Gen Z is officially less intelligent than millennials, first recorded intergenerational IQ drop

Gen Z is officially the first and only generation to be less intelligent than the previous one, data shows. This makes millennials the only generation to be sharper and smarter than the younger ones that followed. According to a neuroscientist, Gen-Zers officially have low cognitive development, thanks to the use of "educational technology" or EdTech. Research showed that Gen Z is the first group to score lower than the generation before them. Their attention span, memory, reading and math skills, problem-solving abilities, and overall IQ are lower than those of millennials. Dr Jared Cooney Horvath, a former teacher-turned-neuroscientist, told the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation that even though Gen Z spent more time in school than those in the 20th century, their intelligence levels dropped considerably. He said the current methods of education that rely on technology have led to the generation losing out big time. He shared data that he says clearly shows that cognitive abilities started to decline around 2010.

Teenagers spending more than half their time on phones and tablets

According to Horvath, the human mind was not meant to learn through short video clips or summaries of texts. Soaking in complex ideas and knowledge requires reliance on larger books meant to be read. However, today, the youth is getting quick answers from AI and videos, a methodology that has ruined their intelligence. "More than half of the time a teenager is awake, half of it is spent staring at a screen," Horvath told the New York Post. He added that humans are biologically programmed to learn through interactions with other humans, such as peers and teachers, and from deep study, "not flipping through screens for bullet point summaries."

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Human brain needs personal contact to learn and evolve

He and other experts told Congress that human evolution made them such that they needed to learn through face-to-face interactions. However, screens have disrupted this process, putting the brakes on cognitive development. Horvath added that upgrading technology or using better ways around it to educate the youth won't help since technology is itself a problem, and does not go hand in hand with how our brains naturally work, grow and retain information. The problem is present not only in the United States, but at least 80 countries. "If you look at the data, once countries adopt digital technology widely in schools, performance goes down significantly," he said. Horvath shared a six-decade trend which shows that as more tech entered classrooms, learning started to decline.