As we enter the world of the global economy, the United States is facing a very formidable challenge. In a nutshell the problem is that we need to get more of our kids interested in the areas of math, technology, science, and engineering. The reason is that many of the baby boomer generation who hold these positions are starting to retire, and many young people are just not interested in entering into these careers. Could the humble comic book be part of the solution to this problem?

As we enter the world of the global economy, the United States is facing a very formidable challenge. In a nutshell the problem is that we need to get more of our kids interested in the areas of math, technology, science, and engineering. The reason is that many of the baby boomer generation who hold these positions are starting to retire, and many young people are just not interested in entering into these careers. Could the humble comic book be part of the solution to this problem?

This global economy in which we find ourselves in is based on science and math and technology. Labor and business statistics tell us that growth in these areas will increase 70% faster than those of other areas. That's a huge jump. It's nothing short of tragic that our kids are not showing the interest required in these areas. How are we as a nation going to compete if they don't?

It seems that middle school in particular needs our urgent attention. We need to support and encourage kids in these grades to learn math before peer pressure starts to take hold on them. Unfortunately it's "not cool" to be good in math at this age, and our nation will pay the price for this outlook in the years to come unless we take steps to rectify the situation immediately.

Math needs to be an interest of both boys and girls. Young women now outnumber men on our college campuses, but in far too many engineering disciplines women make up less than 20% of students. Professions in the math and sciences need to be more welcoming to women, so they will see a future for the math they are learning in their early years.

New media tools are needed, and fast. Children need to have the wonders of math encouraged and reinforced by new medium, such as the Internet. They need to be shown how math can enrich their lives, and how it relates to their interests in such things as sports (i.e.: batting average statistics), music (i.e.: music is very mathematical), and fashion (i.e.: length's and measures). They need to be shown that rather than a pain, math can be fun and exciting, and lead to a very rewarding career as well.

Could a math comic "fit the bill" as one of these "new media tools"? While comics have been around for years and years, they have been mostly used to entertain. We all grew up with comics relating stories of super heroes or talking mice or young romance. They were fun and entertaining, and certainly great to read in the back seat of the car on the ride to grandma's house...but what of their entertainment value? Kids love comics, and if we can utilize the comic book medium to introduce math to them, they will be entertained, and educated in math at the same time.

If you would like to learn more about educating our kids via the math comic strips format, please visit our blog. We are passionate about this subject, and would love to get your feedback on how we can help to promote this lofty yet worthwhile goal.

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