Steven Pearlstein wrote “Meet the parents who won’t let their children study literature” on September 2nd, 2016 to help parents, and any audience, have a better understanding as to why having a liberal art education is important. The amount of formal education required to participate in our society has majorly increased. If you’re solely a high school graduate, you won’t get a job matched to what you could get if you were to have a college diploma. A college diploma once had such value that you could participate in governance. Today, a college diploma does not hold that significance. Pearlstein’s article states, “Parents are becoming more deeply engaged in nearly every aspect of their children’s lives, and its carrying over even to their …show more content…
“Choosing a major is not choosing a career,” says Jeff Selingo, author of “There Is A Life After College.” Pearlstein mentions that it was sad for him to meet incoming freshman who have already declared themselves as a major without the chance of taking any other courses that could possibly change their mind. The generation we are living in is filled with people who are only living artificial lives. Everyone wants to earn money, but they do not want to learn humanity with its own cultural history. We need people educated to think critically and humanely, not just competitively. Take a degree in anthropology if you want to learn about how the world works; take a degree in the arts if you want to understand how to create things. And why are people here putting literature in quotes ("literature") like it is some disease to be partitioned off. Literature exposes you to different ways of thinking and expressing, invites you into alternative worlds which are crucial for understanding ours. Want to get practical? Literature shows you how to write, communicate ideas, and how to use proper grammar so you (business major, accountant, or etc.) can be understood by
All though “The New Liberal Arts”, Sanford J. Ungar uses seven misconceptions about liberal arts on why learning the liberal arts. And explain why is still relevant and will be for coming years. The first misperception that he advocates is that a liberal arts degree is no longer affordable. Vocational training is better alternative to liberal arts in today. In this recession it is a financially wise decision to obtain a career oriented education instead. Students may not able to find jobs in the field that they are training after graduate. Ungar argues that especially collage students find it harder to get good jobs with liberal arts degrees, which is not the case. Which is the second misperception is that graduates with liberal arts degrees
The idea of having to go to school every day for at least twelve years conjures a lot of different emotions – some may be excited about the idea of learning new things and exploring their minds, while others may be exasperated just by imagining the curriculum they must complete during this time span. The term “senioritis” is derived from the feeling of irritability during a student’s last year of high school; this can cause a nosedive in GPA, lack of effort in assignments, and leaves the student with little to no determination to finish the school year. With this said, as years pass through a student’s academic journey, their passion, if there ever was any to begin with, is likely to dwindle down by the time
Since high school and now through my second year of college I have had one goal for my future, that goal was to graduate college with a degree in criminal justice. Not being interested in math or science, I was discouraged by the fact of taking classes that had nothing to do with my career choice. Thus being said, many people that I talked too felt the same way as I did. Which constantly led me to question what the importance of a liberal education was. After reading an essay called The Liberal Arts Are Not Elitist by Martha Nussbaum and relating it to an essay by William Cronon called The Goals of a Liberal Education, my perspective changed. An education is more than just a degree in your field of study, but an overall basic knowledge in which will inspire people to be the absolute best they can be.
Mark Edmundson, In the use of a Liberal Education, Edmundson observer’s his work place and peers with a long of his students he noticed how the evaluations was not up to date, Edmundson discuss with his students about how the consumerism has an impact on the college’s around the world and also talk’s about how some are financial supported by the “G.I. Bill and how the population dramatically increased after the Second World War “(44). Edmundson argues over the evaluations and how some students don’t always make them interesting and how he would commend them to be more interesting, than what has been written in the past years; Edmundson talks about how grading has gotten so much easier because the teachers are afraid of the students making
Ungar, S. J. (2010). The new liberal arts. In G. Graff, C. Birkenstein, & R. Durst (Eds.). “They say, I say”: The moves that matter in academic writing with readings. (2nd ed.). (pp. 190-197). New York: W. W. Norton. This article looks to prove that liberal arts education is just as valuable as “career education” because contrary to general belief, career education doesn’t guarantee high-paying jobs after they graduate.
There is no bond like that between parent and child; no moment like holding your newborn for the first time or realizing your little one has grown up when you send them off for their first day of school. As a parent, you are a source of comfort, guidance, and life. Uri Friedman states in “How Much Do Parents Matter?” that parents really don’t matter. According to Robert LeVine, an anthropologist and emeritus professor of education and human development at Harvard University, and his wife Sarah, there are more factors other than the parent involved in the upbringing of a child into adulthood. Despite the ideology experts advocate about how parenting should be done, the LeVines want to encourage parents to be “sponsors” for their children as the environments and situations they encounter shape them rather than succumb to paternal instincts. Although environments and experiences do influence a child, I believe that a parental role has a greater impact on how that child may perceive and approach situations as they grow. The world cannot nurture as a parent does.
In recent years, many have debated whether or not a college education is a necessary requirement to succeed in the field of a persons’ choice and become an outstanding person in society. On one hand, some say college is very important because one must contribute to society. The essay Three Reasons College Still Matters by Andrew Delbanco shows three main reasons that students should receive their bachelor’s degree. On the other hand, many question the point of wasting millions of dollars on four years or maybe more to fight for highly competitive jobs that one might not get. Louis Menand wrote an article based on education titled Re-Imagining Liberal Education. This article challenges the main thought many americans have after receiving a secondary education. Louis Menand better illustrates the reasons why a student should rethink receiving a post secondary education better than Andrew Delbanco’s three reasons to continue a person’s education.
Michael S. Roth, “Why liberal arts matter”. CNN. CNN. 21 May 2011. Web. 05 March 2014.
In recent years, under the combined force of technological innovation and market operation, our society has made remarkable progress in improving the quality of education. Universities as the major institutions of higher education are inevitably impacted by the social advancement. In his essay, “On the Uses of a Liberal Education,” Mark Edmundson argues that “university culture, like American culture writ large, is, to put it crudely, ever more devoted to consumption and entertainment, to the using and using up of goods and images” (44). He claims that college education gradually loses its traditional culture under the influence of social changes. Yet university as a significant element in society cannot be viewed separately from that society. A process of dynamic reallocation in which educational resources are redistributed towards
People go to college for many reasons, such as getting a higher education, getting more job opportunities or to earn more money. but, college provides more than just that. College can help expand your understanding of the community as well as with the world. According to Melissa McCreery College’s mission is “to graduate students with integrity and a broad worldwide who will positively impact the planet and contribute to society.” College does this by providing a wide range of Liberal Arts classes. Which according to Robert Harris “teaches you how to think” and “allows you to see things whole.” Which in other words helps you to strengthen your mind, think for yourself and get a well-rounded education.
Education— or rather, the act of being educated— can take a wide variety of forms; the term education in itself is very broad and nonspecific. People learn new things every day whether they are conscious of it or not, which begs the question “what constitutes an education?” Higher education, for example, typically consists of being affiliated with some institution such as a university, or a lone college. Such educations may also follow the liberal arts methodology, depending on the values of the institution that is being attended. A liberal arts education, as opposed to some more straight forward methods of education such as STEM, allows for far more freedom of choice in your education—in fact, a broad education is encouraged at such institutions. Therefore, a true liberal arts education would lead to a far more-well-rounded pupil than those that follow more direct—or
Supporters for liberal education, such as author Allen Bloom believe that college does not meet the country’s standards. In order to achieve a higher lifestyle, students must “sustain himself in the intellectual deserts he is destined to traverse” (3). Bloom agrees that students must not freely develop, and a structure of college life will lead them into an easier life. However, Books written by great authors such as Shakespeare are not enough to teach students English throughout their life. Bloom states, “No public career these days-not doctor nor lawyer nor politician nor journalist nor businessman nor entertainer- has to do with humane learning.” (5) In order to success, people must learn through books that teach them directly at the subject. They must also take more of each subject so they can have knowledge of what they are going to do in their future. Bloom thinks that undecided students are an embarrassment because they have not formed their real potential.
“ I read and understood by myself all the books that I could find on the so-called liberal arts, for in those days I was a good-for-nothing and a slave to sordid ambitions. But what advantage did I gain from them? I read them with pleasure, but I did not kno...
Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Still today, we live in a world where fear, discrimination, privilege, inequality and hatred plague our society. Education is fundamental in eradicating these elitist, capitalist and dominant perspectives. An equitable education empowers young individuals to bring about change in the hope of creating a better society. Thus, a good education can prove to be instrumental in tackling current social issues that are prevalent across the globe. At the foundation of every educational institution and basic core of every educator, there lies a philosophy of education which serves to influence what students will be taught and the manner in which it will
As the world becomes more specialized it raises the question, should undergraduate institutions change their curriculum requirements to better equip students? The goal of a liberal arts education is to enlighten individuals and prepare them for the complex and diverse world by requiring the study of literature, philosophy, mathematics, and sciences. As professional careers evolve into more specialized fields the argument that a liberal education is no longer needed rises. Some educators feel that future professionals would be better primed for the future by focusing specifically on subjects that deal with their intended field. However, a liberal arts education provides benefits that go beyond the classroom. The experience of studying a wide range of material makes an individual well rounded, creates opportunities, and allows for personal evaluation. Broadening one’s knowledge in vast areas develops communication, problem-solving skills, and social responsibility regardless of intended careers.