Dumbest Generation Essay

In Michaela Cullington’s essay titled, “Does Texting Affect Writing?” the author tests the ongoing question of how today’s youth handles the effects of texting in the education system. Using successful evidence from both sides of the argument as well as participating in her own experiment, Cullington is able to fully demonstrate how texting does not interfere with today’s students and their abilities to write formally in the classroom.

“We are gradually changing from a nation of calloused hands to a nation of agile brains.” – Marcel Just. (Begley 92) This quote really speaks to me. I find it to be very true as we are focusing more on developing new technology to do the work we might be doing with our hands. It is similar to the common expression “Work Smarter not Harder”. I think that this is what the internet is letting us do. However many authors and writers do not think this is the case. They believe that the internet is making us less intelligent as it is rewiring our brain to think in order of internet articles rather than books. I on the contrary believe the internet is giving us an easy opportunity to learn which is therefore making us more intelligent.

The main evidence that Bauerlein gives us to support his theory is statistics that are found in a survey that show the falling reading rates for people of all ages in the last 30 years. The most popular survey was held by the National Endowment of the Arts Association entitled Survey of Public Participation in the Arts.

People claim that new developments have caused kids to be so dependent on their devices, that they can't think for themselves. This claim can also be turned around by saying that technology has given kids more opportunities and chances to learn, and in particular, more opportunities to write (Source 7, Clive Thompson). An example of this is a study done at Stanford University, where it was discovered that Stanford students did a stunning 38 percent of their writing outside of the classroom (Source 7, Clive Thompson). With the developments of E-mail, texting, and social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, younger people are constantly writing in their every day lives. In the past, people would, for the most part, stop writing once the finishes their education. Now however, people are more comfortable, and more used to, writing. And while the argument that technology has decreased level of the vocabulary and vernacular of young people is true in some cases, the increase in writing shown by young people has led to a greater ability to convey information to other people, and a greater comfort in talking to people they don't know (Source 7, Clive Thompson). As Andrea Lunsford says, "I think we're in the midst of a literacy revolution the likes of which we haven't seen since Greek Civilization" (Source 7, Clive

Which generation really takes the title of the dumbest generation? Is it people under the age of 30? How does age have a part in this statement? And why is there even a 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.

I personally believe that the argument my generation (commonly labelled “the millennials”) is the dumbest one thus far is lacking evidWith the regards to being labelled the “dumbest generation”, my thoughts are that we are not any less intelligent than the generations that have gone before, but, instead, that our intelligence lies in a different area than our parents, grandparents, and distant ancestors. I believe that since the millennial generation has grown up in the presence of technology, it is only conceivable that we would utilize our resources to our advantage. Generations before had to learn certain processes in the absence of technology such as simple mathematic operations or how to properly spell words. In this respect since technology

In this day and age you are always told that the actions of the millennials throughout our lifetime are going to have a very major and lasting impact on our planet. When at the same time people are calling our generation one of the stupidest generations yet. Within the past decade the world has changed very drastically and is a much different place than the past, because of this I do not think its fair to make negative assumptions about our generation based on past generations. Coming up I think the people who doubt the success of our generation should wait to see the impact we have until after its made. Of course the older generation would love for us to succeed because it would be a benefit to everyone yet they feel as if it is a lost cause.

They have less skills using their hands then the older generations. They can handle and keep up with the newest technology, which is creating more jobs for the young people. Marcel Just, a cognitive scientist, said”[w]e are gradually changing from a nation of callused hands to a nation of agile brains” (Ito). It seems to the older generations that due to the younger people being more inclined to be on the internet than reading the newspaper or a book, makes them dumb. The older generations grew up in a time where technology is scarce and you had a job through the hard work of your hands. For today’s youth it does not matter if you are more inclined to hard labor or working behind a desk all day. There are jobs in both fields of work, but the jobs in the technology field are being taken by younger people. It can also be said that technology is hard to use, so it does take some level of intelligence to be in a field related to or that uses technology. The use of video games has also been frowned upon by the older generations. However the use of video games by young people is not a bad thing. It can be proven that “most gamers eschew reading manuals or walk-throughs altogether, preferring to feel their way through the game space…” (Johnson). They prefer to figure out the game and how to control it through experience and without guidance. This shows a level of intelligence that some of the

This essay is designed to present one course documentary given throughout the module and discuss how its technical and thematic innovation has contributed to the impact of making for your Final Group Project.

However, despite all of this, some people may still argue that Generation Y is the dumbest generation due to their lack of in-depth knowledge on a topic. Technology has rendered many old school practices obsolete and inefficient, as Nicholas Carr stated, “research that once required days in the stacks.. can now be done in minutes.”(source 4). Hand sewing was rendered inefficient by the sewing machine, horses and wagons were replaced by cars, and memorization of numerous facts and events were kicked to the side by the smart phone. There is no longer a need for Generation Y to memorize obscure dates and facts as they can now look them up within a matter of seconds on their phones. However, this doesn't hamper critics such as R. Smith Simpson who laments that there is an "abysmal ignorance of so elementary a subject as the geography of the United States." (source 5) In some

Classes around the world are run on a grading scale from an A to an F, where people universally consider an F as a “failing grade.” Often, students holding “failing” grades find it close to impossible to raise their scores back to an acceptable level. When society is failing, however, it is even harder to come back from such a low point. According to one New Yorker, society is doing just that; society is failing. Johnny Oleksinski, an editorial assistant for the website “The Theater Loop,” and an entertainment columnist for the New York Post, claims that modern-day people, more specifically the millennial generation, are failing in various ways. Living in New York, Oleksinski finds himself constantly scrutinizing the actions of millennials, and through his writing, he hopes to correct societies imperfections. By addressing modern-day millennial actions in a sarcastic and exaggerated manner, Oleksinski measures correctly the degree at which society is failing.

The millennials are the dumbest generation because of their diminished knowledge and how they don’t use technology for their own educational benefit. In fact, R. Smith Simpson from source 5 asked young generations questions on general knowledge such as geography and history. These questions could

Whether virtuous or nefarious, the changes made by my generation as a whole have the potential to be far larger and faster in scale than the changes made by any of the preceding generations in all of human history. However, this isn’t due to a disproportionate amount of prodigies or revolutionary thinkers. This is simply because of the advancements, changes, and efforts of our predecessors that we possess advantages and tools such as: a seemingly infinite pool of knowledge to pull from, means to collaborate with the greatest minds the world has to offer at any moment, and an ever increasing number of ways to create and revolutionize the world around us.

When one thinks of “the dumbest generation”, who do they think of? Do they think of the older generation with their lack of technological advances? Do they think of the younger generation with all types of technology glued to them wherever they go? Research agrees that, with their lack of general knowledge and reading habits, those under the age of 30 are “the dumbest generation”.