Posted on 06/27/2017 3:39:36 PM PDT by LibWhacker
To gain admittance to college in the 17th century, students had to be able to read and translate various Latin authors on sight. 100 years ago, students were required to have read various classical works before being admitted.
Today, however, many American students are being admitted to colleges without ever having read a book from start to finish. They are part of a cohort of students known as book virgins.
The National Association of Scholars (NAS) has pointed out this phenomenon in their recent report titled Beach Books: 2014-2016. What Do Colleges and Universities Want Students to Read Outside Class? The report offers a detailed assessment of the books that colleges across America recommend to their students before they begin classes in the fall.
The reading level of these books is oftentimes very low, meant to cater to the group of students who are book virgins:
The desire to appeal to incoming students who have rarely if ever read an adult book on their own lead selection committees to choose low-grade accessible works that are presumed to appeal to book virgins who will flee actual college-level reading [S]uch book virgins have to be wooed with simple, unchallenging works.
And how many book virgins are there among entering college freshmen? According to NAS' David Randallwho drew upon NEA and Pew statisticsabout 4 million, which represents about 20% of the entering freshmen class. Sadly, these students have discovered that they can receive adequate, and even good, grades in high school without ever reading a page of assigned texts.
For many students today, its considered an embarrassment not to have lost ones virginity before going to college.
Would that more were embarrassed about being book virgins.
How do they get out of high school, out of middle school, without reading a book for English or history?
When I went to college in the early ‘70’s, I ran into public school kids (shoot me, I went to a prep school) who never had to write a paper. That’s pretty bad, but never having read a book? What kind of classes do they take to even get into college?
Kids can't read, they can't write or read cursive.
They can't add and they can't perform at a job.
But they need safe spaces...and to know how to avoid things that melt snowflakes.
This is the end of government-controlled education.
Good bye...let it die.
I’m in the same boat. Read voraciously to gather information, but almost never crack a book or read for entertainment - unless FR counts.
I do watch movies occasionally...
Child abuse AND taxpayer abuse
I have a BS in Bus Ad. I too hated most of the classic lit. The worst one that I can remember was about an ice floe. Can’t even remember the name of it. Hubby had to explain it to me and when he was done I said.....stupid. Lol
You got off so easy! I had to read The Pilgrims’s Progress in the 8th grade.
I fell into the “Slough of Despond” that year... just hated that book! The teacher made it even worse with overly pedantic questions quizzes, discussions and interpretations.
I got my masters in Business much later and didn’t have to read a book there. Thought I should clarify. Lol
Being forced to read the books offered in high school literature classes was pure torture. I was eventually booted out of senior English because I finally had enough and refused to read any more of their mind numbing crap. Not that I’m still bitter about being put through that a zillion years later or anything....
Isn’t she supposed to have her hair up and then let it loose when she takes off her glasses?
It makes me feel whorable.
This seems somehow appropriate to this thread:
Aristophanes: Youth ages, Immaturity outgrown, Ignorance educated, Drunkenness sobered, But stupid .. Stupid lasts forever.
My parents read books, I read books (and have written a few) and my adult kids read books. I read to them from the time they were very very young.
Last Christmas, my daughter gave my son a copy of a children’s book they had loved 40 years ago. And of course, they both got books from me.
Can’t imagine life without books.
This is not reading a book. I can only compare it to eating lunch that’s been eaten already by someone else...
I read books to my two daughters every night.
Now they are adults and always have to have a book with them.
There was a PSA some years ago - read to your children. I was reading to my children long before that, but maybe we should have that PSA again.
I turned in over 50 book reports in the 6th grade (1963). There’s nothing much better than a good book, a quiet room and a comfortable overstuffed chair. The dog and cat are welcome if they behave.
I guess that makes me a book slut......Would you like a book worm?
I hated that book (the real one). Kansas had its standards, and it was required reading for high school students. Well, we moved around a lot. So guess, what? I had to read that f’n book FOUR TIMES in high school! The first time I hated it. The second time I hated it even more. The third time eh. The fourth time, I LOVED IT! I think it finally sank in, lol.
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