Well, well, well. Turns out the higher a college ranks on US News & World Report, the more ignorant its students are, at least when it comes to civics (the Monroe Doctrine, anyone … anyone?) There’s a name for these vaunted institutions, the likes of which include Princeton, Yale, U Penn, Cornell and Duke — elite centers of “negative learning.”

The findings, in a recent study by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, are pretty grim, namely: “some of the most expensive universities, with the highest paid presidents, are among the worst-performing in the country regarding the teaching of America’s history and institutions to their undergraduate students. These universities, which also receive some of the largest government subsidies, include the University of Pennsylvania, Cornell, Yale, Princeton, and Duke.”

In particular, though Ivy League students know more about about civics going in, they basically do not add to their knowledge during college. Which seems to make sense given a typical college student’s trajectory.

Leave it to one of our own to stick up for the Ivy Leaguers, however. Eric Foner, a prof at Columbia cages “the study of history has changed enormously,” Mr. Foner said. “It’s become much more broad and diverse. The study of facts about particular battles has diminished, but maybe students are in a better position to answer questions about the abolition of slavery.” (NYSun)

So there. We’re still smarter.