Liberal education

The term liberal education has its origins in the medieval concept of the liberal arts but now is primarily associated with the liberalism of the Age of Enlightenment.

Liberal education is termed "a philosophy of education that empowers individuals with broad knowledge and transferable skills, and a stronger sense of values, ethics, and civic engagement ... characterized by challenging encounters with important issues, and more a way of studying than a specific course or field of study" by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU). [1]

Usually global and pluralistic in scope, it includes a general education curriculum which provides broad exposure to multiple disciplines and learning strategies in addition to in-depth study in at least one academic area.

Ambiguous terms

• Artes Liberales: The Quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music) and Trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric), the historical basis of the modern liberal arts.

• Liberal arts: Specific disciplines (the Humanities, Social sciences, and sciences).

• Liberal arts college: an institution of higher education, often small and residential, that facilitates close interaction between faculty and students and has a liberal arts curriculum.

• General education: The part of a liberal education curriculum for all students, providing broad exposure to multiple disciplines and forming the basis for developing intellectual and civic capacities.

See also

• Master of Arts in Liberal Studies

Quotations

• Andrew Chrucky: "The aim of liberal education is to create persons who have the ability and the disposition to try to reach agreements on matters of fact, theory, and actions through rational discussions." [2].
• Donald Knuth: "I don't know where I heard it first, but a liberal education is supposed to teach you something about everything and everything about something."

References

• Everett Dean Martin, The Meaning of a Liberal Education, Norton, 1926

External links

• AACU Statement on Liberal Learning