I was appalled but the statistics that both articles present about
Bauerlien's novel "The dumbest generation." To realize that members of my generation do not know, or remember what they learned, about things like Pearl Harbor or Vietnam was a hard realization. Great things have happened in and to our country of the course of it's short history that need to be remembered and even learned from for the future. If our generation, and the generations after us continue to focus more on social networking sites than news media the prospect for our future as a country is scary to think about.
in the Newsweek article, however, the author wrote about how it is not only the individuals fault, but the school system as well that has failed them. I agree with this to a point, let me make myself clear, The school system in America today could use some work (as an understatement) to help the children in the system learn more about the world, however, it is also the individual person's choice whether or not to retain or even learn the information as well. If the school system were to improve, whose to say that it will improve what the students learn and retain?
The school systems of America are not good. They definitely could use some work. It is interesting that you raise the question that even if the school systems were better that does not mean the student will still retain the information. I never thought of it that way. The student may not learn it better because if the student is not motivated they won’t. It is there personal decision if they want to learn. In school a quote that was always said was “Education is the key to success,” so without education you cannot really do much in life.
ReplyDeleteYou brought up a good point by saying that even if the school systems change, it doesn't necessarily mean that students will retain the information better. The responsibility to do so remains with the student. I do think that the parents could create a more intelligent environment by requiring their child to read more and discuss current events. I think that would help us become more interested.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I think that history is a really really important thing. I'm a geologist by trade, which is all about trying to figure out the history of the earth and (somewhat) to figure out where its going - so in a way, I'm a historian. I may not understand all of geology and certanly not all of human history, but I do understand the basics and that knowlege is invaluable to our existance.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think that the education system in the US (like most government related things) is screwed up. For instance, we, as Americans, pride ourselves on problem solving, not really standardized tests. But, because Chinese kids can out-score us on tests, we feel like we need to step it up. Fact is, we are losing our problem solving skills. Thats just one example, I've got more because my mom has been a 4th grade teacher for like 15 years, so she has seen lot of these changes overtime).
I agree with you I couldn't believe some people did not know American History. I love American History and have a big interest in it, but I have to admit I'm not a genius when it comes to some ancient history. I feel an overhaul of the American education system should definitely happen. The schools care far too much about standardized tests so they can get they're money from the state.
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