As society enters the age of technology, professor and social critic Bauerlein claims that anyone under the age of 30 is a part of the “Dumbest Generation,” but this is simply another hasty generalization. People under the age of thirty aren't, as Mark Bauerlein claimed, the “dumbest generation” because there was a shift in expectations of the younger generation, a change in societal norms, and a lack of experience by the younger generations. The “Younger generation[s],” will also be referred to as youth.
There has been a shift in expectations for the younger generation. In source 2, the text states that there are many factors that older generations don’t account for towards their elevated knowledge; such as the 1966 political campaign that…show more content… Starting by pointing out that in Source 1, readers were presented with a 2007 survey titled, “What Americans Know: 1989-2007.” The results showed that 56% of 18-29-year-olds had low knowledge levels, and only 22% of the 50- 64-year-old age group had low knowledge levels (Baurlein). While I do acknowledge that the younger generation isn’t made up of Einsteins, this survey unfairly compares the younger generation to people twice, if not, three times their age. Plus, the survey doesn’t take into account the likelihood that the knowledge level of the elderly isn’t high due to their intelligence, but due to the experiences they have gone through over their lifetimes. Furthermore, in source 3, the text talks about defining what categorizes the younger generation as being “dumb.” Are we dumb simply because we lack experiences that were common to the older generation? If so, then, how is that the younger generation's fault? Are we dumb because we don't like to wait for information? Because according to source 4, “the net. [is] chipping away at [our] capacities for concentration and contemplation,” and that, is a problem, but it doesn’t make us dumb, just terribly unfocused
