Why Johnnie Can’t Think – Pt. 4

In continuance from last time, data has now demonstrated the diminishing academic and cognitive declines of Generation Z.  This is a troubling milestone that should concern all parents because it is the first time in the history of the American system of education that one generation did not outperform its predecessors.  Based on scores from 80 other countries, a series of academic studies going back to 1962, and our own nation’s report card (NAEP), the conclusion is unavoidable: when tech entered the picture, student learning went down.

So what should our schools do?  Well, I appeal to the parents to watch your schools closely, because they will do one of two things in response:  (1) self-correct, and get rid of the technology (or at least greatly reduce it), or (2) redefine what it means to be an effective learner (a clever sleight-of-hand when one of your methodologies fail).

Cognitive neuro-scientist Jared Horvath asks adults to reflect back on our schooling when we were young.  We all remember taking one of those reading comprehension tests, right?  We would read a passage of about 750 words with a series of subsequent questions (generally 10-12) about that passage.  Most of the questions were inferential (not factual), and they asked us to go beyond what we just read to ascertain what we understood.  Remember that?

Well here’s the latest and greatest: in the reading comprehension section on recent SAT tests the student would read a single sentence of about 75 words, and then would be asked one fact-based question (not inferential) about that sentence.  Then the student would go on to the next segment … same thing.  One single sentence of 75 words, and only one question about that sentence.  And it was the same for the next question, and the next, and the next.

So to accommodate the tech generation who can’t concentrate for more than a couple minutes, the authors completely redefined what reading comprehension is.  

As Dr. Horvath told a congressional committee, “That’s not reading, that’s skimming.”  

Why the change?  Obviously, because that’s the skill our youth have learned from their devices … skimming.  

But rather than determining what the learning objectives should be and then gearing education towards that, we redefine it to better suit the tool!   In Dr. Horvath’s words, “That’s not progress, that’s surrender.” 

Need I remind the reader that this is what progressive education has always done, redefine education?  And it is what any inferior substitute for real education will always do.  Why?  Because it is not solidly grounded in what the purpose of education is.  It has become too impressed with the John Deweys of this world and has not read enough of Plato, Aristotle, C.S. Lewis and Noah Webster to quickly discern that progressive models of education have been nothing more than bright, shiny objects that quickly “wow” the gullible and undiscerning.

We can do better, and we must.  The data demands it, integrity requires it, and our kids deserve it.

Brian Schroeder is the former Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction, an ordained minister and founder/president of The ChrisCorps Commission (bschroeder081858@gmail.com)