Our failing education system is leading us down a dangerous road.
America is in the midst of an education crisis, ranging from newborns to college students, and it is ubiquitous. In an under-reported story from August, a study by researchers at five universities found that babies born during the Covid pandemic show reduced verbal, motor, and overall cognitive performance. Babies who came into the world before the coronavirus had an IQ score averaging 100, but the test scores of those born during the pandemic fell sharply to around 78.
And those who were already out of the oven when Covid – and our overwrought reaction to it – became a reality are not in great shape either. Researchers from McKinsey found that by the end of the 2020-21 school year, students were, on average, four to five months behind where they have been in the past, and low-income and minority kids were disproportionately harmed in math and reading. Additionally, the latest American Family Survey, released in October, revealed that nearly 20% of parents said that their children’s grades worsened during the pandemic and nearly one-third reporting declines in learning.
But wait, it gets worse. Even before the pandemic, reading achievement was going downhill. As reported by Hechinger, U.S. fourth graders in 2016 slid seven points on the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), an international reading test. “Then, fourth and eighth graders – particularly eighth graders – posted lower scores on the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a benchmark test that is taken every two years by both age groups.”
So, the question becomes, what can we do to right the ship? Sadly, those in charge are clueless, have a political agenda, are greedy, or all the above. One cohort wants to change the way we grade. Joe Feldman, a former teacher and administrator, and now an “educational grading consultant” has written “Grading for Equity.” In the book, Feldman asserts, “Our traditional grading practices have always harmed our traditionally underserved students.” He adds, “But now because the number of students being harmed was so much greater, it got people more aware of it and ready to tackle this issue.”
In other words, we need to grade on factors other than achievement. On cue, this has been picked up by the Los Angeles Unified School District, where guidance now says “academic grades should not be based on attendance, including unexcused absences, late work, engagement or behavior, which can be reflected in separate ‘citizenship’ or ‘work habits’ marks that do not count toward a student’s GPA.”
While some of the new L.A. guidelines are sensible, like letting students retake a test they may have failed the first time, most are quite damaging. Work habits and deadlines matter. Ignoring them or moving them into an amorphous grading area does a great disservice to the student. It certainly doesn’t prepare them for the real world, where lack of attention to these matters can result in job loss.
Perhaps the most glaring area for reform attempts is in math, and California is leading the way. In the proposed 2022 draft revision of the California Department of Education’s “Mathematics Framework,” the chapter on “Teaching for Equity and Engagement” includes this language: “Empowering students with mathematics also includes removing the high stakes of errors and sending the message that learning is always unfinished and that it is safe to take mathematical risks. This mind-set creates the conditions for students to develop a sense of ownership over their mathematical thinking and their right to belong to the discipline of mathematics.” The draft also suggests that math should not be colorblind, and that teachers should use lessons to explore social justice issues – by looking out for gender stereotypes in word problems, applying math concepts to topics like immigration, inequality, etc.
As John McWhorter notes, the above is an artful way of saying that “diverse” kids should not be “saddled with the onerous task of having to get the actual answers.” Accordingly, nearly 1,000 experts in math instruction and application have signed an open letter in which they trash the new proposed framework, maintaining it could devastate learning for the state’s 6 million kids in California’s public schools.
American history is in no better shape. With the advent of a state-mandated Ethnic Studies class in high school, the equity zealots in California are going to town. In an extended piece in the Los Angeles Times, Melissa Gomez details what will be on the menu in many school districts. For example, “Eurocentric history” is on the chopping block. The “insensitive use of their culture for sport team mascots,” the disastrous results of “settler colonialism,” etc., will be part of the curriculum. In keeping with the spirit of the times, one of the article’s featured teachers, Melina Melgoza, a high school teacher at the Edward R. Roybal Learning Center in Los Angeles, starts her class with “students completing a social-emotional learning check-in with their feelings.”
The miseducation continues right into college. Researchers have found that while grades and graduation rates are up on college campuses, student test scores do not warrant the increases. They explain that the probable reason for the disparity is quite simply grade inflation. “The recent policy focus on college completion rates seems a likely contributor to increases in average GPAs. As schools and departments face increased scrutiny and, in some cases, increased funding incentives, they may respond by increasing graduation rates. Changing standards of degree receipt is a low-cost way to increase graduation rates. And in fact, graduation rates increased sharply at public four-year schools and community colleges, which rely on tax dollars and can be affected by states’ performance-based funding rules.”
American students have been and continue to be egregiously shortchanged due to a hysterical response to Covid, agenda-driven learning, the lowering of standards, and greed. Collectively, we all will suffer greatly for this dysfunctional state unless changes are made in a hurry. If not, our country will be unrecognizable in the not-too-distant future.
* * *
Larry Sand, a former classroom teacher, is the president of the non-profit California Teachers Empowerment Network – a non-partisan, non-political group dedicated to providing teachers and the general public with reliable and balanced information about professional affiliations and positions on educational issues. The views presented here are strictly his own.
FAQs
Who wrote the book the Dumbing Down of America?
Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling ( ISBN 086571231X) is a non-fiction book written by American teacher and political libertarian John Taylor Gatto….Dumbing Us Down.
| First edition | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Taylor Gatto |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | New Society Publishers |
| Publication date | 1992 |
8 more rows
When was the dumbing down of America written?
Definition of dumb down
transitive verb. : to lower the level of difficulty and the intellectual content of (something, such as a textbook) also : to lower the general level of intelligence in the dumbing down of society.
What is the meaning of dumbing down?
to make (something) less intellectually demanding or sophisticated. I know it must be tempting to dumb down news. Synonyms. trivialize. sensationalize.
What is the meaning of dumbing down?
Provisional self-esteem is personal pride that depends entirely on recognition from the teacher; self-evaluation is never considered.
What is provisional self esteem?
In this page you can discover 13 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for oversimplify, like: reduce to an absurdity, make too simple, make too simplistic, , over-simplistic, reduce, over reduce, restrict, simplify, ahistorical and null.
What is a synonym for oversimplify?
In this page you can discover 59 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for dumb, like: stupid, blockheaded, moronic, foolish, senseless, unintelligent, dull, ignorant, idiotic, obtuse and thickheaded.
What is a smart word for dumb?
? Opposite of simplify (something) so much that a distorted impression of it is given. complicate.
What is the opposite of oversimplify?
Causal oversimplification is a specific kind of false dilemma where conjoint possibilities are ignored. In other words, the possible causes are assumed to be “A or B or C” when “A and B and C” or “A and B and not C” (etc.) are not taken into consideration; i.e. the “or” is not exclusive.
What is oversimplification fallacy?
Definition of oversimplify
transitive verb. : to simplify to such an extent as to bring about distortion, misunderstanding, or error. intransitive verb. : to engage in undue or extreme simplification.
What is a synonym for oversimplify?
Straw person is the misrepresentation of an opponent’s position or a competitor’s product to tout one’s own argument or product as superior. This fallacy occurs when the weakest version of an argument is attacked while stronger ones are ignored.
Why is straw man a fallacy?
Post hoc: This fallacy states that the first event necessarily caused the second when one event happens after another. For example, a black cat crossed my path, and then I got into a car accident. The black cat caused the car accident.
The “dumbing down” of America – Susan Jacoby – Thirteen.org
The “dumbing down” of America | Richard Heffner’s Open Mind Archive Writer Susan Jacoby discusses her book “The Age of American Unreason.” READ FULL TRANSCRIPT GUEST: Susan Jacoby VTR: 05/08/2008 I’m Richard Heffner, your host on The Open Mind. And my guest today, writer Susan Jacoby, has in her new Pantheon Books’ truly brilliant but equally depressing “The Age of American Unreason” picked up where my teacher and friend, Pulitzer Prize-winning American historian Richard Hofstadter, left off two generations ago … and with skill and insight expands upon his now-classic study of “Anti-Intellectualism In American Life”. As presidential historian Douglas Brinkley comments about her book, “With analytic verve and deep historical knowledge, Susan Jacoby documents the dumbing down of our culture like a maestro. Make no mistake about it, this is an important book”. Now Ms. Jacoby quotes Thomas Jefferson to begin her “Age of American Unreason: Jefferson, 1816”…”If a nation expects to be ignorant and free … it expects what never was and never will be.” Which, of course, is why I, too, use as the title of our Open Mind today the thoroughly disheartening but now so often heard phrase, “The dumbing down of America”. Indeed, in this presidential election year, I would ask Susan Jacoby to answer her own book’s ultimate question: “Is it possible that American voters have learned something about the consequences of choosing an intellectually challenged Chief Executive? Fair question? JACOBY: Fair question. We’ll find out. (Laugh) I think that, for example, I’m not even going to talk about the Republican side. But in the Democratic primaries which basically have boiled down to Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Now these are two very intelligent people. These are two, also, extremely well educated people. I have to say that one of the things that has really disheartened me in the last few weeks, which is to say, since, since the contest came down to the two of them, is all of these accusations of elitism flying around. I just heard Hillary Clinton say, and, and as you know, she and John McCain have both proposed a gas tax holiday in the summer, which every economist in the nation thinks is an idiotic idea, which will do nothing, it will just provide more profits for the oil companies. And I heard Hillary Clinton say, “Well, that’s just elite thinking.” In other words, why listen to those stupid old economists, what do they know, we want to give relief right now to people who are suffering at the gas pump. Now Obama to his credit said, “No. Every economist says that that would do nothing for people.” Now the question is, how do the American people think about this? Right now we have State legislature also running to fall in line behind this stupid gas tax proposal. If people understood what a tiny proportion of their money for gas actually goes for the federal tax, then they would, they would not fall for that proposal. We’ll see … HEFFNER: So your answer is “no” we haven’t changed. JACOBY: I don’t know. I don’t know. A lot of … a lot of the discussion in this campaign which started out to be more intelligent has become less intelligent as it’s been reduced to a war of sound bytes. Our political culture, you know, is no different from our culture as a whole. One of the things I object to is people talking about our political culture as though it is something different from our culture. Our political culture interacts with our culture as a whole. It’s a reflection of our culture as a whole. I’ve had Left Wing talk show hosts…
The Dumbing of America – TCNJ
THE ART OF PROCRASTINATION The Dumbing of America Already I have proven my point in the title to this essay. First of all, “dumbing” is not a legitimate word that is recognized by any of the dictionaries I checked. The experts would say that people who use it are dumb. It is ironic that it is predominately used by people complaining about others getting dumber. The word “dumb” originally referred to someone who lacked the ability to speak. It was the German word (dumm) that was brought here and evolved into “dumb” as in “stupid.” But when the word “dumbing” is used, it is usually used with the word “down,” as in the “dumbing down” of someone or some group. To me this seems redundant. Also redundant is the expression “smarten up” or “wise up.” Does “dumbing up” make you smarter? What got me thinking about Americans becoming dumber was not all of the bad reports about our education system or its comparison with those of other countries. What did it was a phone call from Verizon. I don’t normally answer calls when my caller ID indicates that they are solicitations, but Verizon is my phone company (cell and home), and I use their FIOS system for Internet access. I thought that perhaps they needed to speak with me about my service or billing. Wrong! They wanted to sell me their fiber optic cable service. I politely told the man that I don’t watch TV, I don’t like TV, and I don’t want to watch TV. I had to tell him this three times before it registered with him. Evidently he had never encountered anyone who didn’t watch TV. He apologized and said goodbye. There is no question that TV can be entertaining. There is also no question that smoking marijuana can be entertaining, but for some reason marijuana was outlawed, while TV was not. I think they made a serious mistake – whomever “they” are. While I did not conduct an official study, it seems apparent to me that TV has done a lot more harm to our society than marijuana. However, I’ve not been an active participant in either of these activities, so I can’t base it on personal experience. I have done illegal things that I believe to have been more fun than either TV or marijuana, but that’s another story — and we were both underage. TV is addicting because it is there in front of us, it offers us lots of options, it requires no effort, we can avoid doing other things that need to be done, and we can eat while we watch it. Thus much of America is being unproductive and getting fat in the process – as well as unhealthy. The A. C. Nelson Co. has gathered some shocking statistics. According to them, the average American watches more than 4 hours of TV each day, which is 28 hours/week, or 2 months of nonstop TV-watching per year. In a 65-year life, the average American will have spent 9 years glued to the tube. It took me only seven years to get my MBA and my doctorate. Jeeze, I could have been watching TV instead. Their statistics get even scarier. Americans rent 6 million videos daily, but only half this many books are checked out from libraries. By the time the average child has completed elementary school, he or she has seen approximately 8,000 murders. By age 18 people have witnessed 200,000 acts of violence, and each year they have watched approximately 20,000 commercials. Fifty nine percent of Americans can name The Three Stooges, but only 17% can name at least three justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. They estimate that the dollar value spent watching TV, even at a low wage of five dollars per hour, is S1.25 trillion dollars a year. Okay, enough statistics. There is a plethora of information out there about this problem. Unfortunately, none of it is on TV,…
>27:52Guest: Susan Jacoby, author, “The Age of American Unreason”Taped: 05-08-2008In May 1956, Richard D. Heffner, American historian, broadcaster …YouTube · CUNY TV · Aug 4, 201710 key moments in this video
LETTER: Dumbing down of America now complete
LETTER: Dumbing down of America now completeFor years, I’ve been trying to figure out why Donald Trump hadn’t run for political office before the age of 70. I finally figured it out. The “dumbing down” of America had not been completed. Before 2016, Americans were too intelligent to believe his nonsense. He lied to voters every day while he was a candidate and every day while president; however, his supporters stood by him and believed every word of the crapola that came out of his mouth.More:FACT CHECK: Trump clings to his core election falsehoods in CPAC speechMore:OP-ED: How shocking that the GOP now has a QAnon problem in their ranks”Dumbing down is the deliberate oversimplification of intellectual content in education, literature, and cinema, news, video games, and culture.” The term was first used as movie business slang by screenplay writers ordered to revise scripts so as to appeal to those of little education or intelligence. Well, looking at the highlights of speeches at the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference, I have come to the conclusion that the “dumbing down” of America is now complete.How can anyone watch a maniacal Ted Cruz and a calculating Josh Hawley and not break out laughing at their hubris? It’s like those who attended CPAC and cheered these guys are living on another planet. The Republican Party now consists of those who value ignorance and those who embrace conspiracy theories, along with the politicians who control them.
Op-Ed: The dumbing down of America – The Center Square
Op-Ed: The dumbing down of America “The mind of this country, taught to aim at low objects, eats upon itself.”– Ralph Waldo EmersonThe term “dumbing down” was a secret code used by film writers in the 1930s to revise scripts to appeal to viewers of lower intelligence. And for the last few decades, this phrase reflects a painful reality; today’s Americans are in serious intellectual trouble. They’re in danger of losing all cultural and political capital because of illogical rationalism, diminished civic education, false idealism and lowered expectations.The manner in which political, civic and economic ignorance contributes to grave national problems is the most contagious, self-inflicted disease our republic faces today. It is the most destructive of all epidemics since its only inoculation is economic and civic education.Plato once said, “To plot the future, one must know the past.” Not too long ago, we were a nation highly resolved that a government of the people and for the people shall never perish. Love of our country and respect for its institutions and laws was a common denominator that kept us united in respect for our aberrations. The ethics of republicanism triumphed over our differing ideologies. Each time we swayed from the principles of our founding, Lady Liberty gave us a gentle shove, moving us back to the right of center. Our commitment to the tenants of our Constitution made us superior to any democracy.“Ours is the only country deliberately founded on a good idea.”– John GuntherWhat happened to the distinguishing traits that made us a great nation? A great nation is one that is talking and listening to itself. When the conveyance of cogent knowledge is replaced with rumor, gossip, half truths, and non-truths, the mindset of fragile groups within a society is easily coerced. Mistruth was responsible for social and political convulsions that led to two Great Wars. It ushered in the McCarthy era, and it kept one-eighth of the earth’s inhabitants in socialist bondage for seven decades. Mistruth has been used by rogue leaders to write or rewrite history since creation.“Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”– George OrwellAmerican intellectualism has suffered greatly in the past few decades as video and social media cultures have replaced print culture. This disjunction is limiting formal education and our continuing education. Self-destruction of the press brought about the declination of newspaper readership. But the proliferation of electronic media has diminished our priceless historical and classical education. According to a study by the National Endowment for the Arts, reading today has the least influence on our intellectual maturity.“The more that you read, the more things you will know.”– Dr. SuessWhat brought about this dumbing down of America? Since the sheer nature of man is survival and he must provide himself with the tools necessary to confront any threat to his existence, how can an entire country allow this to happen? Those who don’t read don’t know their history, nor have the tools for survival. The rise and fall of civilizations is chronicled within the pages of more books than we can digest in a lifetime. And there is one reoccurring theme that resonates in every edition: the under-educated, ill-informed, apathetic members of a society are most vulnerable and most easily enslaved.“History is the sum total of the things that could have been avoided.”– Konrad AdenauerVladimir Lenin told us, “Give me four years to teach the children and the seed I have sown will never be uprooted.” At one time, America reigned supreme as a world model by providing the best quality public education on the planet. But while most free nations have been adapting to technical, social and political evolution, we continue to allow Washington politics to dictate the curriculum for local education. With federally mandated progressive Common Core teaching in all public schools, we are socially and politically brainwashing generations of liberalist robotic citizens to do what they are told to do – not what they think. Public education is now education by the federal government.Progressives have been mounting…
Bad, or the Dumbing of America by Paul Fussell | Goodreads
Bad, or the Dumbing of America Fussell’s definition of BAD (as opposed to just plain bad) is, “something phony, clumsy, witless, untalented, vacant, or boring that many Americans can be persuaded is genuine, graceful, bright, or fascinating.” And, oh boy, is there a truckload of BAD in this country! Fussell covers everything from movies to books to restaurants and more. The entire chapter on BAD conversation should be sent en masse to everyone in this country.On television: “Although now and then it tries to cover its shame a …more Considering the author’s disdain of fancy words for pretentious purposes, I have to wonder why he chose to use the word “emplaced” instead of placed or “descanted” instead of commented, remarked, or criticized. Hmm.Fussel is on a rant and offers little to no argument to back up his opinions. Even though I agree with some of his opinions I can’t recommend this book. Try Class if the topic interests you. …more This book is bad, but not BAD. The premise of it is that America specifically has become BAD-when standard badness or crappiness gets promoted as good usually through pretention, laziness, or other factors. He lists brief snapshots of BAD thinking, BAD movies, etc. Some more or less are repeated from his book Class, some are new.However without the structure of Class, this book comes across as random whining about things he doesn’t like. It’s more snobbery about America, with some of it being qu …more Fussell is a cranky man. But what our culture needs is more cranks, and Fussell is one of our greatest.So what is the difference between ‘bad’ and ‘BAD’? You’ll have to read to find out. But if you want a funny, witty look at American ‘culture’ that spares nothing, you need this book. It’s a book that our country, which boasts a populace that is poor, morbidly obese and yet somehow malnourished, needs. …more Disappointing after CLASS – A throwaway, sometimes funny, sometimes savage, but sadly never consistently either. It’s not enough to list a few bad things and a few BAD things – you need a big theory of why dumb crap is taking over and what can be done. Otherwise it’s just sniffy noises from behind the curtains. …more I found this book quite interesting, because it exposed many secrets of things that I have experienced in my life, and things that I experience everyday. The author starts out by explaining the meaning of something that is just bad, as well as the meaning of something that is indeed, BAD. He establishes his claim from the beginning, stating how, even though the BAD epidemic is nearly everywhere, it mainly resonates in the United States of America.The author uses examples all throughout the book …more Paul Fussell´s ¨Bad, or The Dumbing of America¨ not only opened my eyes into seeing what trickery actually goes on everyday in society, but also taught me that despite all of these BAD things, there is still hope as long as everyone learns that these things he is warning of can be stopped or realized. Fussell´s writing style is like no other. He takes shots at every business and possible item that he thinks needs to be reformed. He doesnt hold back, and points out flaws…
The dumbing of America – California Policy Center
The dumbing of America Our failing education system is leading us down a dangerous road. America is in the midst of an education crisis, ranging from newborns to college students, and it is ubiquitous. In an under-reported story from August, a study by researchers at five universities found that babies born during the Covid pandemic show reduced verbal, motor, and overall cognitive performance. Babies who came into the world before the coronavirus had an IQ score averaging 100, but the test scores of those born during the pandemic fell sharply to around 78. And those who were already out of the oven when Covid – and our overwrought reaction to it – became a reality are not in great shape either. Researchers from McKinsey found that by the end of the 2020-21 school year, students were, on average, four to five months behind where they have been in the past, and low-income and minority kids were disproportionately harmed in math and reading. Additionally, the latest American Family Survey, released in October, revealed that nearly 20% of parents said that their children’s grades worsened during the pandemic and nearly one-third reporting declines in learning. But wait, it gets worse. Even before the pandemic, reading achievement was going downhill. As reported by Hechinger, U.S. fourth graders in 2016 slid seven points on the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), an international reading test. “Then, fourth and eighth graders – particularly eighth graders – posted lower scores on the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a benchmark test that is taken every two years by both age groups.” So, the question becomes, what can we do to right the ship? Sadly, those in charge are clueless, have a political agenda, are greedy, or all the above. One cohort wants to change the way we grade. Joe Feldman, a former teacher and administrator, and now an “educational grading consultant” has written “Grading for Equity.” In the book, Feldman asserts, “Our traditional grading practices have always harmed our traditionally underserved students.” He adds, “But now because the number of students being harmed was so much greater, it got people more aware of it and ready to tackle this issue.” In other words, we need to grade on factors other than achievement. On cue, this has been picked up by the Los Angeles Unified School District, where guidance now says “academic grades should not be based on attendance, including unexcused absences, late work, engagement or behavior, which can be reflected in separate ‘citizenship’ or ‘work habits’ marks that do not count toward a student’s GPA.” While some of the new L.A. guidelines are sensible, like letting students retake a test they may have failed the first time, most are quite damaging. Work habits and deadlines matter. Ignoring them or moving them into an amorphous grading area does a great disservice to the student. It certainly doesn’t prepare them for the real world, where lack of attention to these matters can result in job loss. Perhaps the most glaring area for reform attempts is in math, and California is leading the way. In the proposed 2022 draft revision of the California Department of Education’s “Mathematics Framework,” the chapter on “Teaching for Equity and Engagement” includes this language: “Empowering students with mathematics also includes removing the high stakes of…
Bad, Or, the Dumbing of America – Publishers Weekly
Bad, Or, the Dumbing of America by Paul FussellPaul Fussell. Summit Books, $18.5 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-671-67652-0This book is a lethal weapon. With deadly wit and a nose for fakery, Fussell ( Class ) takes aim at things promoted as highly desirable that are, in fact, phony, vacant, stupid, boring or subadult. He defines such trumpery as “bad,” and finds examples of badness everywhere–in People magazine, pretentious language, “New Age” charlatans, show biz, “socko-erotic” poetry, all advertising, Edward Kennedy, George Bush, the Vietnam War and music like Ravel’s Bolero, for starters. The acid mini-essays are arranged in A-to-Z format, followed by Fussell’s diagnosis of badness as a misguided quest for the illusion of distinction and value in a rootless America progressively sinking into stupidity and ignorance. This delightfully wicked satire will produce many red faces. (Nov.)closeDetailsReviewed on: 09/30/1991Genre: Nonfiction