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It's always foolish to generalize. Wait- was that a generalization? In any case, having taught American and International college students for many years, I must admit that most of the American students I've encountered fit the description. It seems to me that most really don't care about other cultures, geography, etc. When they do care, they usually become informed. Students I have encountered from other parts of the world tend to be better informed, but many are also extremely misinformed, believing that the frequently idiotic things they were taught about history and politics 'back home' are true.

There are plenty of reasons for the lack of interest many Americans have in things foreign. An incredibly pervasive and dense popular culture; information systems, electronic and otherwise, totally controlled by commercial interests, and educational systems that are so overburdened with non-academic or semi-academic programs that frequently things like languages and world history are sacrificed to make room for courses based on cheap pop psychology or political mandates. An example is the requirement that 'holocaust studies' be taught to all students. This 'teaching' is done in a total vacuum, without reference to world history. The results are frequently bizarre. Most students have no idea regarding the issues or consequences of the world wars. Some will read WWII as "world war eleven".

In general, most American students are extremely well informed about pop music groups, celebrities, TV, etc., because they are surronded by this stuff, it is fed to them from every possible source, and basic American youth culture is anti-intellectual. It is very difficult to separate cause and effect in this connection, perhaps because it is a circular self-reinforcing phenomenon.

AnswerYou are right about the public school answer. I am Canadian and I have had people from Michigan ask me where they can go ski. This is south western Ontario and in August. Also some history is changed to suit what the Americans choose to believe. I have a good friend from Colorado and she was taught that the U.S. won the war of 1812 against Canada. This is even when it was acknowledged that the Canadians burned the US capitol. Regardless that is what her history book indicated. AnswerIf your impression is that Americans seem to know little about world history, geography, societies and languages, you may be speaking with the wrong Americans. Some are quite well educated and do have cosmopolitan interests. AnswerI can't speak for all Americans, of course. But, personally, I blame the public school system.

When I was in high school we didn't even learn much American history. We were required to take only one year of History. I recall wondering many times why it took so long to cover so little material. I'm certain that by the end of the school year, we never even got to the end of the American Civil War. Forget about the World Wars, Vietnam and all the rest.

The curriculum probably should be changed. World History classes should be mandatory as well as American History. However, a lot of important events have occurred in America in a relatively short time. After all, America is very young. And, in all honesty, when I was in high school, I could not possibly have cared less about World History.

AnswerWhy would they know about world history? They don't even learn about American history. We have college graduates who can't tell you WHEN we fought the War of 1812, let alone who we were fighting. Many would have difficulty naming five presidents. America is a relatively YOUNG country in comparison with most others.

It is a sad fact though that so few do know about World History or American History. It is through knowledge of the past that we can try to prevent making the same mistakes in the future. It also could give one a much stronger connection with their country and government. It is hard to listen to people opine about the condition of America today when they would be unable to answer even ONE basic question in regards to American History or government. As shown on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in his 'Jaywalking' skits...very few American's can answer simple questions regarding the very country they live in. Sad.

AnswerMost American high school students could care less about anything that has to do with "history". In my country I was required to memorize all the continents and countries with their capital cities. I even learned the old name of a country if there was any and knew all the basics such as weather, economic state, and popular politicians in each country. AnswerSpeak for yourselves. I've learned plenty about history, and then some in my high school. I guess that's what happens with you inner-city schools. To those that answered this stupid question, I guess you're not that good at finding a joke when it's right in front of you. The author was mocking American intelligence of World History. AnswerI have a theory about this. History is definite and deals with absolutes. Teachers today believe there are no absolutes. Most live in a theoretical dreamworld of socialist idealism and other off the wall ideas. They do not want to be confronted with the cause and effect of history since it would involve the admission of good and evil which has become more and more unfathomable to them. Students then get an overview of history that is revisionist, watered down and mostly misunderstood by the teacher themselves. AnswerI went to a public school but it was hardly 'inner-city.' In fact, for a public school, in was rather elite.

I recall quite clearly that only one year of American History was required. In fact, I believe that was the only history class even available!

It was a joke. We never even got through the Civil War, let alone other countries' histories. It is really a sad thing. I've learned far more about US history, as well as quite a bit of world history on my own when I took up genealogy as a hobby.

AnswerI don't think you can blame the education system. It needs to be put on the student. I took two History classes in High School, several in college; I've read dozens of books (maybe even a hundred). I love history. I know a lot. World and American. My education came from my interest in the subject.

I don't know much about Asian literature or Himalayan climbing techniques, but I wouldn't blame the school system for that. Those subjects have about as much real world applicability as World History. (Seriously, does knowing the causes of the Barbary Wars really help you get to work in the morning? Of course not)

Schools only expose you to subjects, it up to the individual to decide what they want to learn, bases o the there individual interest or needs.

A more accurate question would be "Why don't more Americans care about world history?"

AnswerIt is a great mystery that while American is a great country with a strong economy, people always inventing new things and new ways of doing things, many Americans appear to Europeans to be not well educated or informed about things outside their own nation. Now I am not saying that Americans are alone in this, because I know a lot of people in Britain who don't pay attention to things going on in their own country never mind the rest of the world. But sometimes Americans don't seem to know that they are part of the whole world.

I think that the American media is a lot to blame. American news programs concentrate on local and exciting items and not non visual things like famines or political changes. I am a history buff so often watch the History Channel and the American programs on this channel are designed to bring out the American angle of every possible story. When a novel is made into a film it has to be set in America even if it was originally written about Britain or France or wherever. I meet lots of Americans in my job, I work in public transport, and it always gets me when they ask for McDonald's and Hertz and American banks. If I go abroad I have to accept that I have to experience new things, which is why I go abroad anyway.

Even American students, who are some of the most high scoring students in the world, come across as being disinterested in things or even ignorant. We understand that America is a big place with different time zones and no national newspapers, and with terrible TV news, so people learn about what happens locally and really big stuff but not much about the outside world.

To get back to history, it is assumed by Hollywood and people who make TV programs and publish books that Americans will not be interested in things which do not only have Americans in them (eg, "SAVING PRIVATE RYAN", U 531 and so on). I am not an American I am Scottish/British/European so hopefully a better answer will come from our American friends. And I do think they are our friends.

AnswerThe problem of historical ignorance doesn't lie in the school system, it teaches what the state dictates.

The problem isn't about the teachers being Marxists or what-have-you, there is no left-wing conspiracy. They teach what the schools tell them to.

The problem isn't students, I myself am a student at a high school in small town Nebraska, three years of social science required (one year world history, one year American history, one in government). Students learn what they choose to certainly, but sometimes the opportunity isn't there.

The problem may well be in our culture. Our country is based on English culture, which has most of its roots in the Romans and Christianity. Christianity teaches to a great degree the forgiving of past transgressions, which may involve just not learning about the past.

Our country was isolationist for a great deal of its time, this could have caused American society to lose interest in world history.

History and social science in general are declining as classes because in modern politics, the government is not the everyday man's friend. Reagan lied about Watergate, Bush Sr. lied about his economic success, Clinton lied about his affairs, and let's not get started with the Vietnam War and Bush's grand failures. If Americans applied law more then morals these wouldn't have been problems, but your average person doesn't live by logic. Logic can be ugly and inhuman.

History tells subjective stories about things that can't really be objective. Even the facts of a historical event are subjective, because intentions can't be objectified. Only interests. In modern American culture (60's onward) there was/is an amount of civil strife regarding equality, and everyone's voice being heard. History can be controversial, the same applies to science. Where the ugliness of logic and science meet the morals of some people, in some places Darwin's Theories/Laws can't be taught because it allegedly conflicts with the Bible.

Also, and conclusively, American culture has not, nor has ever, shown to be a backward-looking society. All cultures can be said to have stressed and achieved things in particular areas, and America has shown an aptitude in only one thing-- business. We handle our diplomacy like we're dealing with business partners, our military is built by non-government organizations, and our government is oftentimes run by people with large business experience. To a businessman, the past is irrelevant, only the present and future.

AnswerFirst I can say unless an American wants to learn more about history on their own our school systems won't teach them! It's not the teachers or the students, honestly, it's the system. Schools only teach what is on the test and who makes the test? Well I'd really like to know. In fact as an American graduating from a "very good small wealthy school" I feel that I was cheated. I know there is no left wing conspiracy! In fact we're only taught about things they want us to know like we covered WWII I'd say 60 percent of our history class. Which by the way, I graduated in '98 and only have American history 1/2 year government 1/2 and world history as a sophomore full year. Yup that is it! You'd think that such a powerful country would teach more about its government right? No they don't want people to be interested or even knowledgeable of how it works because they only want the elite rich in charge! That's right I said it! Don't blame the Americans for their lack of knowledge; understand that they learn what is taught and that's very little! Schools lack fundings! Can't buy new books too large of classes and they drop arts and music but oh yeah they get new football fields (not all) yet the police department has brand new top of the line cars with spoilers and ground effects? See what the American kids are taught...gotta be cool and it's not cool to be smart. As Americans, we need to demand real educations it's time for REAL REFORM not religious reform. AnswerWith all eyes on the USA, it's safe to say that the world knows more about Americans than Americans know about the world. This is why it may SEEM that we're very deficient in world studies. Keep in mind that if you meet an American outside the USA they're probably a student so cut them a break. AnswerI would say it's more of our society than anything. Students on an individual level more or less do want to learn; there's just a sense of anti-intellectualism among young people, in that learning new things or trying to improve your knowledge of the world isn't just isn't the cool thing to do. They devote their time to more fun things like video games, or going out to parties, and what-not. Not really much we can do about it, it's just the way we are unfortunately. AnswerWell for me I really didn't learn that much about it in school and on top of that we didn't really have to in order to graduate. But all states are different here. AnswerIn much of the U.S. one can travel for hundreds, even thousands of miles without ever crossing an international frontier. There is little perceived need to know much about other countries, and until quite recently only a minority of Americans had passports.

Psychologically, other countries are remote. For example, travel to Europe or Asia is - quite understandably, seen by many as a major and rather expensive expedition. The situation is very different from in Europe, where you usually cross an international frontier every few hundred miles. I've noticed that many Americans I have spoken to think a flight to Europe (round trip) costs $2,000 +. It seems that those advertisements by the airlines are usually only noticed by people who are already interested in making the trip.

In addition, the status of English as a world language is isolating. This of course applies to all the English-speaking countries. In fact, many of the criticisms made about Americans also apply to these countries, too. Despite all these comments I have encountered a fair number of Americans who are well informed about world affairs.

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14y ago
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11y ago

This is a hasty generalization, and a pattently untrue concept. many Americans are quite well informed. Most American have very strong opinions, and this could cause confusion. This also begs the question, "Why doe the person asking this question know so little about Americans?"

It is perhaps silly to generalise from a few questions on Wikianswers, but there was once a question 'Is Mount Rushmore in the Himalayas?' This would imply that the questioner had no idea in the world where the Himalayas are, nor the the main mountain range in America is the Rockies. At the age of 10 years I knew that Mt Rushmore was in America, somewhere in the Rockies, and I'm from the UK, not America. In World War II, my parents noticed that many American troops shipped to Britain had not much idea where in the world they were.

Add on idea: As a current college student at a local community college, along with my own personal studies, it's important to note that the United States of America remained neutral in a lot of conflicts until the World Wars. Forgive my lack of actual reference and accuracy, but America had a neutral stance until we were introduced into the conflict of ww2. I understand that a lot of generations of Americans were closed off from world affairs and with technology advancing so rapidly thanks to the internet and social websites like facebook and twitter (just to name a very tiny few) in the last 20 or so years, information is able to travel a million times faster then what we had before. I think the lack of available technology and communication along with the neutrality of the United States, it was very easy for Americans to not give a hoot about the goings on of the world. At this point, I personally feel that Americans are stereotyped by outside countries and the goings on of the world, as a people who know little of other cultures. Going forward into the technologically advanced era that we are in known as the "Information Age" I think this stereotype will eventually come to pass.

I think in short, technology provides us many more doors to walk through, but given human nature, it's only a matter of time that we walk through the door to another world wide war...

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16y ago

Because they don't have much history themself & they are only just over 200 years old!

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Q: Why do Americans seem to know so little about world history and world geography and foreign languages and societies?
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