Forbes. "With the most in-demand skills being universal skills, there will be a growing role for universal education (previously known as the liberal arts) in corporate education." There is nothing wrong with the liberal arts and the associated "soft skills" liberal arts majors gain in their education. However, by labeling them "soft", "liberal", and "arts", we do a disservice to a relevant and powerful pedagogy. We would be better off if we were to rebrand and rename it as a "universal education". The "soft skills" that individuals master through a liberal arts education are more relevant and in-demand than ever across a wide range of fields, hence this writers' proposed rebranding.
Frontiers. "That is, for individuals to flourish, the decision to pursue a major (e.g., STEM vs. Humanities) is best to be based on their interests rather than the major's income potential." This social scientific academic research study addresses the chanelling of students into STEM majors in their undergrad years. What the study suggests is that while financial measurements may favor STEM majors for the most part, the channeling of individuals into STEM majors from the start fails to take into account that a lack of fit between an individual's interests, major, and career choice, independent of which major field of study is actually chosen, has a significant effect on an individual's well-being and personal satisfaction down the road.
Inside Higher Ed. The liberal arts are suffering because of increasing budget constraints and the pressure to make colleges and universities more career-focused. Roger W. Ferguson Jr. argues that the liberal arts are undeservingly being punished. The liberal arts help individuals to think outside of the box, to solve problems creatively, and to see the world from different angles and perspectives, all of which are skills that employers are looking for more and more as new technologies raise new questions each and every day.
The American Scholar. In this influential essay, William Cronon defines a liberally educated person as someone who can listen and hear; read and understand; write persuasively; solve a wide variety of puzzles and problems; understand how to get things done; nurture and empower others; see connections that help make sense of the world; and act in creative way.
Inside Higher ED. 1 - A Liberal Arts Education Is the Most Valuable Type of Postsecondary Education, 2 - Learning Is a Relationship, 3 - Increased Competition Demands Greater Investment and Experimentation in Learning.
Times Higher Education. The first undergraduates are yet to enroll in the new liberal arts degree at the University of Warwick, but already the institution is encouraging others to follow its lead. The institution, which will welcome students to the new bachelor’s program next autumn, is part of a European consortium looking to draw up guidelines for the development of liberal arts degrees across the continent.
Counter Punch. Our task as educators is to play the role of visionary midwife; to make the ambiguous learning society aware of itself as a learning society in the first place, and then to press it beyond its present form toward a just learning society.
Science Daily. Field trips to live theater enhance literary knowledge, tolerance and empathy among students, according to a study published this week by researchers in the University of Arkansas Department of Education Reform.
The Orange County Register. Chapman president on Chapman’s commitment to a well-rounded education that liberates the mind to think critically and creatively: e.g. philosophy + film-making.
The New York Times. At a time when the price of a degree from elite institutions is well over six figures, fields such as literature and the arts may seem like a luxury item. But we may have it backwards. They are, to cite Hemingway’s title for his Paris memoir, “a moveable feast,” and they offer us a kind of reach into time and space that we can find nowhere else.
Council of College of Arts and Sciences.
1A. "So, what’s the purpose of liberal arts colleges today? Are they changing to meet the needs of a 21st-century student?"
The Hechinger Report. The Liberal Arts provide students with timeless skills that can be utilized in a variety of workplaces and career paths.
Inside Higher ED. Read on how employers feel about Liberal Arts graduates and their capabilities.
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