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Younger Americans Get Much Lower Grades Than Their Elders on History Quiz

Younger Americans Get Much Lower Grades Than Their Elders on History Quiz

Only half of 18- to 29-year-olds associate Napoleon with France

by Darren K. Carlson

GALLUP NEWS SERVICE

PRINCETON, NJ -- How well do Americans do when given a quiz asking them to name the country with which key historical figures are identified? Not badly, as it turns out, although the findings show definitively that accurate historical knowledge is almost directly correlated with age. The older the American, apparently, the better he or she has absorbed the facts of history.

In a survey conducted May 5-7, Gallup asked Americans to identify the nations associated with several historical figures. The overwhelming majority of Americans (87%) correctly name Germany as the country associated with Adolf Hitler. Seventy-three percent successfully link Indira Gandhi with India, and a similar percentage (70%) correctly associate Winston Churchill with Great Britain, England, or the United Kingdom. For Napoleon Bonaparte, 65% correctly tie his name to France.

Historical Knowledge Improves With Age and Education
The latest poll shows that a person's ability to correctly associate a historical figure with the proper country varies greatly by a person's age and education.

These findings suggest, in fact, a deficit of knowledge among younger Americans (18-29), who are significantly less accurate in associating names with countries than are their elders. Although 79% of 18- to 29-year-olds can put Hitler with Germany, and 63% can associate Gandhi and India, only a bare majority -- 51% -- link Napoleon with France, and just 34% associate Churchill with England. These numbers pale in comparison to the percentage of adults aged 50-64 who correctly associate Hitler (93%), Gandhi (82%), Napoleon (77%) and Churchill (71%) with the appropriate country.

It is also important to note that correct name-to-country association drops to even lower levels among teenagers. A Gallup Poll Youth Survey conducted earlier this year asked teens, aged 13-17, the above questions. Just 66% of American teens associated Hitler with Germany, and 41% put Indira Gandhi with India. Thirty-six percent of teens put Napoleon with France, and only 25% could link Churchill to England. Interestingly, even among teens, the younger subgroup -- those 13-15 -- was less accurate in its knowledge than was the older subgroup (those 16-17).

Not surprisingly, adults who have attended college are significantly more likely to give correct answers to these questions than are those who did not attend college. For adults with a high school education or less, 79% know Hitler was associated with Germany, 59% place Gandhi with India, and 48% know that Napoleon and Churchill belong with France and England, respectively. For those who say they have attended at least some college, the numbers increase dramatically. Ninety-two percent assign Hitler correctly; 82%, Gandhi; 75%, Napoleon; and 66%, Churchill.

Survey Methods
The results below are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 1,031 adults, 18 years and older, conducted May 5-7, 2000. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95 percent confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.

Please identify the nation with which each of these individuals is associated. What nation do you identify with [ROTATED A-D]?

A.Adolf Hitler

 

 

Germany

Other

No opinion

2000 May 5-7

%

%

%

       

TOTAL

87

8

5

Age

     

18-29

79

12

9

30-49

88

7

5

50-64

93

5

2

65+

93

2

5

Education

     

Postgraduate

97

3

--

College graduate

97

1

2

Some college

92

7

1

High school or less

79

9

12

       
       
       


B.Indira Gandhi

 

 

India

Other

No opinion

2000 May 5-7

%

%

%

       

TOTAL

73

8

19

Age

     

18-29

63

9

28

30-49

74

9

17

50-64

82

6

12

65+

79

3

18

Education

     

Postgraduate

93

3

4

College graduate

90

1

9

Some college

82

6

12

High school or less

59

11

30

       
       
       


C.Napoleon Bonaparte

 

 

France

Other

No opinion

2000 May 5-7

%

%

%

       

TOTAL

65

15

20

Age

     

18-29

51

17

32

30-49

68

15

17

50-64

77

7

16

65+

65

13

22

Education

     

Postgraduate

89

7

4

College graduate

80

12

8

Some college

75

11

14

High school or less

48

18

34

       
       
       


D.Winston Churchill

 

 

England/Great Britain/U.K.

Other

No opinion

2000 May 5-7

%

%

%

       

TOTAL

70

14

16

Age

     

18-29

34

35

31

30-49

58

28

14

50-64

71

19

10

65+

74

18

8

Education

     

Postgraduate

67

31

2

College graduate

67

27

6

Some college

66

23

11

High school or less

48

25

27

       
       
       



Gallup https://news.gallup.com/poll/2890/Younger-Americans-Get-Much-Lower-Grades-Than-Their-Elders-History-Quiz.aspx
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