Stop me if you've heard this joke before: American students are weak on knowledge but strong on self-esteem.

Wait. That's no joke. It's a sad reality that the Georgia Public Policy Foundation reminds us of today in its Friday Facts.

A test involving 30 industrialized nations released recently shows that American 15-year-olds rank 25th in math and 21st in science. “But why get depressed?” asks the Los Angeles Times. “There is an aluminum foil lining: The test also found that our teens don’t let their ignorance bother them. They may not know as much as students in Finland, Canada or New Zealand, but they think they do. When asked to rate their own scientific abilities, they put themselves at the top with their better-educated peers. This is the real trend in American education. No one can match us when it comes to self-esteem.”

Ouch.