The Millennial Generation In Mark Bauerlein's The Dumbest Generation

It is a habit for the older generation to compare today’s society to their own, and often time, it is not in the favor of the youth. A prominent though is that the current generation is being corrupted by technology and because of it are at a disadvantage intellectual. One certain critic, Mark Bauerlein, in his book, The Dumbest Generation, makes a bold claim that anyone under thirty are part of a generation dumber than any before. However, studies show a different trend. Technology is not lowering intelligence but changing the way people learn. Because of the influence of the digital world, the current generation has shift to a new way of learning that in no way make them dumber.

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.

Is Generation Y the dumbest generation yet? In Sharon Begley’s essay “The Dumbest Generation? Don’t be Dumb” she brings up an author by the name if Mark Bauerlein. Bauerlein has wrote a book describing how he believes Generation Y is the “dumbest generation” and is blaming it on their ignorance with use of the internet. He uses very basic evidence, such as that there has been a decline in adult literacy from 40 percent of high school grads in 1992 to 31 percent in 2003. (Begley 90) Begley brings up a very good point as the definition of “Dumbest”. (91) She proposed two separate definitions, the first being “holding the least knowledge” and the second being “lacking such fundamental cognitive capacities as the ability to think critically and

In chapter one of The Dumbest Generation, Mike Bauerlein makes several statements about our generation and comes to a conclusion that helps set the groundwork for the entire book. His analysis of today’s youth states that the current generation is lacking when it comes to intellectual knowledge. He provides evidence that states that today’s under-thirty population in the United States does not have adequate knowledge, and their lack of knowledge with affect them greatly in their adulthood years.

It is a natural tendency for people to assume that they are smarter than people that are younger than they are. It is widely thought that with age, comes more knowledge, and a better understanding of the world. However, this thinking can't be used as a broad statement for entire generations of people. While there certainly are older people that are much wiser than younger people, this fact doesn't mean that younger generations as a whole are dumb. With the knowledge and discoveries made by previous generations at the disposal of younger generation's, the young people of today are smarter than ever.

Along with the progression of society, major advances have been made in hundreds of different fields — particularly technology. Controversy has risen, and debates ensued over whether today's young Americans are really “the dumbest generation,” due to their “money, media, e-gadgets, and career plans” [Source A]. While advances have been made, they have brought with them resources to benefit off of, and ultimately assist in the overall intellect and intelligence of the human race.

A few years ago, I decided to learn sign language. It was not a project for a class, a requirement to graduate, or a fact that everyone knew. I just wanted to learn sign language, so I did what many twenty-first century millennials do and downloaded an app. The app showed me diagrams to learn basic phrases, videos to perfect the movements, and lessons to learn more efficiently. The technology of the app made learning sign language easy, and I could use it wherever I went. I thought that I was smart for using technology to learn specific things, but Mark Bauerlein, the author of a 2008 book called The Dumbest Generation, would disagree. According to Bauerlein, twenty-first century teenagers possess “low knowledge levels” when compared to past generations because of the increased use of technology. However, Bauerlein is mistaken. This generation is not “the dumbest generation” because we focus on different topics, we write more often, and we know that every generation has been called “the dumbest”.

Over the course of time technology has changed society’s views on various topics. In The Dumbest generation, Mark Bauerlein makes the argument that the youth generation is less knowledgeable than the older generation. This is not necessarily the case because the youth generation do not feel the need to know facts such as “who wrote the oratorio “Messiah” (which 35 percent of college seniors knew in 2002, compared with 56 percent in 1955) (Source B). As mentioned previously this is not by any means indicating that the youth generation is less knowledgeable, but instead shows that they have other resources to find out this information rather than just knowing it. Also, not knowing facts that were once very important to the older generations does

It is believed by many that younger generations, those under the age of thirty are the “dumbest”. Apparently, technology has now influenced and molded people into less-intelligent individuals who lack the knowledge and skills that people of the same age once acquired. Though if we look at more aspects of their learning capabilities, millennials do have the potential to be bright beings, now seen through more creative, non-traditional ways. And because of this, younger generations cannot be undermined as they have high levels of cognitive abilities, the help from technology, and how technology makes them write more and be more involved with their interests. Younger generations are not limited in their cognitive abilities, rather these abilities are expanding as time progresses.

Dumbest Generation Synthesis Essay People of the Millennial Era would consider their generation to be the smartest . With all the technological advances and the upgrades on the way society functions it would seem clear that they are the most intelligent . According to social critic , author , and professor Mark Bauerlein , those under the age of 30 make up the “dumbest” generation in modern history .After his publication of his book, “ The Dumbest Generation,’’ it was brought to America’s attention that anyone after Generation X are apart of the dumbest generation .

The Dumbest Generation There is so much information and technology available to the under 30 generation, however this comes with a cost. In The Dumbest Generation, authors share their opinions on if the under 30 generation is the dumbest and why. This generation has proved itself to be the dumbest because of an over reliance on the abundance of new technology surrounding them, instead of using their knowledge to think on their own. Technology has given the under 30 generation an easy way out, which has resulted in the loss of vital skills that are crucial in everyday life. The under 30 generation is significantly dumber than previous generations, making it the dumbest generation.

An author by the name of Mark Bauerlein claims in his book The Dumbest Generation that the generation of people younger than 30 are the dumbest yet. The generation of people younger than 30 are not the dumbest generation because video games teach them valuable lessons in life and also because the internet has changed how they think.

It is said we are the dumbest generation, but that’s something that is apparently said about every generation. And that is exactly what R Smith Simpson is saying. He says there seems to be a lack of knowledge, when people were asked questions they’d reply with the “thinnest recital of facts” some couldn’t even “discuss them at all.” Although Simpson doesn’t provide a direct quote to indicate that each generation is going to be considered dumb by the previous; we take in consideration the year he wrote this and compare it to the rest of the articles we conclude each generation will be seen as the dumbest. (source 5)

And since this generation was born in to technology it makes us the most qualified and most experienced than the rest and so forth the generation of people under the age of 30 are not the

There have been many claims that Generation Y, or millennials, are the dumbest generation to have lived. However, millennials, while they don’t hold extensive knowledge, know where to get the information needed and can access the information they need for research quicker than past generations due to search engines. Millennials also can change their tone to match their audience generally better than past generations as well. Does this mean they can be considered the smartest generation? Possibly.