SUMMARY

Call it “the death of the humanities.” Over the last decade or so, majors in English and history are down by a third and humanities enrollment overall is down by almost a fifth. Now an initiative is working to revive liberal arts as a key part of the college experience.

View the transcript here.

key terms

liberal arts = a traditional form of education that seeks to develop general understanding and critical thinking through the study of history, literature, philosophy and the arts

humanities = subjects of study such as literature and history that seek understanding of the human experience

holistic = an approach that emphasizes big picture ideas rather than a narrow focus on individual parts of a topic

News alternative: Check out recent segments from the NewsHour, and choose the story you’re most interested in watching. You can make a Google doc copy of discussion questions that work for any of the stories here.

WARM-UP QUESTIONS

1. How have the liberal arts declined as a focus in universities across the country?
2. Where (what university) has taken an initiative to revive the humanities?
3. What is the Cornerstone program?
4. Who is the Cornerstone program designed for?
5. Why has this university decided to renew the focus on liberal arts?

FOCUS QUESTIONS

1. What are some of the reasons listed in the story why fewer students are pursuing degrees in the humanities or a liberal arts education?
2. After watching this segment, what do you think is most valuable about liberal arts education? Who could it benefit the most?

Media literacy: Do you think the kinds of media students consume might have something to do with the change in interest in humanities topics? How do you think liberal arts or humanities programs could adapt to better reflect the ways students use media today?

Alternative: See, Think, Wonder: What did you notice? What did the story make you think? What would you want to learn more about?

What students can do: This segment describes the goals of a liberal arts education at the university level aimed at helping students understand themselves and the world, so they can make informed decisions. In secondary schools in the U.S., the vast majority of students also experience a liberal arts education (fun fact: when STEM subjects are included, as they often are, we call this a liberal arts & sciences education).

Based on that definition, have a class discussion about what art or media you think should be added to liberal arts programs (history, English, art, etc.) in their schools to help students understand their own world and generation (that is, understand themselves).

• First, each student should brainstorm a list of art or media that they think represents something interesting about the world or the experiences of their own generation. Think of music, movies, books, art and traditional liberal arts media, but you can also think of the media you pay attention to online and share with your friends.
• Then share one item on your list with the class. Discuss — what's significant about this media? Has everyone heard of it? How could discussing it help you understand yourself and your world better?
• Do you think understanding any of this chosen media could help you with other pursuits beyond the humanities, like business or science?

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