what the heck are the new guys taught in ground school?
The CBT programmes merely teach "need to know" as against "nice to know". The alternative is to go back to desk bound engineers using chalk and talk and a whiteboard. Fine, if said engineers are first class lecturers who can bolster student's interest but too many had no idea of class-room teaching technique and bored their audience silly.
Decades back, the lectures on a Viscount course I attended as a pilot went for six bloody weeks and that included two full 8 hour days on the autopilot alone which had about six knobs to twiddle. While CBT is sufficient to pass a type rating it is up to the student to research further if he desires. The internet is marvellous for those keen enough to research stuff.