Dumbest Generation????

To start off, I have never heard of our generation being referred to as “the dumbest generation” and quite frankly I am offended. I do realize that our generation does not know some of the basic historical information that someone should be knowledgeable about. Bauerlein makes it seem as if our generation knows nothing! Although we do not know some of the things we should know, it doesn’t make us dumb. Our generation has grown up entirely different than many others. We grew up having televisions, cell phones, the internet, etc. They are things that we couldn’t imagine our lives without. However, the generations before us didn’t grow up with some of the same technological advances. Just because we enjoy watching TV, using the internet, talking on the phone and texting, doesn’t mean that we have ignored all else in our lives. We are still “just as smart and motivated as ever” (Bauerlein). I also don’t think it was fair for him to generalize our generation as a whole. There may be some people that may fit the standard as being “dumb” or others that have an average intelligence, but there are also those within our generation who have advanced intelligences. 

After taking the “quiz” today, I do believe that there is a sense of reality that can be taken from Bauerlein. I recognize that our generation may not know the most important things, but we are intelligent in other ways. For example, I scored a 4.5 (I got one part of a two part question right) in part one and a 2 in part two. I know… that is quite embarrassing! I knew more about present day culture and things you would find in the media than in the more historical questions presented in part two. I don’t really keep up with current events and if I did maybe I would have known more of the answers. The rest of the questions come from the past. I take some responsibility, but I also place some of the blame on teachers. Kayla already posted this quote in her blog, but I really feel as if it captures the essence of what I am trying to say. “Fair enough, but we suspect that if young people don’t know the Bill of Rights or the import of old COLORED ENTRANCE signs—and they absolutely should—it reflects not stupidity but a failure of the school system and of society (which is run by grown-ups) to require them to know it” (Bauerlein). Information that should be learned throughout elementary, middle and high school should be emphasized even after the material is taught. That way, the material will be easier to retain. Some of the information that we “should” know, we may have never learned in school. Different people, schools, and states have different ideas of what students “should know.”

In our group we talked about how easy it is for us to look up the information we do not know. Because we know how easy it is to look up an answer we may not know about, we don’t really actually “learn” the material. We simply read the answer and then when the question comes up again, simply just pull out the laptop and search for the answer online. In the generations before us, they didn’t have the technology to do so. They would have to go to the library and actually read in order to find the answer. I guess that is what makes our generations different. I guess you could say our generation is somewhat “lazy,” but technology has given us a reason to be lazy. 

All in all, I somewhat agree and disagree with what Bauerlein has to say about our generation. Some of the things he says, I take offense to, and other comments he makes good points. I would agree that our society does not know certain things from the past that we should know, but I don’t think that necessarily makes us the “dumbest generation.” There are some things that we are more intelligent with now, than we ever were.