Economist: Want a job tomorrow? Learn math | Maryland Gazette (HometownGlenBurnie.com)

The thousands of jobs coming to Maryland will require a bumper crop of engineers and scientists, professions that require math skills that today's students aren't particularly keen on mastering, Anirban Basu told the Fort Meade Alliance this week.

"They are scared of math; they are mortified," he said. "They think that they are bad with math. They don't want to deal with it, they want to avoid it."

Across the nation there's a dearth of technology, computer science, engineering and biotechnology experts - experts that are needed in the homeland security sector. But Maryland, which is becoming the epicenter for the security industry, is in a particular bind because the tens of thousands of jobs settling at its military bases are exacerbating the need for these types of employees.

Unfortunately for the state, not enough of its young students are interested in the STEM training - science, technology, engineering and math - these types of jobs require, said Dr. Basu, president and CEO of the Sage Policy Group.

"In later years it limits their choice of occupations," he said.

And this could have worldwide implications because the county won't have the work force to protect its interests domestically and abroad, Dr. Basu said.

The answer is to show students that math and science are interesting and, perhaps just as important, lucrative, he said. This will require parents also to be fearless of the subjects and to immerse their children in the fields at an early age.

Dr. Basu's analysis was in conjunction with the release of a Fort Meade Alliance report, "A Meeting of Minds:

Building a Workforce for a Knowledge Economy."

"One of the things that we discussed late last year was that we needed kind of a baseline, a way for the community to come together and talk about education and workforce development in a systematic way," said Col. Kenneth O. McCreedy, installation commander at Fort George G. Meade.

The report, which includes analysis from Dr. Basu, is a record of what's needed, he said.

But it isn't only about math and numbers. Words are important too, as long as they're spoken and read in more than just English, Dr. Basu said.

Currently, Spanish, French, German, Latin and Italian are the most frequently studied languages in the country. This doesn't bode well, Dr. Basu said.

"Of course Latin is useful, if you are fighting Caesar," he said.

There should be more emphasis on Chinese, Arabic, Korean and Farsi, languages that are now integral to international affairs. Also, students should be more aware of the geography, culture, politics and affairs of the places where these languages are spoken, he said.

"Too few Americans study foreign languages," he said. "In the post 9-11 world, this is a deficiency diplomatically and on the ground."

Anne Arundel County is setting up a math and science magnet school at North County High School. Anne Arundel Community College is discussing a science, technology, engineering and math facility at its Arundel Mills campus.