A Liberal Education Does Not Make You a Liberal or a Conservative, But It Can Help You Decide…..

2. A Liberal Education Does Not Make You a Liberal or a Conservative, But It Can Help You Decide….. The Meaning of a Liberal Education Prof. Jennifer Kinney Department of Sociology and Gerontology

3. The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn. (AMR research, inc.)

4. Agenda • Define “liberal education” • Provide a brief history and philosophy of liberal education at Miami University • Discuss how you can promote liberal education at Miami University

5. What is a Liberal Education? • “A truly liberal education is one that prepares us to live responsible, productive, and creative lives in a dramatically changing world.” • “It is an education that fosters a well-grounded intellectual resilience, a disposition toward lifelong learning, and an acceptance of responsibility for the ethical consequences of our ideas and actions.” (The Association of American Colleges and Universities)

6. The Risks of Getting a Narrow Education • Prepares students for jobs that might not exist when they graduate • Doesn’t prepare students for new jobs that will emerge • Does not prepare students for the challenges of citizenship or professional life (Higdon, 2005)

7. Why is Liberal Education Important? • Society is changing rapidly • Students are no longer “guaranteed” a job just because they have a college degree • World politics have made a global society a fact of life • A liberal education is a practical solution to the changing needs and concerns of society

8. What Do Employers Look For? • Communication skills • Quantitative reasoning • Orientation to innovation • Sophistication regarding diversity • Grounding in cross-cultural and global learning (Schneider, 2005)

9. “Liberal education may be more relevant today than at any previous time due to the current social, cultural, and economic challenges facing college graduates.” (Kuh & Umbach, 2005)

10. Liberal Education at Miami University • Liberal education is not unique to MU • The Miami Plan for liberal education was implemented in 1992; it took 4 years to implement • The Miami Plan is not a distribution requirement • The Miami Plan includes a pedagogy for liberal learning • The Miami Plan continues to evolve

11. The Miami Plan • All divisions of the University offer liberal education courses • Students are required to take courses in English composition; fine arts; humanities & social sciences; U.S. & world cultures; natural science; and mathematics, formal reasoning & technology

12. The Miami Plan (continued) • Students are required to take at least one course that is taught from a “non-dominant perspective” • There are three levels of courses in the Miami Plan--Foundation, Thematic, and Capstone

13. The Goals of The Miami Plan • Thinking critically • Understanding contexts • Engaging with other learners • Reflecting and acting

14. What The Miami Plan Provides Students • Exposure to areas of knowledge/endeavors from a variety of disciplines, with an emphasis on critical thinking • Preparation to be literate in the 21st century; to be lifelong learners who are prepared to meet the challenges of personal, professional, and community life

15. Your Role in The Miami Plan • “Don’t look at me--I just got here!” • Social breakdown syndrome (sort of) • Empower the student to take ownership for her/his educational choices

16. Responsibility for the Miami Plan is a Two-Way Street • Our responsibility is to provide students with opportunities • It is each student’s responsibility to take advantage of these opportunities • The Miami Plan can be used to help students develop and integrate their unique sets of interests

17. The Miami Plan: Conceptual Challenges • Focus vs. exploration • Faculty attitude regarding the Miami Plan • Rigor of courses

18. The Miami Plan: Logistic Challenges • Too few Miami Plan courses • All units offer Miami Plan courses, but some units offer more than others • Some Miami Plan courses have restrictions • Students like to “double dip”

19. Helping Students to Successfully Navigating The Miami Plan • Understand the goals and objectives of the Miami Plan, and be sufficiently familiar with it that you can advise students about the “nuts and bolts” • Encourage students to make their own decisions about the plan

20. Living The Miami Plan • “Students need to become intentional architects of their own learning, actively setting goals, exploring, reflecting, and integrating acquired knowledge and experiences into existing world views.” (AAC&U, 2002)