HBDchick links to this article by Charles Murray. Our Futile Efforts To Boost Children's IQ. I also would like to take more credit for my children turning out well.
Well, there's a difference between boosting IQ and in training children in virtues that let them use their gifts well. (Though I notice they sometimes throw off the traces. "Train up a child" seems to be a general and not an absolute promise.)
Yes, it's clear people can be trained to think more or less clearly with whatever horsepower they've got. I tend to be pretty persuaded by Murray's statistical analysis of (1) the importance of IQ to a number of life outcomes and (2) the resistance of IQ to fiddling. Is IQ everything? Obviously not, but it's not trivial, either.
Well, there's a difference between boosting IQ and in training children in virtues that let them use their gifts well. (Though I notice they sometimes throw off the traces. "Train up a child" seems to be a general and not an absolute promise.)
ReplyDeleteYes, and I think our focus should shift in that direction. IQ is not worth much in isolation. Its value is how much it enhances other strengths.
ReplyDeleteI should write about that...
Yes, it's clear people can be trained to think more or less clearly with whatever horsepower they've got. I tend to be pretty persuaded by Murray's statistical analysis of (1) the importance of IQ to a number of life outcomes and (2) the resistance of IQ to fiddling. Is IQ everything? Obviously not, but it's not trivial, either.
ReplyDelete