Ambrose Bierce, the 19th and 20th century satirist, wrote that “War is God’s way of teaching Americans geography.” But, much to Bierce’s would-be dismay, it seems that recent military conflicts haven’t prompted much in the way of American education. In any case, in deference to National Geography Awareness Week, we see fit to devote this space to failings in American geographical literacy, and the importance of individual awareness of the world as it stands today.
In November 2002, the National Geographic Society surveyed people ages 18-24 in nine countries, including America (as well as American 25- to 34-year-olds), testing their geographical mettle.
And young America fared abysmally, answering correctly, on average, only 23 of the 56 worldwide survey questions. (By contrast, Swedish youth averaged 40 correct answers; young American adults barely edged out their Mexican counterparts, who averaged 21.) How many could find Iraq on a map? Thirteen percent. The figures for Iran and Israel are about the same. Twice as many — 34 percent — could determine that the island used in a season of “Survivor” is in the South Pacific.
Americans seem to have gaping holes in knowledge about their homeland, too: About a third of Americans grossly overestimated the U.S. population, placing it above 1 billion people (the real figure is less than 300 million). And only 30 percent could locate New Jersey. And in a coup d’ignorance, 11 percent can’t find America on a world map.
Media attention seems to figure heavily in what people know, too. Most (58 percent) of young Americans knew that al-Qaida and the Taliban were based in Afghanistan, but they still fared worse than young adults in every other surveyed country. Worse, only 17 percent of those Americans could actually find the nation on a world map.
In the modern world of the cosmopolitan and the superconnected, geographical awareness is more important than ever, making the average American’s ignorance of simple geographic facts all the more distressing, and the need for reform all the more pressing.
Fortunately, the survey itself hints at possible remedies for the situation. Among young American adults, those with at least some college education averaged 30 correct responses (those with less education averaged only 21). Exposure to other cultures is correlated, too: U.S. respondents who had traveled outside the country in the past three years averaged nine points higher than those who hadn’t.
One of the most interesting and starkest discrepancies was between the Net-savvy (a U.S. average of 28 correct answers) and those who aren’t (only 17).
What’s the key here? It may be redundant, but education — self-education in particular — is key to geographical knowledge, and therefore for a solid foundation for digesting the complexities of a contemporary, interconnected world.