It's really shocking to see what gov'ment schooled kids don't know. I was homeschooled all my life, and now in college I have a required world history course. These kids could not tell you who Alexander the Great was, what effect the Enlightenment had on Europe and other parts of the world, or why the Crusades really happened. Don't ask them to remember a list of monarchs - none of them could even put Henry VIII and his children in the right order. Yesterday one said Spain was a major empire during the beginnings of the 19th century...
I blame the schools, of course. If we do not learn history, we are doomed to repeat it. That said, I think it's positive that one of the top-selling nonfiction books last year was the excellent biography of John Adams. Shows people are interested, at least.
Thought you might find this interesting.