I wonder whether reports of a recent study of 100,000 high school students, about what they think of the freedoms democracy is based on, have attracted attention in educational circles.

They should have, because the results are alarming.

More than a third of the students thought guarantees of freedom of religion, speech, the press and assembly are excessive. Some had "no opinion" about the First Amendment, and half or more thought that government can censor the Internet and that newspapers' publication of stories ought to be subject to prior government approval.

The Knight Foundation and its University of Connecticut researchers have brought to light how many young minds either don't know or don't care about foundations of our own democratic society. It's timely to worry about this just now, when in Iraq people have risked death to earn the freedoms about which our kids are at best casual and probably confused.

Curriculum designers, take note.

Dick Wharton
Greensboro