sky, (9/16/2009 5:45:45 PM)

The headline doesn't jibe with the story. The story says 1 in 4 CAN name the first president, the headline says 1 in 4 CAN'T name the first president. Which is it??

tbf1428, (9/16/2009 5:46:23 PM)

Pathetic

tbf1428, (9/16/2009 5:47:25 PM)

Sky - maybe TW was trying to make it sound better than it really is.

2ndjoyce, BA (9/16/2009 5:52:50 PM)

Hmmmm. Who are the traditional social studies teachers?

Herbie, Stillwater (9/16/2009 5:55:29 PM)

Wow, don't you think you should send a reporter to check a story before you just print a press release in your paper?

No wonder newspapers are disappearing.

Casual Reader, Inola (9/16/2009 5:57:00 PM)

3 in 4 can't. 1 in 4 can. Have to read the headline closely.

Newsmax, Tulsa / BA (9/16/2009 5:57:02 PM)

It's a sad day in America when an immigrant knows more about our history than a high school student; this is definitely a sad commentary on our government run institutions of higher learning.

This has to be the Democrats fault!

Mar, Tulsa (9/16/2009 6:03:44 PM)

Somehow I'm not surprised. I bet those same students can name the top rappers, name the newest movies just out, etc.

jess, (9/16/2009 6:06:13 PM)

Does not surprise me in the least. With the dumbing down of American education by the NEA and tenure. Probably half of the high school teachers don't know either. When I was in college, the pud courses were in the Education dept.

true2form, Grand Lake (9/16/2009 6:08:27 PM)

Sky
3 in 4 CAN'T
1 in 4 CAN
How do you not get that it's the same thing?

tfromtulsa, Tulsa (9/16/2009 6:13:13 PM)

Another proud moment brought to you by public education.

Thunder196, Tulsa (9/16/2009 6:16:24 PM)

I'm not surprised. I have seen some on here stating they are teachers, that are giving misinformation. If you challenge their statement, they call you stupid instead of actually looking it up and verifying the answer true or false. Of course we are towards the bottom.

Chiefs, Gore (9/16/2009 6:20:34 PM)

Sure like to see the schools they used in the survey. Might list them so their administrations would feel proud. NOT!

mefordz, wagoner (9/16/2009 6:24:10 PM)

the ratio of how many know who the first pres was is probably about the same with teachers of less than 15 years tenure.

yes 1 of my parents was a teacher, and i am proud of it.

Brian1225, (9/16/2009 6:42:10 PM)

Sky probably can't either.
I wonder what demographic they surveyed?! Did it include a cross section of each school district in the area?

Proud Muslim, Tulsa: Coolest place in the world (almost) (9/16/2009 6:46:09 PM)

Before you bite off sky's head, realize that the comment was made before the article was last modified. He/she may have merely pointed out an error, and TW fixed it.

As for the article itself, it is quite depressing.

meangene, skiatook (9/16/2009 6:52:40 PM)

This story is funny, it assumes that Washington was the first president, he was not. John Hanson was the first, and even more Americans do not know this fact.

Steelman, End of the Trail (9/16/2009 6:52:35 PM)

I'm sure this means we're not spending enough on education.

dustyoutlaw, Tulsa (9/16/2009 6:57:59 PM)

There you have it. Is it any wonder Oklahoma is one of the most staunchly fundamental Christian right wing political states in the nation?

The nut(case) doesn't fall far from the tree.

Dang straight. We don't Obama talking to our Kids. They might remember one President's name other than Reagen.

Steelman, End of the Trail (9/16/2009 6:58:27 PM)

John Hanson was first president under the Articles of Confederation. Isn't that about like being the leader of the Weimar Republic?

Steelman, End of the Trail (9/16/2009 7:01:10 PM)

dustyoutlaw,

Couldn't you just as easily place the blame for this failure at the feet of the godless, liberal, atheistic bureacracy that has controlled Oklahoma's educational system since statehood?

I'm just saying that your argument cuts both ways.

emotional_sting, tulsa - (9/16/2009 7:06:05 PM)

high school students seem to not know a lot of
things. there are tons of things they know well...
text message, xbox 360, ipod, all the important
stuff.
years ago there were no computers in the classroom (the school didn't even own one!), no calculators,
no "educational" video material cabled to the school, no air conditioned classrooms, teachers
were paid less and even the most ignorant kid in
third grade would be able to identify george.

somebody has screwed up.

Darkstar, (9/16/2009 7:07:09 PM)

Is American History no longer being taught? Or has "political correctness" made American History irrelevant? It is not that we are spending too much on education, we are just not getting a return on our investment.

Worried about the system, Tulsa (9/16/2009 7:08:04 PM)

Before I had my kids I taught journalism at the high school level. My classes took regular current events quizzes, and we discussed events in the TW that was delivered free to our classroom each day. As often as possible, I tried to frame the questions within the contexts of history, religion, and other issues. It was just a few minutes of classtime, and the students often told me how much those discussions increased their abilities to have conversations outside of the classroom, too.

Teachers should be encouraged to include this type of activity in their lesson plans. Students will rise to the occasion. Mine always did.

Moses, Jenks (9/16/2009 7:09:01 PM)

If this information is true how can you say our teachers are underpaid?
Education was much better before the teachers union and the NEA, Federal Government, took over control of our schools.
Give the schools back to the states and abolish the NEA.