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To Be More as Well as Know More
By Sandy Sasso, The Indianapolis Star, March 31, 2009
Recent indicators—from a report issued by the National Science Foundation to articles in the New York Times and other major papers—show that one result of the shrinking job market is a move away from humanities education. College students are specializing earlier in their educational careers and favoring fields like engineering and computer science, seen as more reliable job-getters after graduation. And while growth of these technical fields is vital to our economy, the decline of broad, humanities-based education is a serious problem, writes Sandy Sasso, a rabbi in Indianapolis. Our nation, she argues, needs not just people with specific skills, but those with “grand vision, historic and cultural memory, creative ideas and the ability to articulate them and inspire others.” We cannot afford our next generation to have knowledge but little wisdom, Sasso argues.
Too many Americans define themselves by their careers and their earning potential, and are devastated when downsizing or other circumstances change their lives, she writes. Courses in the liberal arts “may not give us the answers to all our questions, but they do help us to ask the right questions and to live with the questions for which there are no answers.”
The entire commentary may be read online.
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