December 15, 2004

LIBERAL ARTS: REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS LIKE THEN?

SEE WHAT IT’S LIKE NOW

As college tuition soars upward, the education it buys continues to descend into the murky reaches of “diversity” (in everything except ideas) with most subjects presented through the lens of race, gender, and class and others reduced to fads and trivia. A recent study by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni,[click HERE] founded by Lynne Cheney and Joe Lieberman, takes a look at what it is parents are getting for their $25,000 a year at our most prestigious schools, including the Ivies.

Forty-six percent of students interviewed at the U.S. News top 50 colleges and universities reported that their professors used the classroom to present their personal political views and 29% said they had to agree with their professors’ political views to get a good grade. In case there’s any uncertainty about what those views are, during the recent campaign 68% of students reported that their professors made negative comments about President Bush and almost as many said their instructors praised Senator Kerry.

They’re probably not doing so in courses on American history or the workings of the U.S. government, though, because these subjects have disappeared from the requirements of all but 14% of the colleges studies, along with classic works of literature and the study of economics, no longer required at any of the top schools surveyed.

The ACTA study, titled The Hollow Core: Failure of the General Education Curriculum, reveals what it is that has taken the place of history, literature, and an understanding of American culture and institutions. Herewith some edifying examples:
At Carleton College every student must complete a “Recognition and Affirmation of Difference” course. The humanities requirement may be satisfied by a class devoted entirely to the Japanese-American internment during World War II.

The University of Colorado’s Quantitative Reasoning and Mathematical Skills requirement may be satisfied by “Mathematics for the Environment,” described as “an interdisciplinary course where analysis of real phenomena such as acid rain, population growth, and road-killed rabbits in Nevada leads to consideration of various fundamental concepts in mathematics.”
At Texas Tech University, the history requirement may be fulfilled with “A History of Sexuality in the United States.”

At Barnard College the literature requirement may be satisfied by “Queer Diasporas: Race, Sexuality, and Migration.”

At the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, students can fulfill their Social Science requirement with “Environmental Advocacy.”

What ever happened to the liberal arts?

Well, “liberal” got redefined.No longer a place where the triumphs and achievements of the past are transmitted to the young, a university is now a place where they can wallow in the latest fads—and get humanities credits for such courses as “History of Comic Book Art” (Indiana University), “Rock Music From 1970 to Present” (University of Minnesota) or “Survey of World Cinema” (University of Illinois). At Duke the social science requirement can be met by a course on “Campus Culture and Drinking,” at Bryn Mawr the humanities requirement can be satisfied with “Love and Money.” It’s a safe bet it has nothing to do with love of learning.