According to Maureen McLaughlin, the  U.S. Department of Education’s director of international affairs, the department is developing a plan to give more American students the skills they need to compete in a global workplace. To do so, the department  will work to improve the global competencies of all American students, to learn educational best practices from other countries, and to be more active in “educational diplomacy,” or diplomatic engagement through education-related work, such as the global exchange of students and scholars.