Globalization and Economy, Culture and Education - Essay Example

Globalization Globalization has been defined by the oxford dictionary as the process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale. Friedman (2011) wrote that the world is flat; his way of saying that globalization is taking over and whoever resists this fact will be left behind and might never be able to catch up with the rest. Consequently, different countries are now doing business with each and adopting policies and also mindsets of the others. Globalization has affected many sectors of our lives, but there the three major ones impacted by globalization include economy, culture and education. The economy; Globalization has affected the economy in both positive and negative ways, some of the advantages are availability of better quality goods in the market, this is because some countries are able to access raw materials at better prices than others and that are of acceptable standards. Quality is also improved by the fact that the sellers need to make sales that translate to profits and the only way to achieve this is to ensure that their goods are of the highest quality. In addition, there is the availability of cheaper goods, for example, Saudi can now import electronics and other stuff from China due to their affordability. Furthermore, globalization has led to diversity, and one can now buy goods that were once not available in their country but are sourced from another one. Saudi Arabia was known mainly for dates, but now people can get access to other food stuffs such as bananas from Mexico, rice from Pakistan and so on. Therefore, due to globalization, Saudi Arabia has now become one of the leading countries when it comes to providing for employment to people from other countries; for instance, the horn of Africa. However, there are disadvantages associated with globalization concerning its impact on the economy; such as stifling of the smaller companies through the competition brought about by globalization, which leads to their collapse while trying to put their foot in their home countries market. There are also cases of social injustices such as child labor as well unfair working conditions have increased. In the education system, standards of education have risen as countries seek to adopt other education systems into the country with the hope of making their citizens more learned and marketable. Often one can find a country having 2 or 3 education systems, so that it can cater to students that are not originally from that country. Moreover, it has been accepted worldwide that bachelor degrees, masters and PHDs are the way to go when it comes to education, and people are migrating from their countries to others seeking better education. Additionally, the mode in which students are taught nowadays has changed, and technology has been assimilated into the classrooms therefore making it easier on the teachers as well as the learners, since assignments are now sent and received via internet. Therefore, people in Saudi Arabia can know what is going on in other countries say Singapore from the comfort of their couch, thanks to the internet. Despite all the benefits that globalization has had on education, it has resulted in brain drain, this is because once students go to other countries to seek further education, they rarely go back to their home country to work, they will continue staying in that country and therefore contributing to its growth (Burbules and Torres, 2000). In regard to culture, globalization has led to much change to the extent of almost all countries adopting the same culture-the western culture. There are benefits that have come through these because some countries were suffocating in their own beliefs and it was hindering their growth as a community. One of the advantages of globalization was the adoption of English as a global language, thus, countries can use this language that is easily understood in communication, and in addition to that, it has been observed that many people are learning more than one foreign language (Stromquist and Monkman, 2000). Globalization has also led to growth in international tourism, and there has been adoption of foreign foods such as pizza and other cuisines. It has also changed how people dress, before countries used to dress according to their culture, for example, in Saudi Arabia, people mainly wore thoab, which is their traditional attire but now people have moved into the era of jeans, t-shirts, shirts and dresses. One disadvantage due to globalization is that even if there has been a change in how people dress; it is not all advantageous as some modes of dressing have brought conflict in some countries. For example, some women are now trying to dress in miniskirts as they see in the TV but only end up getting stripped because it is not accepted in their country. There has also been moral degradation is one of the effects, as people try to assimilate cultures they also take up some behaviors that are not positive such as alcohol and drug abuse and pornography. Finally, there has also been an increase in infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and other STIs which is attributable to globalization. In conclusion, globalization has brought about many changes in our world, both positive and negative. Humanity is better off with globalization; however, in some cases, the world would have been much better without it and others we cannot be grateful enough for the difference they have brought into our lives. References Friedman, T. L. (2011). Summary: The World Is Flat. Brussels: Primento Editions. Burbules, N.C and Torres, C.A. (2000). Globalization and education: critical perspectives. New York: Routledge. Stromquist, N. P and Monkman, K. 2000. Globalization and Education: integration and contestation across cultures. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. Read More