In light of David’s and Carol’s posts about historical knowledge, it’s worth rehearsing some of the findings of a study of factual historical knowledge from a few years ago. It was commissioned by ACTA and was entitled “Losing America’s Memory: Historical Illiteracy in the 21st Century.” The instrument was a multiple-choice test administered to seniors at the top 55 colleges, with the questions drawn from a basic high-school curriculum. The major finding was that 81 percent (!) of the seniors received a grade of D or F. Some questions:

· Only 60 percent identified the half-century in which the Civil War took place
· Only 60 percent knew which document established the separation of powers
· Only 49 percent identified Tocqueville as the European who traveled and wrote about the U.S.
· Only 34 percent identified the U.S. general at Yorktown
· Only 23 percent identified James Madison as the “Father of the Constitution”
· Only 22 percent identified the Gettysburg Address as the source of “Government of the people . . .”

And so on . . .