Interesting the students were dumbed down? I guess they taught themselves poorly.
I have a bit of a joke at cash registers. I calculate the change in my head and say I passed the third grade. The older cashiers get it. The younger one have no clue.
I have begun to add, “the third grade was not much work”. That gets a serious look. Because people in the teaching profession are saving third graders from math.
Sure blame it on the third graders for dumbing down multiplication tables. Or blame society. But never blame the people in the actual school buildings for more than allowing it to be this way.
Oh and blame the ADA. After all giving disabled students a chance must suck. Instead of understanding that teaching math properly is owed if you have the job.
But honestly blame it on adults who can not cope with creating an image of themselves as a spoil brat and then saying lets go easy on my son in the third grade.
Adults have been complaining about the kids since time immemorial. Some say a Mesopotamian tablet from 3800 BCE says
We have fallen upon evil times
and the world has waxed very old and wicked.
Politics are very corrupt.
Children are no longer respectful to their parents.
Mesopotamia is no longer here and presumably some generation of kids is responsible for the collapse of civilization. Their parents’ complaints were right. But when I hear people blaming the kids, I think of economists predicting 10 of the last 2 recessions.
From what I’ve seen, the skills and motivation of young people haven’t changed. As you said, more unskilled people are going to college. Some of those will benefit, others not so much. Today’s ambitious, talented young people are truly amazing. Overall, I think the kids of today outshine previous generations.