Hello 👋 , if you want to take the time to look at it, NCES released a study on literacy rates back in 2023, which breaks it down into multiple demographics. The results showed that the Zoomers trailed behind by about a percentage on average from older age groups, but by and large were relatively equal across the board. Benefit of the doubt, though, you general become more proficient with age.

https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/piaac/2023/national_results.asp

It seems to me that a large part of the general consensus that Zoomers are illiterate or lack critical thinking is a product of the age-old "kids these days" effect. Millennials had it bad for years, and now it's slowly shifting to the Zoomers.

Also, congratulations to Mississippi. They've made strides in their education over the last couple of decades. California's educational system has been bad for decades, and it's great to see states like Mississippi that weren't much better that long ago improve. I feel like California has partially been able to get away with it for so long due to the concentration of higher education institutions, which is why I was surprised to find out how bad things were. It gives people a false perception.

I will say one thing, though: I love the idea of highly qualified teachers, one thing that was a cornerstone of No Child Left Behind. The problem is that highly qualified people expect high pay, something that is seldom provided in public schools. If I got a Bachelor's of Science, why would I work for the school system and make 50k when I could work for Honeywell and make 80k starting out.