Unprepared for freedom

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." -- Thomas Jefferson

No one would argue that college students know enough about history or the world, but a civics test may not be the best measure of civic engagement, says Debra Humphreys of the Association of American Colleges & Universities, which promotes liberal education. Other studies have shown that college students are much more likely to vote and be civically engaged than non-students, she adds.

In other words, going to college creates an activist without necessarily conveying any understanding of the context of the history and structure of our society. This is a leading reason our nation is run more through demogoguery than democracy. The Founders understood the latter easily devolves into the former through ignorance, and we have that today in spades:

The study from the non-profit Intercollegiate Studies Institute shows that less than half of college seniors knew that Yorktown was the battle that ended the American Revolution or that NATO was formed to resist Soviet expansion. Overall, freshmen averaged 50.4% on a wide-ranging civic literacy test; seniors averaged 54.2%, both failing scores if translated to grades.

Failing Our Students, Failing America: Holding Colleges Accountable for Teaching America's History and Institutions analyzes scores of a test given to 14,419 freshmen and seniors at 50 U.S. colleges last fall on American history, government, international relations and market economy.

Harvard seniors had the highest average at 69.6%, 5.97 points higher than its freshmen but still a D+. In general, the better a college's U.S. News & World Report ranking, the less its civic literacy gain.

Immigrants who take the naturalization process seriously are often better prepared for civic life than the "natives," after passing an exam covering the foundations of our society. Those who are born here just start voting (if inclined) after age 18, with no verification they have a foundation from which to derive judgment. I believe this is dangerous. Just as slavery forever tainted the legitimate consideration of State's Rights, abuses like the poll tax made it impossible to discuss reasonable qualifications for voting. I've said it before and will do so again: we require a drivers' test before granting the privilege of automobile use, because foolish operation of a vehicle can cause catastrophe for others. This is no less true of the franchise: if you don't understand the outlines of our Constitution and our history, you've no business in a voting booth affecting how we all are governed. Education, both public, private, and self-directed, is available to anyone willing to put in the effort in this country. Anyone fortunate enough to be born in this land is a resident. Being a citizen, in my mind, requires some effort to earn. Not enough are earning it, and we're all paying the price.

(Full disclosure: I'm anything but a Harvard grad... maybe that's why I scored 98.33%. Darn Federal Reserve...)