U.S. Computer Programmers Losing Ground

American students were among the top finishers until the late 1990s.
But since then, Asian and East European students have won most of the
top prizes. This year, only one American college team was among the top
twelve. Last year, there were none. Some analysts say this poor showing
by American computer science students should serve as a wake-up call
for the U.S. government, industry and educators.

Science Education on the Decline

Mel Schiavelli, President of Harrisburg University of Science and
Technology in Pennsylvania, says one cause for concern is the declining
number of U.S. students majoring in computer technology and other
sciences.

"If you look at the rate of production of individuals either with
bachelors' degrees or advanced degrees in those disciplines in the
United States, it's about half the rate of production of those of let's
say India and China, which are the two major producers. Said another
way," says Schiavelli, "In the United States, less than a third of
students who go to college decide to study a science or technology or
engineering mathematics discipline. Whereas when you get to China, it's
closer to 70 percent."

Bob LeChevalier...

That's because the Chinese aren't ALLOWED to go to college unless they
are studying something that the government wants them to study.

Schiavelli says there is also a general decline in U.S. science
education. He says the problem starts early on, "Mathematics programs
and the training of mathematics teachers for K [i.e., kindergarten]
through eighth grades have been left frequently to other than
mathematicians and more to mathematics educators. To teach mathematics
in elementary schools, while you have to be [a] certified [teacher],
you don't have to have a degree in mathematics."

Bob LeChevalier...

How is this a "decline". Before Sputnik, a significant number of
teachers didn't even have a college degree.

Schiavelli says computer science is based on mathematics, especially
algebra, and that these subjects are introduced too late in elementary
schools. High school math and science courses are not as challenging in
the U.S. as they are in some Asian and European curricula. Thus,
entering college students who choose to major in computing, engineering
or other sciences often cannot cope with the complexity of college
science courses. After their first semester, many of these freshmen
switch to non-science majors.

Bob LeChevalier...

When I attended Michigan State University in the early 70s, they
preferred that freshmen not choose a major at all. Statistics were
that 3/4 of all students who declared a major their freshman year
changed it before they graduated.

Doug White, a computer science professor at Roger Williams University
in Bristol, Rhode Island, says that in order to keep students in
computer science programs, many colleges have made courses easier.

"University programs are faced with a challenge of: 'If we want to keep
our jobs, we have to keep our students.' So then they start dumbing
down their programs to keep more of their students when there is a sign
they are going to leave, and what happens is then you turn out students
with even lower levels of skill," says White. "And so you don't see the
level of rigor in computer science and computer information systems
programs, which lead to programming careers that you saw 25 years ago."

Globalization and Outsourcing

At the same time, Professor White says, China, India and some other
developing countries have seen a technology boom with numerous job
opportunities in software development and computer programming. This
has enticed millions of young people to flock to universities that
offer computer science programs. Doug White, who has helped develop
programming tests for international companies hiring computer
specialists, says corporations are increasingly interested in
programmers from Asia because they are not only more skilled, but also
work for less than American programmers.

Bob LeChevalier...

The last clause is the important part. They don't have to be more
skilled, when they can pay them a fraction of American salaries.

There is a growing concern in the United States about the outsourcing
of computer technology jobs to developing countries. But Professor
White says there are benefits.

"The Internet and globalization in general allow Third World countries
like India -- it's such a great example -- to really improve their
situation by creating a wealthy middle class. And that's great for the
world because it means salaries and income levels in those countries,
where things are bad, are improving. So that's good," says White. "The
scary part is that as those jobs go away, there is going to be a
situation where a lot of Americans who are trying to find careers are
going to have a challenging time."

Some analysts say that in recent years, many American students have
shunned computer programming because they fear that job opportunities
and salaries in that field will decline.

Dom...

It is possible that students are aware of the job losses due to
outsourcing.

Pubkeybreaker...

I would replace "possible" with "probable"

Bob LeChevalier...

I don't know any students who have thought so. There was some concern
among professionals that after Y2K there would be a large surplus of
people hired for the conversion that would not have work to do, but I
think the Y2K bubble ended and was absorbed as part of the economic
slump that supposedly has ended.

I suspect that a lot more shun computer programming because a)
computer programmers are the stereotypical "nerd" and b) because the
stereotypical computer programmer works an 80-hour week. Most
American kids want to work their 9-5 job and then go party.

Greg Gagne, Chairman of the Computer Science Department at Westminster
College in Salt Lake City, Utah, says that as a result, the United
States will face a shortage of computer science talent. "S everal high
tech leaders are concerned that with this dip in computer science
enrollments, five or six years from now, there won't be enough
graduates coming out of U.S. colleges and universities with computer
science degrees to fulfill demand." Greg Gagne says the fear of
outsourcing must be dispelled because it is only a small fraction of
the computer industry.

Many analysts say educators and industry leaders must join forces to
improve America's science education. They say math and science must be
taught at an earlier age, and that high schools must better prepare
students for the challenges of college computer and science programs in
order for Americans to compete in the 21st century.