LtDan5d ago

Are Europeans more well versed with world geography than Americans?

https://lemmy.zip/post/61380209

Are Europeans more well versed with world geography than Americans? - Lemmy.zip

I’ve seen multiple videos equivalent of Americans pointing where (country) is on the map, and there was an instance where the host asked the woman where the continent Africa is located (points to Asia) like WTF? That’s not even close at all. I know there’s bias towards those types of videos since there are accusations of the host “handpicking” select strangers framing them as if they are representative of the US. But the truth is that their education system isn’t good as it lacks funding. When you put it into perspective: how many Europeans can correctly locate & name countries adjacent to them within their own continent and globally? Is the education system within the EU that good or effective at teaching kids that subject?

Show threadKoboldCoterie5d ago
How many Europeans can point out Kansas on a map? I’d bet I could find just as many Europeans ignorant of North American geography as they find Americans ignorant of European geography, especially since, as you point out, they cherry pick the most ignorant sounding responses.
Show threadrumschlumpel5d ago

Kansas is about as different from other US states as Bavaria is from other German states. And Bavaria’s population is over four times bigger, too.

Most European countries have their own language, army (+ foreign policy separate from the EU), political system and often currency. US states have none of those.

Show threadKoboldCoterie5d ago
They’re more diverse, no question there, but that’s for nothing to do with memorized lines on a map, which is what we’re talking about, I thought?
Show threadrumschlumpel5d ago

OP asked about continents and countries, US states are neither. IMO, it’s about how relevant the entity is - US states simply aren’t as important as countries.

And I bet most Europeans can name and roughly locate more US states than most USians can name and roughly locate European states, anyway.

Show threadKoboldCoterie
States are more important to Americans than European countries are, when it comes to knowing where things are, because Americans interact with other states with the same regularity that Europeans interact with other countries. The point that I’m trying to make, which seems to be being largely ignored, is that comparing American knowledge of European geography to European knowledge of European geography is just as disingenuous a comparison as comparing European knowledge of US states to American knowledge of US states.
Mar 25 at 4:24pmWeb
Show threadguy5d ago

The problem is that you’re bringing fort that point by making a terrible comparison. This is about countries which US states are not.

A better comparison would have been that Americans have better knowledge about the Caribbean islands than Europe and that Europeans does the opposite.

Show threadKoboldCoterie5d ago
See, I don’t think that that distinction is nearly as important as you do. It’s more about the number of things to name in a given area. Expecting Americans to know all 50 US states is roughly equivalent to expecting Europeans to know all ~50(ish?) European countries. The distinction between states is far more important to our day to day lives than anything in Europe is.
Show threadguy5d ago

The distinction between states is far more important to our day to day lives than anything in Europe is.

You hit the nail on the head there mate.