| |
# correct |
% of total |
| 1. Who is the mayor of Beverly? |
| |
98 |
32.65% |
| 2. Who is the Governor of Massachusetts? |
| |
211 |
71.04% |
| 3. Name 5 current justices of the Supreme Court. |
one correct: |
24 |
8.21% |
two correct: |
3 |
1.02% |
three correct: |
0 |
0% |
four correct: |
0 |
0% |
five correct: |
0 |
0% |
none correct: |
265 |
90.75% |
| 4) How many members are there in the U.S. Senate? |
| |
61 |
20.89% |
| 5) How many members are there in the U.S. House of Representatives? |
| |
4 |
1.36% |
| 6) How many members are there in the U.S. Supreme Court? |
| |
24 |
8.21% |
| 7) What is an impeachment? |
| |
112 |
38.5% |
| 8) What is a referendum? |
| |
3 |
1.02% |
| 9) Who is your Massachusetts Congressional District U.S. Representative? |
| |
12 |
4% |
| 10) Who are your two Massachusetts U.S. Senators |
one correct: |
20 |
6.84% |
both correct: |
45 |
15.41% |
| 11) On which ocean is Beverly located? |
| |
248 |
84.93% |
| 12) Who is the President of the United States? |
| |
281 |
96.23% |
| 13) Who is the Vice President of the United States? |
| |
213 |
72.94% |
| 14) Who is the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives? |
| |
28 |
9.58% |
| 15) How many amendments are there in the Bill of Rights in the U.S. Constitution? |
| |
76 |
26.02% |
| 16) In what year was the Declaration of Independence signed? |
exact year correct: |
94 |
32.19% |
incorrect but within 25 years: |
29 |
9.93% |
incorrect but within 50 years: |
11 |
3.76% |
| 17) What are the 3 Branches of Government? |
all 3 Branches correct: |
77 |
26.36% |
two Branches correct: |
53 |
18.15% |
one Branch correct: |
60 |
20.54% |
none correctly named: |
102 |
34.93% |
These survey results are obviously surprising and probably distressing for the students at school but even more so for the nation at large. Although political knowledge is probably the least studied aspect of citizenry, noted political scientist Stephen Bennett, after careful analysis of the available research studies over the past fifty years, is of the opinion that, at best, the level of political knowledge is no better today than immediately after World War II.
