We lived on this continent before it was *discovered*...

[htuttle]

2. The pre-college 'history' class in my 1970's high school was called 'Western Civilization'

It told a tidy eurocentric narrative of how the torch of civilization was passed from Egypt, to Greece, to Rome, then finally to Europe. Europe then spread it to the rest of the world. I was able to get through 4 years of college without learning much more about history, save for tiny slices of it in philosophy and (western) literature classes.

The only way I've learned anything about the history of 4/5's of the rest of the planet was on my own by reading, watching various PBS shows, etc...

There are probably a hundred million Americans who had the same schooling, and most of them haven't bothered to learn anything aside from their careers in the years since.

We have a ways to go yet...