Young Americans shaky on geographic smarts

Study finds that many fare poorly at finding Louisiana and Iraq on a map


Updated: 10:52 a.m. ET May 2, 2006
WASHINGTON - Despite the wall-to-wall coverage of the damage from Hurricane Katrina, nearly one-third of young Americans recently polled couldn’t locate Louisiana on a map and nearly half were unable to identify Mississippi.

Americans between the ages of 18 and 24 fared even worse with foreign locations: six in 10 couldn’t find Iraq, according to a Roper poll conducted for National Geographic.

“Geographic illiteracy impacts our economic well-being, our relationships with other nations and the environment, and isolates us from the world,” National Geographic president John Fahey said in announcing a program to help remedy the problem. It’s hoping to enlist businesses, nonprofit groups and educators in a bid to improve geographic literacy.

Planned is a five-year, multimedia campaign called My Wonderful World that will target children 8 to 17. The goal is to motivate parents and educators to expand geographic offerings in school, at home and in their communities.

They will have their task cut out for them, judging by the results of the survey of 510 people interviewed in December and January.

Among the findings:

- One-third of respondents couldn’t pinpoint Louisiana on a map and 48 percent were unable to locate Mississippi.
- Fewer than three in 10 think it important to know the locations of countries in the news and just 14 percent believe speaking another language is a necessary skill.
- Two-thirds didn’t know that the earthquake that killed 70,000 people in October 2005 occurred in Pakistan.
- Six in 10 could not find Iraq on a map of the Middle East.
- While the outsourcing of jobs to India has been a major U.S. business story, 47 percent could not find the Indian subcontinent on a map of Asia.
- While Israeli-Palestinian strife has been in the news for the entire lives of the respondents, 75 percent were unable to locate Israel on a map of the Middle East.
- Nearly three-quarters incorrectly named English as the most widely spoken native language.
- Six in 10 did not know the border between North and South Korea is the most heavily fortified in the world. Thirty percent thought the most heavily fortified border was between the United States and Mexico.

Joining in the effort to improve geographic knowledge will be the 4-H, American Federation of Teachers, Asia Society, Association of American Geographers, National Basketball Association, National Council of La Raza, National PTA, Smithsonian Institution and others.

“Geography exposes children and adults to diverse cultures, different ideas and the exchange of knowledge from around the world,” said Anna Marie Weselak, president of the National PTA. “This campaign will help make sure our children get their geography — so they can become familiar with other cultures during their school years and move comfortably and confidently in a global economy as adults.”

© 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[Edwin Watson]

does this surprise anyone?

[matt]

the areas mentioned are probably better off not found

[Deff Gordon]

i think they only polled DDM

Originally Posted by Edwin Watson

does this surprise anyone?

It does not surprise me in the least.

[Rufus Punk]

You people need to watch "Jaywalking" skits more often.

This coming from the guy that despises Leno even.

[kalamu]

Originally Posted by rufuspunk

You people need to watch "Jaywalking" skits more often.

that shit is funny. you can also watch Cash Cab for other examples of how some people don't know the most common pieces of information.

[Ash]

sad.

[shonuf]

maybe because our classrooms are overfilled with illegals?

[DJ HECTO]

Originally Posted by shonuf

maybe because our classrooms are overfilled with illegals?

hell yeah..send those mojo's back to mexico...lol

[Keith P]

Originally Posted by Edwin Watson

does this surprise anyone?

Nope. When I moved down here I encountered at least 5 people that thought Connecticut is a city.

[Deff Gordon]

Originally Posted by Keith P

Nope. When I moved down here I encountered at least 5 people that thought Connecticut is a city.

jesus.

one can only imagine the people that call into the station.

[kalamu]

I talked to a guy, he was middle-aged, who didn't know where Wyoming was today. Not a big deal or anything but it's kinda sad if you can't locate the 50 states and you were born in this country.

[shonuf]

Originally Posted by kalamu

I talked to a guy, he was middle-aged, who didn't know where Wyoming was today. Not a big deal or anything but it's kinda sad if you can't locate the 50 states and you were born in this country.

shit you wanna hear something even funnier?

a lady i used to work with swore we lost vietnam due to our guys not being allowed to fire back.


like our guys would wait for orders to return fire.......aha, ahahahaha

bitch your crazy.

[Rufus Punk]

Originally Posted by shonuf

shit you wanna hear something even funnier?

a lady i used to work with swore we lost vietnam due to our guys not being allowed to fire back.

like our guys would wait for orders to return fire.......aha, ahahahaha

bitch your crazy.

I have to admit that this anecdote MMS (made me snicker).