Why don't American kids learn basic stuff?

[Coito ergo sum]

Fewer than a quarter of American 12th-graders knew China was North Korea's ally during the Korean War, and only 35% of fourth-graders knew the purpose of the Declaration of Independence, according to national history-test scores released Tuesday.

Don't Know Much About History?

Try your hand at some of the questions on the NAEP history tests.

View Interactive

The results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress revealed that U.S. schoolchildren have made little progress since 2006 in their understanding of key historical themes, including the basic principles of democracy and America's role in the world.

Only 20% of U.S. fourth-graders and 17% of eighth-graders who took the 2010 history exam were "proficient" or "advanced," unchanged since the test was last administered in 2006. Proficient means students have a solid understanding of the material.

The news was even more dire in high school, where 12% of 12th-graders were proficient, unchanged since 2006. More than half of all seniors posted scores at the lowest achievement level, "below basic." While the nation's fourth- and eighth-graders have seen a slight uptick in scores since the exam was first administered in 1994, 12th-graders haven't.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... sNewsThird

I reviewed the sample questions provided here, and they seem ridiculously easy: http://nationsreportcard.gov/ushistory_ ... _quest.asp

I blame the American culture in general, wherein reading books is becoming less and less common. Also, somehow it's become acceptable to joke and laugh about people being stupid, and it's almost a cultural negative to be smart and well-educated in math, science and history. We aren't to the point where people giggle and laugh at illiteracy, but innumeracy is almost a badge of honor. And, knowing science is what "nerds" and "dorks" do, and "history is boring."

The kids of today have parents who were idiots and didn't read, and thought it cute to not know how to multiply and thought that only "dexters" and "eggheads" learned math and science. Of course their apples, by and large, aren't going to fall far from the tree.

[Geoff]

Fewer than a quarter of American 12th-graders knew China was North Korea's ally during the Korean War, and only 35% of fourth-graders knew the purpose of the Declaration of Independence, according to national history-test scores released Tuesday.

Don't Know Much About History?

Try your hand at some of the questions on the NAEP history tests.

View Interactive

The results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress revealed that U.S. schoolchildren have made little progress since 2006 in their understanding of key historical themes, including the basic principles of democracy and America's role in the world.

Only 20% of U.S. fourth-graders and 17% of eighth-graders who took the 2010 history exam were "proficient" or "advanced," unchanged since the test was last administered in 2006. Proficient means students have a solid understanding of the material.

The news was even more dire in high school, where 12% of 12th-graders were proficient, unchanged since 2006. More than half of all seniors posted scores at the lowest achievement level, "below basic." While the nation's fourth- and eighth-graders have seen a slight uptick in scores since the exam was first administered in 1994, 12th-graders haven't.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... sNewsThird

I reviewed the sample questions provided here, and they seem ridiculously easy: http://nationsreportcard.gov/ushistory_ ... _quest.asp

I blame the American culture in general, wherein reading books is becoming less and less common. Also, somehow it's become acceptable to joke and laugh about people being stupid, and it's almost a cultural negative to be smart and well-educated in math, science and history. We aren't to the point where people giggle and laugh at illiteracy, but innumeracy is almost a badge of honor. And, knowing science is what "nerds" and "dorks" do, and "history is boring."

The kids of today have parents who were idiots and didn't read, and thought it cute to not know how to multiply and thought that only "dexters" and "eggheads" learned math and science. Of course their apples, by and large, aren't going to fall far from the tree.

I'm going to resist my usual "merkin teasing" here, because it's much the same in the UK, sadly.

Though I have to say I'm more concerned about science illiteracy than I am about their history failings.

EDIT: I just scored 100% on the Grade 12 test, and I'd claim to know very little about US history...

[Coito ergo sum]

The problem with being ignorant of history is that one can't properly assess politics and be an educated electorate without it. I agree about science and math. Those topics also seem to be the ones that are almost "in vogue" to be stupid about. How many times have we heard someone we know laugh and chortle about how bad they are at math. "Oh, I can't multiply...ha ha ha...I'm the worst at math..." - I think we should start responding, "yeah, it's funny to be uneducated. Can't read either, I suppose? I think it's just hilarious when people can't write complete sentences, too."

[Geoff]

The problem with being ignorant of history is that one can't properly assess politics and be an educated electorate without it. I agree about science and math. Those topics also seem to be the ones that are almost "in vogue" to be stupid about. How many times have we heard someone we know laugh and chortle about how bad they are at math. "Oh, I can't multiply...ha ha ha...I'm the worst at math..." - I think we should start responding, "yeah, it's funny to be uneducated. Can't read either, I suppose? I think it's just hilarious when people can't write complete sentences, too."

See the edit in my previous post - I hadn't realised just how basic the questions were.

I'm not downplaying the importance of learning history, probably just showing my natural bias as an ex maths & science teacher.

[Coito ergo sum]

The problem with being ignorant of history is that one can't properly assess politics and be an educated electorate without it. I agree about science and math. Those topics also seem to be the ones that are almost "in vogue" to be stupid about. How many times have we heard someone we know laugh and chortle about how bad they are at math. "Oh, I can't multiply...ha ha ha...I'm the worst at math..." - I think we should start responding, "yeah, it's funny to be uneducated. Can't read either, I suppose? I think it's just hilarious when people can't write complete sentences, too."

See the edit in my previous post - I hadn't realised just how basic the questions were.

I'm not downplaying the importance of learning history, probably just showing my natural bias as an ex maths & science teacher.

I was trying to find the full test, because answering 5 basic questions doesn't do it justice. But, I thought when answering all the sample questions that they seemed like questions that one could puzzle out the answer without actually "knowing" it.

[laklak]

My oldest daughter came home from 5th (or maybe 6th) grade and said "I'm glad we won the civil war". We live in Florida, FFS, the 3rd State to secede. Didn't know who Robert E Lee or Jefferson Davis was, but knew Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglas and Harriet Tubman. I had to explain the facts behind the War of Northern Aggression.

CES, most people cannot write a coherent sentence. Subject-predicate agreement is beyond a lot of people, at least around here. "We is" or "we was" is common. The ability to do simple arithmetic like long division or (horrors!) counting change is uncommon. I handed a woman at a farmers market $10.25 for a bill of something like $8.16 and she had literally no idea how to figure out how much to give me back.

[Coito ergo sum]

LOL this is funny....

[Atheist-Lite]

Fifty percent of the population, standardised both in the UK & the US, have IQs below a hundred. Until we can do something about this appalling statistic we will continue to have a poorly educated workforce !!! Someone else said that but I just paraphrased.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

LOL this is funny....

I once asked a New Yorker, "If Japan is in the Far East, and Palestine is in the Middle East, where would the Near East be?"

His reply, "Long Island?"

[Atheist-Lite]

LOL this is funny....

I once asked a New Yorker, "If Japan is in the Far East, and Palestine is in the Middle East, where would the Near East be?"

His reply, "Long Island?"

Nothing wrong with the map if you scrub the American Empire and re-replace it with the longer lasting British Empire. (Now available to our 'merican cousins for the first time in centuries)

[Geoff]

Fifty percent of the population, standardised both in the UK & the US, have IQs below a hundred. Until we can do something about this appalling statistic we will continue to have a poorly educated workforce !!! Someone else said that but I just paraphrased.

I remember a book that came out about 10 years ago comparing international IQs (can't remember the title, but it linked national IQ to GDP), and the Far Eastern countries came out comfortably on top (Hong Kong topped the list, IIRC). Interesting read, though I found parts of it unconvincing.

[FBM]

LOL this is funny....

Well, it's not going to make sense on it's own, now is it? You have to make it make sense.

P.S. Yeah, 'duh-merkin' kids iz ignernt, purty much, bless their pea-pickin' hearts. But then, kids in general are ignorant. Teachers who don't know how to make a subject interesting are the norm. Most of them, in my experience, have had their creativity and inspiration drummed out of them by classes in pedagogy based on long out-moded psychological theories. Students, as a result, only want to learn enough to pass the class. They're not likely to give a shit on their own; there are too many competing desires, like sex, movies, sex, clothing styles, sex, skin care, sex, Brittney Spears, sex, etc etc. And sex. Eh. I was going to make an even more profound point, but I suddenly got horny. Brb.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Fifty percent of the population, standardised both in the UK & the US, have IQs below a hundred. Until we can do something about this appalling statistic we will continue to have a poorly educated workforce !!! Someone else said that but I just paraphrased.

I love that one! The folks who came up with that are as bad at maffs as I am.

[Coito ergo sum]

P.S. Yeah, 'duh-merkin' kids iz ignernt, purty much, bless their pea-pickin' hearts. But then, kids in general are ignorant. Teachers who don't know how to make a subject interesting are the norm. Most of them, in my experience, have had their creativity and inspiration drummed out of them by classes in pedagogy based on long out-moded psychological theories. Students, as a result, only want to learn enough to pass the class. They're not likely to give a shit on their own;

...snip....


I blame the parents for not instilling a love of learning. That's up to parents, not teachers. There is no reason basic American history shouldn't be learned from books purchased for children for birthdays and Christmas, and trips to the library.

[Robert_S]

Somebody has to work at McDonald's.