As GenY specialists, we have to comment on Mark Bauerlein’s new book, “The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future (Or, Don’t Trust Anyone Under 30)”.
The Emory University Professor presents his figures showing a decline in US adult literacy (40% of high-school grads in 1992; only 31% in 2003) and the many areas where young Americans lack knowledge, such as geographic, historical and political cluelessness.
Bauerlein is even more annoyed because his Gen-Yers are unapologetic about their ignorance. They dismiss the idea that they should have more facts in their heads, and call it a pre-Google and pre-wiki anachronism.
CPS’s position is that Bauerlein has a good case, and is also completely wrong. Gen Y has massive skills gaps in some areas, but is the smartest generation ever in others.
1. We’re inclined to be impressed with the anecdotal, and the growing empirical case, that technology is changing the way people’s brains process information.
2. We see fluid intelligence and life-long learning as the keys to economic prosperity. We think that the trend in European education systems (smaller numbers of facts, higher emphasis on thinking skills) is the way to go to build the cognitive skills required for higher-paying, secure work in the 21st Century. It doesn’t matter if you know the fact, as long as you have the conceptual schema, and know how to retrieve the details. If the educational process builds a love of learning, and confidence in your mind-power, this will create a life-long learner.
3. We’re not fans of the crusty professor’s assumption of “Millennial fault”. He’s quick to blame X boxes and technology, but is the blame to be placed on the GenYs? There are plenty of other places to place it: the deterioration of family interactions (including the decline of the family dinner conversation, ever-blaring TV, and the parochial and sensationalist, sound-byte news-that-sells?)
4. Bauerlein has a good point that education in the USA is broken in many areas. CPS is especially concerned about the way the demand for grade averages has led, by a domino effect, to the dumbing-down of K12 systems to achieve more A results for college entrance. In an effort to ensure that “all students are above average”, teachers are often pressured towards the lower levels of cognitions and the simple recall of knowledge. Of course this often results only in temporary learning, because the material is not processed at the level of analysis and evaluation.*
*Note: CPS provides structured, competency-based, peer-coached and behaviorally-referenced professional development processes to school districts, to develop higher order thinking skills in our students. The cost is $1 per teacher, and we obtain funding from the private sector where necessary. This is a CPS initiative to make our communities more globally competitive.
Please let us know what you think: the Dumbest Generation? Yes? No? Why? All opinions welcome!
