Preview

Dumbest Generation

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
938 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Dumbest Generation
Mark Bauerlein seems to believe that is the dumbest generation because research has shown that knowledge skills and intellectual habits have gone down, and although some people agree with him, others don’t. I believe this generation isn’t the dumbest because there are other things that need to be considered when calling someone, a group of people, or even an entire generation stupid or dumb, rather than just knowledge skills and intellectual habits. Knowledge isn’t all about what people know or how well they are in school. IQ tests test the intelligence of the person; however they test the pure thinking capacity rather than what people know. This means that intelligence comes from the entire cognitive thinking ability and not what they know. IQ tests have also been rising since the 1930’s (Source B). Furthermore, just because this doesn’t know things that people knew two generations before us did, doesn’t make us dumb. This generation is learning about things that people didn’t even know about two or even one generation ago. Also, most students in college don’t think that what was important back then is relevant today, so they don’t see the point in remembering or learning about it. That isn’t stupidity, that’s just choice in the information that they wish to hold. Plus, some people are more intelligent about certain things about other people, but that doesn’t make them dumb or stupid about that subject. They just don’t understand it as much as other people. If you look at other subjects for that person, I’m sure you’ll find their strong spot, and what they’re good at. It all depends on what their brain can understand and comprehend. Moreover, students and even adults are coming together. They create groups and social activities that allow people with similar interests and intelligence to get together and help and teach what they know about that particular subject. They come to these people for their knowledge to improve their craft, gain reputation, and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In “Hidden Intellectualism” Gerald Graff explains his view on intellectualism and how the education system only limits intellectualism to book smarts. Graff also enlightens the misunderstanding on society with “street smarts.” He explains that everyone including “street smart have potential and they are overlooked.…

    • 259 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Albert Einstein once said “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life thinking it 's stupid”. As stated by one of the greatest minds of all time, every individual has the capacity to be an intellectual, but the way society currently measures intellect purely based off of one’s “book smarts” not everyone’s genius is fully realized. As stated by Gerald Graff In his essay “Hidden Intellectualism” Graff states that our current system of teaching does by no means try to foster the intelligence of street smart people who account for many in our society. In Graff’s experience he thinks that a style of teaching incorporating street smarts would have benefitted him and would benefit people today. If we tried to teach street smart people using topics they are interested they would be able to understand…

    • 1529 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Mark Bauerlein implies that meaningful connection is important, yet interferes with our education if not handled well, while the myth of Echo and Narcissus states how it is important not to focus on a single connection due to the problems that follow along with it. My position states that meaningful connection is necessary in life, yet needs to be handled well to be effective.…

    • 1318 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Roz Chast Argument Essay

    • 441 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Since the beginning of time, adults have bemoaned the lack of intelligence in the youth of ‘today’. While in some instances they may be correct, as the trend of general knowledge slopes downward, intelligence isn’t something easily defined. Due to that, the claim that the current younger generation is the dumbest is completely unfounded.…

    • 441 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Age of Stupid

    • 896 Words
    • 3 Pages

    I was aware of global warming; however I was not aware of what the contributing factors were, how severe it was, and how we as Americans are bad consumers and our decisions are effecting our environment.…

    • 896 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When someone is called intelligent, people automatically think of how book smart someone is. Book smart relates to how much information about math, science, and english a person knows. In Hidden Intellectualism, Graff brings up the idea that intelligence isn’t all about a scholarly form of thinking. “Everyone knows some young person who is impressively “street smart” but does poorly in school” is the first line of Graff’s essay (Graff 787). Nowadays, it is popular for a person to have the experience and knowledge for an everyday environment but lack knowledge in educational studies. A reasonable answer for this problem could be that schools aren’t tapping into subjects other than the worn out academics that quickly in-interest students.…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the prompt “Anti-Intellectualism and the "Dumbing Down" of America” Ray Williams explains his point of view on society, and how we are getting “dumber” also how we are not taught “the right way” anymore. Catherine Liu says “We don’t educate people anymore. We train them to get jobs.” (Williams pg. 2) He also goes to rant on and talk about how our generation now is the dumbest generation, and that social media has completely taken control of our lives. To be honest I hate to say it because I am basically saying this about myself; but I agree with him. After reading about the statistics some Americans didn’t know I was in utter shock and couldn’t believe what I was reading “A surprising 77% didn't know that George Washington was the first President” (Williams pg.2) Even…

    • 669 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Flynn Effect

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the United States between 1932 and 1978, mean IQ scores rose 13.8 points, or approximately 0.33 points each year (Flynn, 1984), and IQ scores continued to increase at least into the mid 1990s (Rowe & Rodgers, 2002). Even more striking increases in IQ scores were reported in other countries; for example, IQ scores in Great Britain surged 27 points between 1942 and 1992 (Flynn, 1999). Smaller increases were reported in numerous other countries (e.g., France, the Netherlands, and Norway) during shorter time periods (Flynn, 1987). The Flynn effect, as it is referred to by researchers, is supported by a growing body of research that indicates that even within relatively short timeframes, mean IQ scores tend to increase (Dickens & Flynn, 2001). Furthermore, the Flynn effect is not limited to developed countries (Daley, Whaley, Sigman, Espinosa, & Neumann, 2003). Meanwhile, research has identified numerous practical problems created by the Flynn effect. For example, rising scores require intelligence tests to be restandardized, which alters the scoring of tests such as the WAIS, and changes in test norms create difficulties in assessing the mental capacity of the mentally retarded (Tomoe & Ceci, 2003) and the elderly (Verhaeghen, 2003). Moreover, the Flynn effect may undermine the current theoretical concept of intelligence or the validity of intelligence tests (Flynn, 1984). Although numerous explanations for the Flynn effect were proposed (e.g., Dickens & Flynn, 2001; Flynn, 1987), debate on the origins of the Flynn effect continues (e.g., Rowe & Rodgers, 2002).…

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Dumbest Generation

    • 1448 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Synthesis Essay Complete the Culminating Conversation exercise on page 166 of your textbook. You will have the entire class period on Tuesday to read and take notes on sources and the entire class period on Wednesday to write and revise. The assignment will be due at the start of the school day on Thursday. Use MLA format for citations.…

    • 1448 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Generation Me

    • 1233 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The author of “Generation Me” is a social psychologist whose name is Jean M. Twenge. She is one of the “Me” Generation as she was born in 1971. Twenge suggested a different interpretation of some of the commonly held conceptions of the generation variously referred to as Generation Me. Steve Eubanks summarized this book as “…first half of the book makes the case that this is a generation in which the importance of the individual supersedes all other concerns, focusing on the cultural and demographic forces that have influenced this generation cohort. The second half of the books explores how this individual focus affects members of Generation Me, their relationships with each other generations. Twenge closes the book with a number of suggestions for how institutions can be better prepared to deal with Generation Me.” Her stance is that Generation Me has the highest self-esteem of any generation, but also the most depression. People who were born within “Me” generation are more free and equal, but also more cynical. We expect to follow our dreams, but are anxious about making that happen. I agree with her stance in some instance. She did a huge, decidedly un-GenX amount of research and replaced them with actual data. She provided a lot of helpful data and evidence from either individual or professional studies that can persuade me to believe in her arguments. “Generation Me” is a very professional book which includes an insightful analysis of the young adults Twenge labels ‘GenMe’-their supreme self-confidence in their own worth and their concern with doing things by their own way. However, I don’t recommend this book for future 1A students because it cannot catch readers’ interests and contains a wide range use of vocabulary.…

    • 1233 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Intellectual Power Paper

    • 1123 Words
    • 4 Pages

    “Intelligence includes the ability to reason abstractly, the ability to profit from experience, and the ability to adapt to varying environmental contexts” (Bee & Boyd, 2012, p. 167). Tests to measure intelligence were first developed in 1905 by Frenchmen, Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon. The purpose of the tests was to measure these abilities to help children who difficulties in school. At that time, the French government began requiring all children to attend school, they wanted to be able to identify those with difficulties. The tests were made to measure skills that children would use in school “including measures of vocabulary, comprehension of facts and relationships, and mathematical and verbal reasoning” (Bee & Boyd, 2012, p. 167). The original tests developed by Binet and Simon were revised in 1916 and 1937 by Lewis Terman while at Stanford University. He wanted to revise the tests for children in the United States, and they were termed the Stanford-Binet tests. There were six different tests for different ages. When taking the test, the child would take the individual tests designed by age until he reached a test that he could not complete. A formula was used to determine the Intelligence Quotient (as known as IQ) of the child based on their scores. Binet and Simon compared the children’s actual chronological age to their “mental age” defined as “the age level of IQ test terms a child could successfully answer” (Bee & Boyd, 2012, p. 168). There have been revisions over the years in how IQ scores are calculated and today they are calculated by comparing a child’s score with that of children of the same age. There has been a need for changes in computing IQ scores because IQ scores have increased gradually over the last five decades. If a child today were to take the tests given in the early 1930s, he would score higher than the average of 100.…

    • 1123 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Dumbest Generation

    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Ever since the advent of the modern digital culture, there have been some heated discussions on the topic of whether technology is a foe or a friend. Some people argue that it is influencing us negatively, scattering our attention and diffusing our concentration, while others believe otherwise, suggesting that it is making our lives more efficient and convenient. The emergence of such technology not only enhances some of our fundamental cognitive abilities, but also enables us to explore more of what is we are truly interested in.…

    • 664 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In today's time and age, grownups are overestimating the effects of media and new technologies. The new generation is born into the digital age but that doesn't necessarily mean they are any less intelligent than the previous generation. The misconception that the new generation appears dumb exists because of the media, technology, and choices made by the new generation.…

    • 653 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Millennial Generation

    • 1386 Words
    • 6 Pages

    You are part of the millennial generation if you were born between the years 1980 and 2000. “They are more ethnically and racially diverse than older adults. They're less religious, less likely to have served in the military, and are on track to become the most educated generation in American history (Keeter & Taylor 2010, p.1). What can we expect from the Millennial Generation? Millennials are sheltered, their parents are known for coming to their child’s defense quickly and monitoring their children’s online activity this leads to greater trust and relationship between the parent and the child. Millennials are team oriented, this generation is social and does well working in groups. Millennials are confident, “With so much positive reinforcement from parents and other authority figures, the Millennial Generation is confident about the future. They believe success will translate into success for their environment and society as a whole” (McAlister 2009, p.1). Millennials are achievement oriented and pressured, they want to achieve success in every part of their lives, they like to be challenged, and they participate in many activities. Millennials are multitaskers, they use a variety of communication devices while doing other activities like homework. Other characteristics of the millennial generation are conventional, less devoted to faith, optimistic, materialistic, stressed, environmentalists, and techno-savvy.…

    • 1386 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Generation Y

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages

    ration Why are employers having such great difficulties attracting and retaining young employees? Maybe it is time that we try to see things from their point of view as well.…

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays