대학 발전의 미래 가치로서의 교양교육의 방향 모색

Abstract

This study is based on the view that the reestablishment and reinforcement of liberal arts education at university is what the society and the university should aim at for their advancement in terms of the future value. The results are following. First, the liberal arts education has been sustained in two main streams of the liberal education and the general education since it originated in the Ancient Greek Age and experienced some changes in the genuine meaning of the education. The spirit of liberal education is involved with the conception of leisure and freedom and occupied only by the privileged class, which therefore is considered opposite to that of vocational education. But liberal education was served as an opportunity for everyone to receive liberal arts education. The purpose of liberal arts education, which was concentrated on the liberal education and the theoretical aspect of education, sought for the intellectual excellence of human beings through training and development of their reason. Second, there were two attitudes which theoretically confirmed the definition of liberal arts education: one is a reason focused attitude which was concentrated on cultivation of human reason and mind on the basis of liberal education view; the other is a utilitarianism attitude purposed on practical sides of education in terms of general education view. Regardless of the differences between the two angles, it is needless to say that the ultimate purpose of liberal arts education should involve both the liberal education for training of human mind and the general education for realizing what they learned in practice because the essential purpose of today's education must be to nurture a whole person. Third, one of the educationalists who dedicated themselves to improvement of liberal arts education's contents and methods is a rationalistic educationalist, M. J. Adler, who thoroughly recognized the necessity and importance of liberal arts education in the early 20th century and put forth his whole energy on cultivation of genuinely liberal arts educated persons. His education programs contain a kind of modernity, what we are faced with in the present, and suggest some practical implications that we should attempt in order to achieve more desirable effects from the present education system. So it seems needed to review the past to find a guide into tomorrow. Finally, whether the liberal arts education may succeed or not may depend on so called “the inter-liberal arts subjects project” through an independent institute which covers all the works with liberal arts education within university. In short, it means that liberal arts education desperately needs specialization. When this is achieved, the liberal arts education surely serves as the major driving force to lead the growth of education quality and the improvement of university competitiveness to be speeded up effectively as well as individuals and society to be more matured and qualified.