics and Education
Institute on Education and the Economy
Teachers College, Columbia University

Laurie Bassi
Chief Executive Officer
Human Capital Capability

Keith Bird
Chancellor
Kentucky Community and Tech College System

David Calleo
Dean Acheson Professor and Director of
European Studies Program
Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced
International Studies

Peter Capelli
George W. Taylor Professor of Management
and Director of Center for Human Resources
The Wharton School
University of Pennsylvania

Jerry Jaznowski
Past-President
National Association of Manufacturers
Peter Morici
Professor of International Business, Logistics,
Business and Public Policy
Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland

Anil Gupta
Ralph J. Tyser Professor of Strategy
and Organization, Management and Organization
Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland

Paul Osterman
Nanyung Technological Institute Professor
Institute for Work and Employment Research
Sloan School of Management
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Bob Templin
President
Northern Virginia Community College

Graham Toft
Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute

Yong Zhao
University Distinguished Professor
Educational Psychology and Educational Technology
Director, Center for Teaching and Technology
Director, US-China Center for Research on Educational Excellence
College of Education, Michigan State University

Karthik Muralidharan
PhD Candidate, Harvard University
Study Director, World Bank Study on Education in India

Two focus groups were held with graduate students from Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies. Countries represented were:
• Australia
• Belgium
• Denmark
• Hong Kong
• India
• Japan
• Korea
• Netherlands
• Singapore
• United Kingdom

Finally the staff visited organizations around the world (an asterisk denotes a factory tour in addition to a meeting or interview):

Australia
Sydney
• Department of Education and Training, New South Wales
• NCVER
• Cherrybrook Technology High School
• Dusseldorf Skills Foundation
• Centre for Regional Education
• Institute of Teachers
• Schools Resourcing Taskforce
• Group Training Australia

Melbourne
• University of Melbourne-Parkville
• Australian Council for Education Research
• Department of Skills, Victoria

Belgium
• Forem Formation
• Ministry of the Flemish Community
• AVC/CSC
• VDAB
• Institute for the Promotion of Innovation by Science and
Technology in Flanders
• European Commission/Union

Canada
Victoria, British Columbia
• Ministry of Education

China
Beijing
• Ministry of Education
• China Center for Economic Research
• Peking University, Guanghua Business School
• Beijing Academy of Education Sciences
• Beijing Normal University, US-China Center
• Experimental School, Beijing Normal University
• Beijing 123 Middle School
• U.S. Commercial Service, U.S. Embassy
• Center for Pharmaceutical Information and Engineering Research,
Peking University
• All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce
• China Textile Network Co., Ltd.
• China Textile & Apparel Education Society
• Topnew Knitting Group Co., Ltd.*
• Intel China Ltd.
• United Technologies International Operations

Shanghai
• Shanghai Municipal Education Commission
• Shanghai Jiaotong University
• Shanghai Trade Office, City of Denver
• State of Washington Trade Development, China Office
• State of Michigan China Office
• Asia Division, Vermont Chamber of Commerce
• Eaton Automotive, Engine Air Management Operations*
• Bill Wiggenhorn, founder of Motorola University and Director of Global EduTech Management Group, an educational investment group building a network of new campuses and colleges as well as managing existing education institutions and delivering world-class teaching to major institutions in Southeast Asia

Shenzhen
• Orient Product Services
• Weal-Lam Parts and Tools Ltd., metal fabrication plant*
• Rice Lake Weighing Systems, Wisconsin manufacturer of industrial scales
• XtremeMac (iPod accessories emerging business)
• International Information Products (Shenzhen) Co, Ltd., a Lenovo Company*, manufacturer of IBM Think Pad computers
• FLX (HK) Ltd., manufacturer of consumer electronics for US export (large manufacturer of personal karaoke machines)*
• Sound Choice, Charlotte, NC, a provider of re-recorded music for karaoke
• Sure Advance PCB Ltd., manufacturer of printed circuit boards*

Dongguan
• Dongguan University of Science and Technology
• Donguguan Vocational/Technical School
• Dongguan Secondary School
• Beijing Normal Jhu Hai Campus
• SAE Magnetics (H.K.) Ltd. — HDD (subsidiary of TDK),* manufacturer of magnetic recording heads, head gimbal assemblies, and head stack assemblies for computer disk drives

Hong Kong
• Education and Manpower Bureau
• Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority
• Chair of Education, University of Hong Kong
• Pui Ching Middle School
• St. Paul’s Convent School
• St. Paul’s Co-educational College

Czech Republic
Prague
• Education Policy Centre, Charles University
• Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport
• Institute for Social and Economical Analysis
• National Institute of Technical and Vocational Education
• CzechInvest

England
London
• Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit
• Department for Education and Skills
• Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
• Office of Standards in Education, England’s Education Inspectorate
• The Leitch Commission
• Learning and Skills Council
• National Employment Panel
• Sector Skills Development Agency
• BT Group
• City and Guilds
• Confederation of British Industry
• Trade Union Congress

Finland
Helsinki
• Ministry of Education
• Finnish National Board of Education
• University of Helsinki, Department of Applied Sciences of Education
• Helsinki School of Economics
• Mikkola Comprehensive School
• Sotunki General Upper Secondary School
• Confederation of Unions for Academic Professionals
• Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities; run secondary, vocational, and polytechnics
• Aike Group, Vocational and Adult Education Centers
• Tekes

Porvoo
• Edupoli Regional and Local Vocational Adult Education Centres
• Ministry of Labor
• Porvoo Employment Office
• Neste Oil

France
• Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development (OECD)

Germany
• Institute Arbeit Und Technik

India
Delhi
• FIITJEE Limited, test prep company for IIT entry
• Oxus Research and Investments, Economics Research Firm
• Gurcharan Das, author of India Unbound, a must-read
• NIIT Limited, supplemental private education tutoring firm
• Editor, Business World
• Confederation of Indian Industries
• Delhi College of Engineering
• Delhi University
• Sardar Patel Vidyalaya School
• Delhi Public School
• National Council of Educational Research and Training
• Navodaya Vidhyalaya (a typical indian school on the outskirts of Delhi)
• Salwan Public School
• Mira Model School

Chennai/Madras
• Bala Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School
• Indian Institute of Technology Madras
• Crescent Engineering College
• Brilliant Tutorials Ltd., supplemental private education test prep company
• AAM Matriculation Higher Secondary School
• SRF Vidyalaya School, 90 percent
first-generation learners

Bangalore
• Infosys Technologies
• Wipro
• Indian Institute of Management Bangalore
• Indian Institute of Science
• Confederation of Indian Industries Institute of Quality
• Biocon Ltd., biotech firm
• Azim Premji Foundation, Wipro-funded foundation on education and healthcare
• Vidyashilp Academy
• Sri Kumaran Children’s Home,
English nursery and primary school

Mumbai/Bombay
• Economic Times
• Aptech Limited, supplemental education provider working in 30 countries
• Jamnabai Narsee School
• Bajaj Lane Municipal School

Ireland
• FAS, Training and Employment Authority
• Department of Education and Science
• Irish Business and Employment Confederation
• Enterprise Ireland
• FORFAS
• Aderra
• Einet
• Irish Congress of Trade Unions
• Ireland-U.S. Chamber of Commerce
• National Qualification Authority of Ireland

Italy
Bologna
• Ministry for Education and Labor
• Fondazione Instituto per il Lavoro
• Format, Employer Association
• CISL
• L’Instituto Salesiano

Rome
• Ministry of Education, University and Research
• Montessori Foundation
• Montessori School in Rome

New Zealand
Wellington
• New Zealand Ministry of Education
• New Zealand Department of Labor
• New Zealand Qualifications Authority
• Ministry of Social Development

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