Q. AMERICANS - You dont seem to know a lot about other countries.?

Question

American's - Do/Did you have World History or Geography as a subject in Schools, Colleges etc.. Or is it Just American History after 1773 ?

Everyone - Check out the comment left by abdal_h
What is he on about ? think he has to chill out ! it's only a question...I am not American I just want to know what Americans study..!

Thank You all for answering
Jackie (pinkthong)

Answer 1

We do have some world history courses we are all required to take, but I personally think our general lack of worldliness comes more from the geography and history of our own country.
First of all, the US is a HUGE country. We can drive for days and still be in our own country. In order to leave it, with a few exceptions, we have to fly. This means the average Joe has never left the country, or never will until he is retired!
I think the real way to be worldly and make things about other countries make sense is to travel and spend some time with other cultures. Eurpoeans, I know, do this quite regularly as a part of education. It is also a lot easier and ecomonical to do so when you can drive or take a short trip and be in another country.

I think Amercans need more "hands on" experience with other parts of the world and culture. I think exchange programs for teens are a great way to open our eyes.
(By the way, that did it for me...I was an exchange student and spent a semester of college in Spain, and traveled to many other countries)

Also, relatively speaking, we are a young country, full of first and second and third generation Americans who sometimes came here for a better life. Our grandparents in many cases do not encourage trips to the "old country" because, even though it is part of who they are and where they came from, they had to sacrafice that for what they thought could be a better life. In many cases, it has been just that.

Sorry to go on so long. Hope I helped!;)

Answer 2

Pinky, this is a generalization but if you pulled a random sample of American adults off the streets and gave them a outline map of the political word and offered to give them a dollar for every county they labeled correctly, I bet it would be the rare American who could come out with more than 20 bucks.
I consider myself pretty d88n smart and if i took my own test I'd do better but I know I'd be saying some stuff like "now here is where all those "stan" countries are. And "this is either Uruguay or Paraguay or Bolivia or something".
The schools are partly at fault. History is American History and why we are the worlds most wonderful country. This does not give the average American the incentive to check in on what the Brazilians are dong. And when you have a president who can go down to Brazil and ask "You have Blacks here too?" It doesn't seem to set a set a good example.
Geography is mostly not taught as a separate subject any more. World history as I remember it is mostly European History and more specifically European wars. Asia, Africa, Australia, PHittttt to you.
But I also blame the Media. I know every idiot with a grudge blame the media for something but hear me out. Most of the daily papers in America don't have much foreign news coverage.
I live in a small city of 1 million people and for all the Daily Beezer could care the world consists of us and who we are at war with.
Most people get their news from TV news. Tough luck rest of the world. The Net work TV stations have cut their forgien budgets to bupkis. Fox is, well, what it is, and I understan CNN America is My Weekly Reader compared with CNN International.
Radio is a joke in America. Huge portions of the radio waves are owened by one company Clear Channel, which treats a radio station much like any other business, an ice cream stand or a funrature store. A business to make money with no old fashinened public awareness or fairness responisbities whatever.

Am I ranting? The real point is if you are an American and you want to know about other countries you must seek out sources. They are not going to come to you. I read The New York Times which has some forgien coverage, and listen to a Canadian radio new show and the BBC.

And I'm still going "Ivory Cost or The Gambia? Double or nothing?

Answer 3

I studied world history and geography in middle school, high school, and college. FYI...American history goes further back in time than 1773. The first European to land in America was Juan Ponce de Leon in 1513. He landed in today's Florida. The first use of "United States of America" was July 4, 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was signed.
My location: Texas, USA.

Answer 4

I agree, in general they have a very strange World view and most of the disgusting racist questions and remarks on this site come from usa residents, they do seem to be full of hatred and fear don`t they?
I imagine that they are gullibly susceptible to everything their politicians and mass media suggest is true and that many years of skilful manipulation of their mindset, through the aforementioned devices and an education system steered by politics and indeed by some very strange and outwardly ridiculous concepts of religion, particularly their many versions of fundemental christianity has eroded every last drop of freedom of thought from their minds.

Thus leading them to repeat only the thoughts foisted upon them by a manipulative leadership and media.

One must also recognise that their mentallity is affected by sport too, it encourages aggression, they love a winner. Have you noticed that at every occassion, sporting or otherwise, they try to have a military presence, a parade, a fly past or a static display and that they are constantly bombarded with ` america is the greatest nation on Earth, we are the best` etc..etc..

It all helps to build paranoia and fear of foreigners.

Answer 5

I took a World History class my sophomore year in college; but it was ancient World History. We talked about the beginnings of civilization. I don't remember any specific World History classes in high school. It was just combined in the class titled "History". I also took a World Geography class in college and we mainly talked about different cultures and where these cultures were located.

Answer 6

"pink thong" why do you generalise and label everyone the same?
It appears to me that you are an uneducated peasant. A question to be answered would be Do/Did YOU (pink thong) have any subjects in school at all or were/are you one of the gutter scutters that sits at the back of the 'special class' bragging about how you stayed out past 9 o'clock last night?

Answer 7

Do no generalize Americans as not knowing anything about the world. Of course, there are many exceptions. A lot of people don't know much about the world and other countries.

But I'm American and I know plenty about the other countries on Earth.

It's like asking if Britons know anything about dental hygiene.

Answer 8

Are you no longer conscious of a democracy? An election? there turned right into a usa-huge vote. with the aid of majority in hardship-free words, president George Dumb Bush become elected. It would not propose this entire usa voted him as our "chief", and it would not propose those who did vote for him don't experience now that they made mistake. That does take position. The state I stay in voted one hundred% for the different candidate. So in accordance to us, we did not favor him. in spite of the undeniable fact that the final public received. Are you one hundred% chuffed with each and every proper Minister you have ever had?? particularly? each and every 4 years we've the probability to make a change, study from our blunders. and also you do favor to understand, at the same time as Bush-for-brains is our president, we've make significant ameliorations in our congress who can make tons of ameliorations. Bush isn't one hundred% in value.

Answer 9

Well, I know it's not a good thing to generalize, but from my experience (i'm from argentina) i got a lot of questions from foreign people (not only american) like: do you elebrate xmas? what do you eat? is your president mr Lula Da Silva? (Brazil's) is english your first language? and the like. But if you ask me, for intance... i don't know...right off the top of my head..uhm...what are U.S. national holidays...maybe I know some, but not all, so I guess we are all a lil 'ignorant' about other nation's customs, folk stuff... So my answer to your questios would be... MAYBE!!!

Answer 10

how can you ask a question that refers to an entire nation of nearly 300 million people? i took a ton of geography in middle school, high school, and college....