Is the country getting dumber?

[Playbill]

I have just watched a short part of 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' on itv. It was bad enough when an 'it assistant' was unsure if Zulus were from the southern hemisphere. But when a school headmaster calls for help to find out in what part of the country the Mendip hills are, you begin to understand why kids are so dumb these days. The fact that the headmaster was from Devon did not seem to help him! Glad I normally only watch itv during the Grand Prix season.

[Gevs1966]

Playbill, your teenage daughter not knowing where Hampshire is reflects more on you as a parent than on her schooling.

I do not remember being taught about minor UK geography at school at all but do remember playing games with my parents about countries, capital cities, counties, spelling, maths etc.

This headmaster, for example, could be a mathematical genius for all you know and been a very successful Maths teacher. He may have risen up deservedly to the position of headmaster through the ability to combine the role of teaching with the effective management of people (pupitls, teachers and admin staff) and resources. He may very well be a fantastic teacher in his own subject and had the respect of his peers for the job he was doing and yet you completely undermine his career on the basis that he doesn't get a question correct on a television show in front of millions of people. A question that in my opinion does not fit into your basic knowledge category.

Perhaps you should look more closely at your own failings before wading in with ill informed opinions of others.

[Playbill]

Gevs1966 - how was I to know of every gap in my daughter's education until they appeared? Once she knew where Hampshire was she found her own way there. This was the sort of basic education I was taught at school - the geography of my own country. It seems that every generation now learns less and less of the simple facts needed to exist in today's complex world. Our children know pizzas come from cardboard boxes but not that milk comes from cows. Meanwhile, students in other countries become doctors, engineers and scientists. Then we complain when they come here and take 'our' jobs'. If you want further evidence of my original statement follow SeaJayPea's advice and read Private Eye.
Steve.5, where does spoilt and rich come into this? I am neither - my butler tells me we cannot even afford to open up the Tuscan villa this year.

[Gevs1966]

The difference between here and other countries is at a cultural level and not one of poor education.

The lifestyle and culture in this country at the moment seems to be one of wanting to be rich and/or famous without necessarily having to work for it. This is an attitude in kids influenced by a variety of external factors, primarily tv. People are obsessed with celebrity and the notion of such is rammed down our throats at every opportunity. People can also make more money in the city etc where they can go through university in half tha time, than doctors for example, and potentially earn a vast amount and have a fantastic lifestyle on the other side.

These other countries you mention are the primarily developing world. The culture in these countries is one of self improvement and that of working hard, gaining a noble profession and making their family proud. They are where we were 50 or so years ago in that respect where people growing up want to become doctors, engineers and scientists etc.

These kinds of attitudes are primarily instilled by the family and of course this means the parents. We are at a stage in this country where children spend less time than ever interacting with their parents, they have tv, video games etc etc to keep them occupied instead of spending quality time learning from their families life experiences.

I stand by my beliefs that the primary responsibility for educating a child lies with their parents and the sooner these parents stop blaming everyone but themselves the better off this country will be!

[Playbill]

I can understand what you are saying about parents role in educating children, but fear it has now got a bit too late. The majority of parents of school age children I encounter do not seem to have the ability to do this. They appear to have the same values as the children - big tvs, computer games, celebrity, easy money, etc - you said it yourself.

[whiskeysheri]

Pssst, bill, Hampshire isn't just under Milton Keynes. It's quite a way from here and with quite a few places in between. Sorry :)

[novalis]

I would suggest that the % of very bright, bright, reasonably bright, not so bright and those for whom most things will be a struggle remains fairly constant from one generation to another. The problem is that the demands made of each generation from an educational point of view are being diluted. Teachers can, with the best will in the world, teach only what the syllabus in their particular subject decrees and "teaching to the test" in order to maintain the school's place in the league table is the norm.
I used past "O" Level German comprehension papers to help prepare "A" Level candidates for that section of their exam. I marked "O" Level until ii was abolished and have marked G.C.S.E since 1988. Candidates can only do what they are asked to do --- and many of them, given the opportunity, could and would do well even with a more demanding challenge.
As for the headteacher who did not know where the Mendips are, all I can say is that I was always surprised what my headmaster did not know when I presented the annual staff quiz. He was, however, a fine mathematician and enthused the few classes he taught with his love for the subject.