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Background: I have had nothing to do since the AP test was over. So, I've planned for Ireland, cleaned my room (FINALLY!), organized my backlogged paperwork (bank statements, credit card statements, tax documents, etc), and have been researching apartments almost incessently since I found out I need a new place. I have used the internet to get everything else I need for my trip...AND...I realized my total lack of work ethic at school and decided to remedy that. Unlike some of my colleagues, I feel guilty and unethical if I'm not using my time at school. So, I decided that since I work best under pressure, I'd either give myself some pressure or use my time in a way that will benefit my classroom but still be enjoyable.
The search began. What do I like doing that is relaxing? Easy answer. I like reading. I need to find some engaging articles for my class. So, while the kids were in the library I went through a year's worth of back issues of The Economist and photocopied them...but I still wasn't as engaged to read them. Instead I turned to colleages. As a government teacher still trying to develop a richer understanding of world issues, what can I read that will keep my attention and still add to my knowledge? The overwhelming response was The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman. I had read an excerpt from this book for my AP seminar last summer and had to admit that it was fascinating. So, I logged onto my credit card rewards program, gave myself an Amazon.com giftcard with my rewards points, and then bought the two books that were recommended to me:
and
Oh yeah...and I also bought this. I saw a clip of it from Frontline...I couldn't resist. =-)
Anyway...tonight I came home from work and felt tired. It was a cloudy day so I decided to grab a chair on my patio, grab a cup of tea, and start my book. A few hours later I finished Chapter 1 of The World Is Flat AND OH MY GOODNESS!! I'm freaking out! You HAVE to read that book. Well, actually, I've only read Chapter 1 but I am totally hooked and...as you can see... totally freaking out.
The book is about globalization. I know, it can be a boring subject. Actually, I have a very hard time reading books about the things I teach. I would rather have someone tell me the information and then I'll tell the kids. However, this book just dumbfounded me. It's about how the world is coming closer together. I am TOTALLY having my kids read part of this book next year. It's all about outsourcing and homesourcing. There is story after story about training Indians to have American accents, adopt British names, and teach children math with online tutorials. It's about Indians doing the number crunching for investment banks, giving your personal assistant in Bangalore an assignment to research a merger right before you go to bed and having a presentation and powerpoint in your inbox when you wake up because of the benefits of the time difference. It's about reporters outsourcing financial headline reporting, about middle-sized accounting firms outsourcing your tax information without you knowing, and about a person in Colorado asking you "May I take your order?" while you're going through the McDonalds drive-through in Ft. Lauderdale!!!! AHHHH!!! I can't take it! I'm blown away by this flat world!
I kept "Huh"ing and "No way"ing my way all the way through. And then, as I came to write about it I floored myself....MY LIFE IS SO GLOBALIZED!! Look at my background info:
- traveling to Ireland. That alone...then, I booked my flight online. The information probably went to some database somewhere else in the world to process. Someone in China probably designed the website while someone in India developed the software.
- Organized my backlogged paperwork. Bank statements, credit card statements, tax documents...all probably outsourced!!
- apartment searching...internet. Global marketplace! I checked the news while I searched for apartments, all of which are updated constantly on craigslist, bringing us closer together. I can't find an apartment because of Microsoft employees...who, speaking of them, happen to be overwhelmingly Indian!!
- I ordered everything I needed on the internet. Who knows where that info went. Who knows where it came from. For all I know just ordering my Chacos on the internet could have gone through 4 different countries!!!!
- I'm not even going to touch my credit card rewards program and I'm not even going to touch amazon.com and globalization with a 10-foot pole!!
In other news, my students discovered today that most Russian leaders are incredibly short. I'll let you know more about it when they finish their magazine.
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