And giving both students and teachers more opportunities to learn about and experience the world of work is the most sensible way to link learning and working. And the larger puzzle is a system of lifelong learning. My vision for education is a vision of that larger system a system in which everybody learns, everywhere, and every day. I want to foster a culture that supports learning as a way of life. And I want to engage every sector of our society in this work.
Schools can t do it alone.
Families and communities and business and labor all must shoulder more responsibility for making Washington a state of learning. A state of learning is a place where everyone recognizes that our capacity to learn is our most abundant and most precious resource. A state of learning is a place where people are fully alive, fully engaged in creating the future, and wholeheartedly open to new ideas, new technologies, and new ways of doing things. And a state of learning is a place where people learn their way over and around the obstacles that block the path to hope, opportunity, and equality. I want Washington to become a state of learning because in the next millennium, education will be the absolute prerequisite to sustaining our quality of life.