Chapter Seven Summary and Analysis

Chapter seven begins with Howe and Strauss describing the results from an international achievement test in 1995. The eighth and twelfth grade Generation X students tested do very poorly compared to students in other countries, but the Millenial fourth graders score near the top of all countries. Most analysts at the time attribute this to students losing their gains from earlier years as they advance through the school system, but Howe and Strauss contend that it is due to the simple fact that Millenials are better students than members of Generation X.

Howe and Strauss attribute the turnaround in student performance to a 1983 "Nation at Risk" report that showed students performing very poorly in almost every area. This reports helps lead politicians like President George H.W. Bush to set out a series of educational goals for the Class of...