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In reply to the discussion: American education fails to teach us anything about American history. [View all]knitter4democracy
(14,350 posts)You admit that you are using your own personal bias in this regard, and you are not a recent graduate. Keep in mind that, in education, a source five years old or older is often considered out-of-date because the standards have changed and much has happened in just the last couple of years.
Source #1 is from 2009. The study is from ISI, a well-known right-wing group trying to prove that colleges and universities are too liberal.
Source #2 is from 2013. That is better, but then there's the issue of the article being based entirely on polling. The very first poll the author cites is 2 years old and from a biased source. Polls are amazingly easy to swing one way or another.
Source #3 is from 2011 and clearly states that the test scores haven't varied widely for years despite different groups of students taking it. Given the serious rise in test scores in other areas, this makes me question the test. Remember, too, this source is basing the entire argument on the results of one test. Normally, educators aren't okay with that sort of thing, but it's common in the media since it makes for a good story.
Source #4 is from Trinity University, not exactly an unbiased source when it comes to "pure" American history, and it's undated. The first study cited and dealt with in the essay is from 1993. The second (after discussing C.S. Lewis and "The Screwtape Letters" is from 1988 and is based only on 200 questionaires done by college students at two universities in Texas. That's it. That's all the research cited.
So, two of the four citations are from right-wing groups with serious biases when it comes to history (in fact, in direct opposition to the history you advocate being taught), and the other two are based on flimsy evidence.