[lbo-talk] How Much Do College Students Learn, and Study?

[Carrol Cox]

The study's conclusions were that 45% of students showed no statistically
significant gain in critical thinking after two years, and that 36% showed
no statistically significant gain in four years.  So, the upper level
classes only got to 1/5 of those who made no gains in the first two years.
At my school, in most majors, the rigor simply never kicks in.

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Any use of this for coparaing generations is simply supid. There is no
evidence for change.

It is equally possible that there has been _no_ change, that there has been
an _improvment_ or that there has been a change for the worse.

I wouldn't be surprised if there had been an improvement in fact. I don
remember anywhere's near to 1/3 of my classmates particularly changing in
their thinking from freshman year to senior year.

Unless students have improved in the last 60 years, this study has
considerably overestimated the present.

I still simply cannot under stand why anyone finds this study in the least
interesting.

Carrol