Liberal Education: Tensions

1
Liberal Education Tensions

• Purposes of General Education
• Knowledge Unity versus Fragmentation
• Student Learning Breadth versus Depth
• Faculty Competence Generalist versus Specialist

• See Robert R. Newton. 2000. Tensions and Models
  in General Education Planning. Journal of
  General Education, Vol. 49, No. 3.

2
Liberal Education

• self-aware, self-governing and capable of
  respecting the humanity of their fellow human
  beings
• able to comprehend and negotiate their
  relationship to a larger world
• prepared to live lives of civic responsibility
  and leadership

• See Martha Nussbaum. Liberal Education and
  Global Community. Liberal
• Education, Winter 2004. See also Martha Nussbaum.
  1997. Cultivating our
• Humanity.

3
Wittenberg University Mission

• Wittenberg University provides a liberal arts
  education dedicated to intellectual inquiry and
  wholeness of person within a diverse residential
  community. Reflecting its Lutheran heritage,
  Wittenberg challenges students to become
  responsible global citizens, to discover their
  callings, and to lead personal, professional, and
  civic lives of creativity, service, compassion
  and integrity.

4
Universitys Values

• Liberal Arts and Intellectual Inquiry
• Wholeness of Person
• Community of Learners
• Lutheran Heritage
• Global Citizenship
• Calling
• Creativity
• Service
• Compassion and Integrity

5
Wittenberg Educated Person

• Global Citizen
• Has a Vocation
• Creative
• Service Oriented
• Compassionate
• Leads life of integrity