The commission’s report points out that “at the very moment when China is seeking to adopt our model of broad education in the humanities，social sciences and natural sciences as a stimulus to invention，the United States is instead narrowing our focus and abandoning our sense of what education has been and should continue to be our sense of what makes America great.”

　　These are the telling statistics：First，federal funding for helping American students include international training in their education has been cut 41 percent in four years.Second，the National Assessment of Educational Progress test shows that only less than a quarter of eighth­ and 12th­grade US students are proficient in reading，writing and civics.

　　How can we possibly equip the US for its leadership role in an increasingly connected world if we are not adequately teaching students to communicate and helping them understand and encounter diverse perspectives？If we fail to invest in the arts and humanities，our country’s future leaders will not have the ability to connect on an emotional level with others.This ability is developed by studying the humanities，and in the global community this skill is not optional—it’s essential.

　　In a word，we must enthusiastically support and fund the study of the arts and humanities.For anyone concerned with how this translates into a sound economy and a sound financial future，simply recall what Steve Jobs told graduates of Stanford University in 2005：One of the most influential experiences in his brief time at Reed College was his exposure to the fine art of calligraphy(书法)．It taught him the important lesson of the relationship between discipline and creativity.

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