For the first time, Generation Z is lagging behind previous generations in terms of educational attainment. One possible cause could be Gen Z’s increasing screen time, which is negatively impacting education. Experts are now warning of long-term effects on educational and labor market opportunities.
In recent decades, average intelligence values have continued to increase from generation to generation. This phenomenon is measured with the so-called Flynn effect.
For many decades, younger generations were measurably superior to their predecessors. The reasons for this were, among other things, improved education and better nutrition.
But this trend has now stalled. For the first time since comparative educational studies began, a generation is performing worse in comparison than the years before it. These are Gen Z, i.e. those born between 1997 and 2010.
Gen Z is falling behind in the education rankings
Australian neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath analyzed reams of data from standardized academic tests and recently presented it to the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. “They are the first generation in modern history to perform worse on standardized academic tests than the previous generation,” the scientist explains to the New York Post.
In “practically all cognitive areas” they performed worse than the previous generation. In addition to basic attention, memory, reading and writing skills, arithmetic and executive functions as well as general IQ were examined.
Cognitive development has been standardized and measured since the late 19th century. Gen Z is now showing for the first time that they are cognitively less capable than previous generations of the same age.
“And to make matters worse, most of these young people overestimate their intelligence,” Horvath continued. Because the more intelligent they think they are, the stupider they actually are.
Is screen time ruining Gen Z?
Horvath sees increasing screen time as a particular problem. Because Generation Z is the first generation to grow up with constant screen time.
“More than half of the time a teenager is awake is spent staring at a screen,” Horvath explains. “Humans are biologically programmed to learn from other people and through deeper learning, not by scrolling through screens for bullet point summaries.”
But screens are also increasingly being used in education for so-called educational technologies. The students then spend their free time on their smartphone, tablet or laptop.
Trend doesn’t just apply to the USA
But it is precisely this increasing screen time that has made Gen Z “superficial learners,” explains the neuroscientist. He therefore advocates, especially in schools, to limit students’ screen time.
But this is not just a local trend in the USA. “If you look at the data from 80 countries, it becomes clear that as soon as digital technologies are widely used in schools, performance drops significantly,” he explains. Schools would need to limit the use of technology in classrooms so that learning can evolve again.
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