Liberal arts education
Liberal arts education (from
The term liberal arts for an educational curriculum dates back to
History
Before they became known by their Latin variations (artes liberales, septem artes liberales, studia liberalia),
Rooted in the basic curriculum – the enkuklios paideia or "well-rounded education" – of late
The four "scientific" artes – music, arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy – were known from the time of
In the 12th century the iconic image – Philosophia et septem artes liberales (Philosophy and seven liberal arts) – was produced by an
In the Renaissance, the Italian humanists and their Northern counterparts, despite in many respects continuing the traditions of the Middle Ages, reversed that process.[21] Re-christening the old trivium with a new and more ambitious name: Studia humanitatis, and also increasing its scope, they downplayed logic as opposed to the traditional Latin grammar and rhetoric, and added to them history, Greek, and moral philosophy (ethics), with a new emphasis on poetry as well.[22] The educational curriculum of humanism spread throughout Europe during the sixteenth century and became the educational foundation for the schooling of European elites, the functionaries of political administration, the clergy of the various legally recognized churches, and the learned professions of law and medicine.[23] The ideal of a liberal arts, or humanistic education grounded in classical languages and literature, persisted in Europe until the middle of the twentieth century; in the United States, it had come under increasingly successful attack in the late 19th century by academics interested in reshaping American higher education around the natural and social sciences.[24][25]
Similarly, Wilhelm von Humboldt's educational model in Prussia (now Germany), which later became the role model for higher education also in North America, went beyond vocational training. In a letter to the Prussian king, he wrote:
There are undeniably certain kinds of knowledge that must be of a general nature and, more importantly, a certain cultivation of the mind and character that nobody can afford to be without. People obviously cannot be good craftworkers, merchants, soldiers or businessmen unless, regardless of their occupation, they are good, upstanding and – according to their condition – well-informed human beings and citizens. If this basis is laid through schooling, vocational skills are easily acquired later on, and a person is always free to move from one occupation to another, as so often happens in life.[26]
The philosopher Julian Nida-Rümelin has criticized discrepancies between Humboldt's ideals and the contemporary European education policy, which narrowly understands education as a preparation for the labor market, arguing that we need to decide between "McKinsey and Humboldt".[27]
Modern usage
The modern use of the term liberal arts consists of four areas: the natural sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. Academic areas that are associated with the term liberal arts include:
- Life science (biology, neuroscience)
- )
- Formal science (logic, mathematics, statistics)
- Humanities (philosophy, history, english literature, the arts, linguistics, anthropology, theology, archaeology)
- Social science (economics, human geography, political science, jurisprudence, psychology, sociology)
For example, the core courses for Georgetown University's Doctor of Liberal Studies program[28] cover philosophy, theology, history, art, literature, and the social sciences. Wesleyan University's Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program includes courses in visual arts, art history, creative and professional writing, literature, history, mathematics, film, government, education, biology, psychology, and astronomy.[29]
Secondary school
Liberal arts education at the secondary school level prepares students for higher education at a university.[citation needed][30]
Curricula differ from school to school, but generally include
In the United States
In the United States, liberal arts colleges are schools emphasizing undergraduate study in the liberal arts.[32] The teaching at liberal arts colleges is often Socratic, typically with small classes; professors are often allowed to concentrate more on their teaching responsibilities than are professors at research universities.[citation needed]
In addition, most four-year colleges are not devoted exclusively or primarily to liberal arts degrees, but offer a liberal arts degree, and allow students not majoring in liberal arts to take courses to satisfy
Traditionally, a bachelor's degree in one particular area within liberal arts, with substantial study outside that main area, is earned over four years of full-time study. However, some universities such as
Most students earn either a
Great Books movement
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In 1937 St. John's College changed its curriculum to focus on the Great Books of the Western World to provide a new sort of education that separated itself from the increasingly specialized nature of higher schooling.[39]
In Europe
In most parts of Europe, liberal arts education is deeply rooted. In Germany, Austria and countries influenced by their education system it is called 'humanistische Bildung' (humanistic education). The term is not to be confused with some modern educational concepts that use a similar wording. Educational institutions that see themselves in that tradition are often a Gymnasium (high school, grammar school). They aim at providing their pupils with comprehensive education (Bildung) to form personality with regard to a pupil's own humanity as well as their innate intellectual skills.[citation needed] Going back to the long tradition of the liberal arts in Europe, education in the above sense was freed from scholastic thinking and re-shaped by the theorists of the Enlightenment; in particular, Wilhelm von Humboldt. Since students are considered to have received a comprehensive liberal arts education at gymnasia, very often the role of liberal arts education in undergraduate programs at universities is reduced compared to the US educational system.[citation needed] Students are expected to use their skills received at the gymnasium to further develop their personality in their own responsibility, e.g. in universities' music clubs, theatre groups, language clubs, etc. Universities encourage students to do so and offer respective opportunities but do not make such activities part of the university's curriculum.[citation needed]
Thus, on the level of higher education, despite the European origin of the liberal arts college,
In France, Chavagnes Studium, a Liberal Arts Study Centre in partnership with the Institut Catholique d'études supérieures, and based in a former Catholic seminary, is launching a two-year intensive BA in the Liberal Arts, with a distinctively Catholic outlook.[49] It has been suggested that the liberal arts degree may become part of mainstream education provision in the United Kingdom, Ireland and other European countries. In 1999, the European College of Liberal Arts (now Bard College Berlin) was founded in Berlin[50] and in 2009 it introduced a four-year Bachelor of Arts program in Value Studies taught in English,[51] leading to an interdisciplinary degree in the humanities.[citation needed]
In England, the first institution
In Scotland, the four-year undergraduate Honours degree, specifically the Master of Arts, has historically demonstrated considerable breadth in focus. In the first two years of Scottish MA and BA degrees students typically study a number of different subjects before specialising in their Honours years (third and fourth year). The University of Dundee and the University of Glasgow (at its Crichton Campus) are the only Scottish universities that currently offer a specifically named 'Liberal Arts' degree.[citation needed]
In Slovakia, the Bratislava International School of Liberal Arts (BISLA) is located in the Old Town of Bratislava. It is the first liberal arts college in Central Europe. A private, accredited three-year degree-granting undergraduate institution, it opened in September 2006.[59]
In Asia
The Commission on Higher Education of the
In India, there are many institutions that offer undergraduate UG or bachelor's degree/diploma and postgraduate PG or master's degree/diploma as well as doctoral PhD and postdoctoral studies and research, in this academic discipline. The highly ranked
In Australia
Campion College is a Roman Catholic dedicated liberal arts college, located in the western suburbs of Sydney. Founded in 2006, it is the first tertiary educational liberal arts college of its type in Australia. Campion offers a Bachelor of Arts in the Liberal Arts as its sole undergraduate degree. The key disciplines studied are history, literature, philosophy, and theology.[63]
The Millis Institute is the School of Liberal Arts at Christian Heritage College located in Brisbane. Founded by Dr. Ryan Messmore, former President of Campion College, the Millis Institute offers a Bachelor of Arts in the Liberal Arts in which students can choose to major in philosophy, theology, history or literature. It also endorses a 'Study Abroad' program whereby students can earn credit towards their degree by undertaking two units over a five-week program at the University of Oxford. As of 2022, Elizabeth Hillman is currently the President of the Millis Institute.[64]
A new school of Liberal Arts has been formed in the University of Wollongong; the new Arts course entitled 'Western Civilisation' was first offered in 2020. The interdisciplinary curriculum focuses on the classic intellectual and artistic literature of the Western tradition. Courses in the liberal arts have recently been developed at the University of Sydney[65] and the University of Notre Dame.[66]
See also
- Artes Mechanicae– Latin for "the mechanical arts"
- Bachelor of General Studies
- Bachelor of Liberal Arts
- Bachelor of Liberal Studies
- Classical education
- Classical education movement
- College of Arts and Sciences
- Doctor of Liberal Studies
- Education in ancient Greece
- Education in ancient Rome
- Education reform § Reforms of classical education
- Four arts
- General studies
- Great books
- Great Books programs in Canada
- Humanitas
- Humanities
- Interdisciplinarity
- Jesuit education (Eloquentia perfecta)
- Liberal arts college
- Liberal education
- List of liberal arts colleges
- STEAM fields
- Transcendentalism
Citations
- ^ "MA Liberal Arts | Course Overview". University of Winchester. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
- ^ "What is Liberal Arts? – Ancient, Medieval, Modern". Liberal Arts UK. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
- OCLC 32776486.
- OCLC 882530818.
- OCLC 882530818.
- ^ "Trivium and Quadrivium | The Seven Liberal Arts | Study Liberal Arts". Liberal Arts. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
- ^ "Philosophy and the Liberal Arts | Essays". Liberal Arts. 25 January 2020. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
- ISBN 9780691097398.
The classical sources include Cicero, De Oratore, I.72–73, III.127, and De re publica, I.30.
- ^ Castle, E.B. (1969). Ancient Education and Today. p. 59.
- ^ Kimball, Bruce (1995). Orators and Philosophers. New York: College Entrance Examination Board. p. 13
- ^ Cicero. De Inventione. Book 1, Section 35
- ^ Seneca. Schneider, Ben (ed.). "Epistle". Stoics.com. 88. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ a b Lausberg, H. (1998). Handbook of Literary Rhetoric. p. 10.
- ^ Waddell, Helen (1968). The Wandering Scholars. p. 25.
- ^ "James Burke: The Day the Universe Changed In the Light Of the Above". YouTube. Archived from the original on 23 May 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-253-35185-2. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
- ^ Waddell, Helen (1968). The Wandering Scholars. pp. 141–143.
- ^ a b Tidbury, Iain (5 August 2019). "Liberal Arts Education by and for Women". Liberal Arts. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
- ISBN 9780812202113.
- ^ Michael, William (2020). "The Virgin Mary and the Classical Liberal Arts". Classical Liberal Arts Academy.
- ^ G. Norton ed., The Cambridge History of Literary Criticism Vol 3 (1999)p. 46 and pp. 601–4
- ^ Paul Oskar Kristeller, Renaissance Thought II: Papers on Humanism and the Arts (New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1965), p. 178.
- ^ Charles G. Nauert, Humanism and the Culture of Renaissance Europe (New Approaches to European History) (Cambridge University Press, 2006), pp. 172–173.
- ^ Bod, Rens; A New History of the Humanities, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2014.
- ^ Adler, Eric; The Battle of the Classics: How a Nineteenth-Century Debate Can Save the Humanities Today, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2020, p. 59.
- ^ Nida-Rümelin, Julian (29 October 2009). "Bologna-Prozess: Die Chance zum Kompromiss ist da". Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved 29 November 2015.
- ^ "curriculum". Georgetown University Doctor of Liberal Studies.
- ^ "Graduate Liberal Studies". Wesleyan University (www.wesleyan.edu).
- ^ Finn, C.E Jr.; Ravitch, D (2007). Beyond the Basics: Achieving a Liberal Education for All Children. Thomas B. Fordham Institute.
- ^ "What is Liberal Arts Education?". Top Universities. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Defining Liberal Arts Education" (PDF). Wabash College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
- ^ "Online Liberal Arts Associate Degree". Saint Leo University. Archived from the original on 16 August 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Online Associate in Arts in Letters, Arts, and Sciences | Overview". Penn State University. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Associate's Degree in Liberal Arts – Liberal Arts Degree Online". Florida Institute of Technology. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Associates in Liberal Studies". New England College.
- ^ a b "Harvard Extension School".
- Georgia Institute of Technology's bachelor of science degree in Applied Languages and Intercultural Studies http://www.modlangs.gatech.edu Archived 13 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "History - Liberal Arts College - Great Books". St. John's College. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
- JSTOR 1975506.
- ^ "About Franklin". Franklin University Switzerland Official Web Site. Franklin University Switzerland. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ "Central European University". Bachelors Portal.
- ^ "Liberal Arts and Sciences Program (LAS)". University College Freiburg. Archived from the original on 20 August 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Liberal Arts, Gothenburg University". Flov.gu.se. 22 May 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Liberal Arts Programme at Uppsala University". Archived from the original on 30 June 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ "Agile". Agile.ge. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "ილიაუნი -მთავარი". Iliauni.edu.ge. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Bachelor Degree". Iliauni. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "The Chavagnes Studium – Catholic Liberal Arts Centre". Chavagnes.org. 10 March 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
- ^ "Berlin's sturdiest ivory tower". Expatica.com. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "GERMANY: New approach to liberal studies". Universityworldnews.com. 15 March 2009. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ a b "It's the breadth that matters". 23 December 2010. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
- ^ "Arts and Sciences (BASc) programmes". University College London. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ "Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences (BASc) programmes". University of Birmingham. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
- ^ "KCL – About Liberal Arts". Retrieved 15 January 2014.
- ^ "Liberal Arts programme – BA Hons Y002". University of Nottingham. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
- ^ "Liberal Arts". University of Warwick.
- ^ "UCAS Search tool – Venue Results". search.ucas.com. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
- ^ "Bratislava International School of Liberal Arts". Studies in Europe. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- ^ "Liberal Classes | Education | Newsline". www.newslinemagazine.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
- ^ Andrew, Marylou (2015). "Liberal to the core". Aurora. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
- ^ "Pandit Deendayal Energy University".
- ^ "Liberal Arts Education". Campion College. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
- ^ "Office of the President | Mills College".
- ^ "Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Science". The University of Sydney. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
- ^ Dame, Notre (17 April 2018). "Bachelor of Arts (Major: Liberal Arts)". Notre Dame. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
General and cited references
- Castle, E.B. (1969). Ancient Education and Today.
- Curtius, Ernst Robert (1973) [1948]. European Literature and the Latin Middle Ages. Translated by Trask, Willard R. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691097398.
- Griffiths, Fiona J. (2011). The Garden of Delights: Reform and Renaissance for Women in the Twelfth Century. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 9780812202113.
- Kimball, Bruce A. Orators and Philosophers: A History of the Idea of Liberal Education. College Board, 1995.
- Lausberg, H. (1998). Handbook of Literary Rhetoric.
- Michael, William (2020). "The Virgin Mary and the Classical Liberal Arts". Classical Liberal Arts Academy.
- Tidbury, Iain (5 August 2019). "Liberal Arts Education by and for Women". Liberal Arts. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
- Tubbs, Nigel (2014). Philosophy and Modern Liberal Arts Education: Freedom is to Learn. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. OCLC 882530818.
- Waddell, Helen (1968). The Wandering Scholars.
- Wagner, David Leslie (1983). The Seven liberal arts in the Middle Ages. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-35185-2.
Further reading
- Anders, George (2019). You Can Do Anything: The Surprising Power of a "Useless" Liberal Arts Education. Back Bay Books. ISBN 978-0316548885.
- Barzun, Jacques. The House of Intellect, Reprint Harper Perennial, 2002.
- Blaich, Charles, Anne Bost, Ed Chan, and Richard Lynch. "Defining Liberal Arts Education." Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts, 2004.
- ISBN 0-8126-9429-5)
- Friedlander, Jack. Measuring the Benefits of Liberal Arts Education in Washington's Community Colleges. Los Angeles: Center for the Study of Community Colleges, 1982a. (ED 217 918)
- Grafton Anthony and Lisa Jardine. From Humanism to the Humanities: The Institutionalizing of the Liberal Arts in Fifteenth- and Sixteenth-century Europe, Harvard University Press, 1987.
- Guitton, Jean. A Student's Guide to Intellectual Work, The University of Notre Dame Press, 1964.
- Highet, Gilbert. The Art of Teaching, Vintage Books, 1950.
- Joseph, Sister Miriam. The Trivium: The Liberal Arts of Logic, Grammar, and Rhetoric. Paul Dry Books Inc, 2002.
- Kimball, Bruce A. The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Documentary History. University Press Of America, 2010.
- T. Kaori Kitao; William R. Kenan, Jr. (27 March 1999). The Usefulness Of Uselessness (PDF). Keynote Address, The 1999 Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth's Odyssey at Swarthmore College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 October 2008.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - McGrath, Charles. "What Every Student Should Know", New York Times, 8 January 2006.
- Parker, H. "The Seven Liberal Arts," The English Historical Review, Vol. V, 1890.
- Pfnister, Allan O. (1984). "The Role of the Liberal Arts College: A Historical Overview of the Debates". JSTOR 1981183.
- Reeves, Floyd W. (1930). "The Liberal-Arts College". JSTOR 1974170.
- Ruckdeschel, Christopher. On the Nature of the Classical Liberal Arts, Bookbaby, 2019.
- Saint-Victor, Hugh of. The Didascalicon, Columbia University Press, 1961.
- Schall, James V. Another Sort of Learning, Ignatius Press, 1988.
- Seidel, George J. (1968). "Saving the Small College". JSTOR 1979916.
- Sertillanges, A. G. The Intellectual Life, The Catholic University of America Press, 1998.
- Tubbs, N. (2011) "Know Thyself: Macrocosm and Microcosm" in Studies in Philosophy and Education Volume 30 no.1
- Winterer, Caroline. The Culture of Classicism: Ancient Greece and Rome in American Intellectual Life, 1780–1910. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002.
- Wriston, Henry M. The Nature of a Liberal College. Lawrence University Press, 1937.
- Zakaria, Fareed. In Defense of a Liberal Education. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2015.
External links
- New International Encyclopedia. 1905. Definition and short history of the Seven Liberal Arts from 1905.
.
- Fr. Herve de la Tour, "The Seven Liberal Arts", Edocere, a Resource for Catholic Education, February 2002. Thomas Aquinas's definition of and justification for a liberal arts education.
- Otto Willmann. "The Seven Liberal Arts". In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. Retrieved 13 August 2012. "[Renaissance] Humanists, over-fond of change, unjustly condemned the system of the seven liberal arts as barbarous. It is no more barbarous than the Gothic style, a name intended to be a reproach. The Gothic, built up on the conception of the old basilica, ancient in origin, yet Christian in character, was misjudged by the Renaissance on account of some excrescences, and obscured by the additions engrafted upon it by modern lack of taste… That the achievements of our forefathers should be understood, recognized, and adapted to our own needs, is surely to be desired."
- Andrew Chrucky (1 September 2003). "The Aim of Liberal Education". "The content of a liberal education should be moral problems as provided by history, anthropology, sociology, economics, and politics. And these should be discussed along with a reflection on the nature of morality and the nature of discussions, i.e., through a study of rhetoric and logic. Since discussion takes place in language, an effort should be made to develop a facility with language."
- "Philosophy of Liberal Education" A bibliography, compiled by Andrew Chrucky, with links to essays offering different points of view on the meaning of a liberal education.
- Mark Peltz, "The Liberal Arts and Leadership", College News (The Annapolis Group), 14 May 2012. A defense of liberal education by the Associate Dean of Grinnell College (first appeared in Inside Higher Ed).
- "Liberal Arts at the Community College", an ERIC Fact Sheet. ERIC Clearinghouse for Junior Colleges Los Angeles
- "A Descriptive Analysis of the Community College Liberal Arts Curriculum". ERIC Clearinghouse for Junior Colleges Los Angeles
- The Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts. Website about The Wabash Study (for improving liberal education). Sponsored by the Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts at Wabash College (Indiana), the Wabash Study began in the fall of 2010 – scheduled to end in 2013. Participants include 29 prominent colleges and universities.
- Academic Commons. An online platform in support of the liberal education community. It is a forum for sharing practices, outcomes, and lessons learned of online learning. Formerly sponsored by the Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts, The Academic Commons is hosted by the National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education ("NITLE".).
- The Liberal Arts Advantage – for Business. Website dedicated to "Bridging the gap between business and the liberal arts". "A liberal arts education is aimed at developing the ability to think, reason, analyze, decide, discern, and evaluate. That's in contrast to a professional or technical education (business, engineering, computer science, etc.) which develops specific abilities aimed at preparing students for vocations."
- Video explanation by Professor Nigel Tubbs of liberal arts curriculum and degree requirements of Winchester University, UK.. "Liberal arts education (Latin: liberalis, free, and ars, art or principled practice) involves us in thinking philosophically across many subject boundaries in the humanities, the social and natural sciences, and fine arts. The degree combines compulsory modules covering art, religion, literature, science and the history of ideaswith a wide range of optional modules. This enables students to have flexibility and control over their programme of study and the content of their assessments."