Are today’s college students dumber than previous generations?
A. Not at all! IQ tests show that today’s students are just as smart as previous generations. What is different is students’ attitudes towards education. A generation ago, students went to college because they were curious and wanted to learn. Now, the National Survey of Student Engagement finds that only 10 percent of college students are “fully engaged” in the education process, while 20 percent are “fully disengaged”, meaning they have no interest in learning anything at all. They are in college either because it is a great place to party, or because their parents made them attend. Other reports show that the percentage of disengaged students in today’s colleges may be as high as 45 percent. Q. Why do colleges admit students who are unprepared for college-level work? A. Money! Colleges admit as many freshmen as they can squeeze into their dormitories, often stacking bodies like cord wood: four students in a room designed for two. Instead of screening out the poorly prepared students
