In Defense of the Liberal Arts

Science. Technology. Engineering. Mathematics. STEM.

If you've been following any recent trends in education, you know how much STEM fields are being promoted...and how much of a buzzword 'STEM' actually is. From increasingly rigorous standards to Race to the Top funding, STEM education is increasingly being prioritized among policymakers and the public alike.

There are any number of different reasons for the increased focus on these fields; among these perhaps the most popular include 1) their practical applications in providing recent graduates with a pathway to a job, and 2) the ease with which to quantify STEM knowledge on standardized national and international assessments compared to English and the Social Studies, both of which (as much as we try to objectify and standardize them) are much more subjective.

Of course, any good STEM student should know Isaac Newton's third law of motion: Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. As it turns out, the push for STEM in recent years is increasingly being met with a push-back for renewed attention to the liberal arts.

And for all of us English or Social Studies or Arts or...(well, you get the idea) it appears that their is good news on the horizon. A Congressional report from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences reinforces the value of the liberal arts within a broader educational context that also includes the STEM fields.

I could go on and on about the values of a liberal arts education, but Time Magazine and the New York Times do a much more eloquent job of expressing their inherent value.

I should end this post with a short disclaimer: I was a History major and International Studies minor as an undergrad. I loved (edit: love) both of those subjects. I student-taught in a magnet school centered around an arts-based curriculum, and it had some of the brightest and most talented students in the city. I'm an aspiring Social Studies teacher. Of course I'm biased in favor of the liberal arts. It's increasingly frustrating applying to a meager few open Social Studies positions listed next to seemingly endless lists of open Math and Science positions.

I support the liberal arts because I believe they add wide-ranging value to the whole educational experience, and I hope the country can begin to see that value again.

Why Study History?

(Slightly related to the last post, "What's the Point.")

Why study history?

Because history is awesome. Because history doesn't have to be as boring as the textbooks.

Because beer.

 

 

I mean, this video is a little over-the-top, but how cool is it?! Civilization (depending on how we define it) arose so communities could brew beer! Stay thirsty, my friends.