An Analysis of America
Jambon 1 Taylor Jambon English 405 Dr. Patrick Perkins October 7, 2014 Regaining America’s Humanity: An Analysis of America’s Perception of the Humanities In the last century humanity has undergone a mass transformation due to the wide variety of technological improvements made to health care, energy consumption, entertainment, and many more aspects of life. As an effect of what could be considered as the “technologicalization” of society, the quality of life has improved in nations such as America, China, and India. Air travel has become commonplace, the Internet now allows for instant communication over ocean borders, and cell phones have transformed into computers that can be held in the owner’s hand. With these technological advancements, however, comes a price: a decrease in interest for the humanities as interest in STEM advancements rise within society. The “technologicalization” of society, the rise of international competition, and the recent recession in the American economy each serve their own role in the current academic trend of emphasizing STEM studies and business degrees over studying the humanities. Throughout the last two decades or so, the study of humanities seems to have fallen to the might of science and math. Students who may have added their names to the list of the 250 students attending Billy Phelps’ Modern Novel class in 1895 are now opting out due to changes in society’s vision of the humanities (Scholes 16-18). While Obama promises to improve STEM education in school and to focus on creating more opportunities for students to learn STEM skills, the amount of students who at least complete math and science classes in high school are increasing (“Educate” np,
Jambon 2 “Fast” np). Parents are placing pressure on their children to earn college degrees in STEM subjects instead of subjects such as history, foreign languages, and English (Schuman np). While this focus on STEM and business education may be beneficial for the country’s GDP, it may also end up harming our youth’s growth as human beings. As Mark Slouska tells readers in his essay “Dehumanized”, forcing students to enter a field of logic and rules causes them to lose the “self-building” that can assist them in becoming “an individual capable of humility in the face of complexity” (37). From the stereotypes placed on the study of the humanities to the USA’s competition with growing nations to the parent’s worry over their child not receiving the education needed to ensure a good-paying job after college, Slouska explores a variety of variables and facts he believes have caused the American education system to focus on the growing fields of math and science in order to explain why he feels that students will suffer without an education that either focuses on or features aspects of the humanities. Since I wanted to see how accurate Slouska’s beliefs were nine years after the writing of “Dehumanized,” I researched America’s current beliefs about the education system, America’s current education rank in the world, the type of future a student of the humanities could expect after college, and how society perceives the humanities. I also asked figures involved with STEM education, business planning, and education in the humanities about how they viewed America’s current education system and their beliefs on the future of the humanities’ department in both Nicholls and other American colleges. While some of the sources I found completely agreed with Slouska’s beliefs, others, especially my interview subjects, provided their own ideas and opinions about how both the realm of academia and the study of the humanities could be improved. Through an analysis of the opinions of various figures and articles on the topics of the rise of STEM in the education system, the need for students to obtain knowledge in the
Jambon 3 humanities, and how the humanities can improve themselves, it will be possible to see how a multitude of opinions from a variety of speakers can provide the beginnings of the path humanities will need to take in order to survive this new world. "The play's almost over. I don't think it's a comedy" (Slouca 32). With these words Slouca takes his readers upon a journey through the STEM-ifying of school curriculums and the corruption of the education system for political and economic gain in his essay "Dehumanized." As a doctorate in literature, Slouca would have much to worry about in the current state of the American humanities graduate (Slouca 32). According to the National Association for Colleges and Employers, only 33% of English students who graduated in 2013 had at least one job offer right after their graduation (np). Students that graduated in the degrees that made up the Liberal Arts/Humanities spectrum also pulled in low numbers, with only 36.8% able to find a job after earning their diploma (“Most Job” np). On the other hand, STEM students and business students easily found themselves at the top. The top five degrees, Business Administration, Engineering, Accounting, Economics, and Computer Science, had job offer rates of 54.3%, 59%, 61.2%, 61.5%, and 68.7%, respectfully (np). Not only does a student who majored in STEM subjects or in the business spectrum have a better chance of gaining a job after college, but they are also likely to earn more money than graduates majoring in the humanities. In the NACE's list of jobs with the highest average salaries, engineering, computer science, business, and math and science jobs took positions in the top five (np). Humanities, on the other hand, found itself dead last ("Starting Salary” np). Numbers such as these are possibly causing parents across the entire nation to encourage their children about the values of picking an engineering degree over an English degree.
Jambon 4 In order to discourage the worries of the student and his/her parents, Slouka decided to turn the argument for leaving humanities upside down by arguing against the enforcement of STEM classes as the backbone of the education system. With his observations on current trends in education and his doctorate in literature, Slouca believes he has the ability to tell readers why they must worry about the direction the American school system in heading towards. Slouca’s subtitle, "When math and science rule the school,” may make readers think that Slouca plans to demolish the STEM community in his essay (Slouca 32). However, they would find themselves mistaken as he actually discusses how the influence of American economics and politics fit into the picture (32). From a poor economy to a need to exceed the job pool of countries such as Singapore, Slouca discusses a variety of reasons for what he believes to be the slow decline of the American classroom. In an idealistic world, Slouca assumes, education would be used to create a country of independent, well-rounded thinkers (Slouca 34). He believes the purpose of the educator, the education system, and those that adhere to the formation and enforcement of this entire system should be "to participate in the complex and infinitely worthwhile labor of forming citizens, men and women capable of furthering what's best about us and forestalling what's worse" (34). In other words, allowing students to experience the joy of learning should be more important that ensuring that students are prepared for the working world. Of course, Slouca is no stranger to the true ways of the American school system. "I'm joking of course," he tells his readers after showing them his utopian vision of education (34). "Education in America today is almost exclusively about the GDP," he states (34). According to Slouca the business world practically owns the realm of academia in America (34). With a nation wanting to ensure their progeny will have the ability to enter the job field as soon as they receive their diploma, parents and educators
Jambon 5 have allowed the business spectrum to have a greater presence in the hallways of their public schools and colleges. Education has become more about relieving parents’ and business owners’ worries about their nation's future by teaching children the skills needed to gain a $50,000 yearly salary after leaving college. In Slouca's eyes, education is no longer about teaching students to think in new ways--it's to ensure that the nation carries on as one of the greatest world powers by "pounding swords into cogs" (Slouca 33). However, it may be that Slouca’s statement on the business world's need for education to create bland, uncultured drones for the cubicle may actually be wrong. While this viewpoint may have been true in 2009, the year “Dehumanized” was written, my research into the field of business showed that some business owners are starting to look towards skills that have little presence in the modern STEM-oriented classroom. Vic Lafont, the President of the South Louisiana Economic Council and one of my interview subjects, is one of these business owners. According to him, owners such as himself are starting to look for students with both hard and soft skills (np). Hard skills, such as STEM subjects, are mainly emphasized in the classrooms and halls of modern America (np). Soft skills, on the other hand, come from the study of subjects such as humanities and business (np). He believes a student with a combination of these skills would have the most likely chance of getting hired in companies and organizations such as his (np). This combination may seem rather confusing to those who are unfamiliar with the skills businesses are looking for in new employees. "Why," they may ask, "would it be a good choice for a student to not focus on one subject? Wouldn't a student have a better chance of being hired if he/she didn't divide his/her classes between science labs and classroom discussions on Shakespeare’s works? Why would businesses want students to know about the difference
Jambon 6 between Chaucer and Whitman if they’re applying for an engineering position?" Of course, businesses are not looking for students who can boast an encyclopedic knowledge of Modernist poetry or 18th century drama along with knowledge about the mechanical framework of an engine. Instead, they are actually searching for students who have developed social skills in the classroom (Lafont np). They believe that students who take humanities courses have better communication, writing, and thinking skills (np). These skills could allow for employees to have a greater chance of pleasing potential buyers and make faster sales (np). With a combination of these soft skills found in humanities and business classes and the hard skills found in STEM classes, a student's rate of being hired in the business spectrum could go up immensely (np). To show why this desire for skills developed in humanities classes has gone up in the last few years, Mr. Lafont told me about changes made in Cameco Industries, a business that specialized in agriculture machinery (np). Most businesses that developed agricultural machinery, such as John Deere, would send salesmen out to international borders in order to ensure that their tools were the first to mark their presence in the country (np). However, a problem came about when discussing the needs of the buyers (np). The salesmen could not assist the buyers when they had specific questions about the merchandise since the salesmen did not have the knowledge of the engineers who built the machinery (np). Because of this, these salesmen were forced to sacrifice valuable time for getting in contact with the engineers about the issues they had come across and to wait for their responses (np). Cameco solved this problem by hiring workers who had both engineering skills and marketing skills (np). With this combination workers who visited international buyers could not only convince them into buying the product but could also answer all their questions about the product without having to wait for
Jambon 7 a response from the other side of the world (np). This practice eventually became effective enough to force John Deere to buy out the company (np). Fortunately, Mr. Lafont is not alone in his assurance that having humanities skills is as valuable as having STEM skills. West Virginia University, Entrepreneur, and even career assistance sites such as CareerBuilder agree that a lack of soft skills could prove detrimental to a worker's future success in his or her chosen field ("Employer" np, Huhman np, Grasz np). These soft skills can assist a student with their first job, allow ease for workers who change their career, and can even "make all the difference between success and failure in [a worker's] career" ("Employer" np). A variety of employers and career specialists have also stated that soft skills that are developed in English studies, such as proofreading and writing, can not only greatly assist a student's in the workplace but are also currently searched for by a variety of employers (Clark np, Strauss np, Vergne np). Even though one could argue the previously-mentioned numbers of best college degrees and average starting salaries, there is proof that students who focus on the liberal arts have a better chance of finding success in their jobs than the previously-stated numbers would suggest. Studies from last year have shown that many employers believe that colleges are not assisting students in their studies to their fullest potential. Instead, they feel that recent graduates are ill prepared for the working world. One of these surveys, done by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, also stated that many employers were in favor of providing students with a broader education that could assist them in their future jobs (Supiano np). In her Time article "Critics of the Liberal Arts Are Wrong", Annette Gordon-Reed shows the necessity for colleges to transfer to this new way of thinking about employment when she states, "The ones who will do best in [the work force] will be those whose education has prepared them to be
Jambon 8 flexible. Those with the ability to draw upon every available tool and insight—gleaned from science, arts and technology...will stand themselves and the US in good stead" (np). Slouca may say the US is looking for mindless drones, but his beliefs prove to be faulty when faced against the desires of modern employers and business owners (Slouca 33, Lafont np). In a world where technology is slowly taking over our lives, it would be easy to believe that communication and reading were being pushed out of the spotlight of the university by STEM education. However, the frantic takeover of technology only proves to employers that there is a need for workers who can understand the workings of an engine while also having the ability to convince a potential buyer of the efficiency of the engine (Lafont np). Even students who have spent most of their time taking courses in the humanities during college have a greater rate of finding jobs than what may be perceived by American society (Supiano np). Although the humanities have not retaken the coveted position the subjects previously held in the realm of academia, they seems to have found their own way in the working world among the realms of science, math, and business. However, readers shouldn't be eager to demonize Slouca for his beliefs on what business and employers want students to be taught. After all, it should be noted that "Dehumanized" was published in September 2009, only a few months after the United States' last major recession had ended ("Business" np). After such a crisis such as this, it would be natural for society to leap towards any idea that could guarantee college students a high-paying job for the rest of their lives after serving their time in lecture halls, classrooms, and laboratories. This need to ensure that future generations would not suffer as their parents did was also pushed into the education system with the appearance of an “enemy” that had recently appeared in the last few years: foreign students. Nations such as Japan, Finland, and Singapore have found
Jambon 9 themselves holding high ranks in polls that determine the best education systems throughout the world while the US is often found much lower on the scale ("Best" np). Statistics that pointed to the USA failing in their education standards brought about a rise of parents, teachers, and critics discussing how education could be improved. Ideas such as parent involvement in classes, the adaptation of modern technology into the curriculum, reformations in school inspections, and even convincing parents to buy more books have all been cited as ways that the education system could finally catch up to the golden standard set by the children of Hong Kong and South Korea (Edutopia np, Morrison np, Kenny np, "Best" np). With an education system that fails to impress when compared to the scores of international students, why wouldn't figures such as Obama try to push students towards STEM classes in an attempt to ensure that our country is supported in the future by workers who have grounded themselves in high-paying jobs that can ensure the existence of a highly-developed nation ("Educate" np)? Of course, Slouca is not a stranger to these complaints. "Ah Singapore," he comments as he begins his examination on America's fear of losing their coveted economic status to the educated youth of developing countries (Slouca 35). "[The reader will] hear a good deal about Singapore if [they] listen to the chorus of concern over American education...If only our education system could be as efficient as Singapore's" (35). In an age where your SAT score can seemingly determine your future, Slouca knows there is a great amount of frustration among parents, educators, and politicians as they try to prepare their students for a future of outsourcing and possible unemployment (35). Of course, he's not the only one worried. In my interview with Mr. Lafont, he also stated his worries about the international competition students face in today's job market (Lafont np). However, his statements about America’s fear of international competition actually surprised me.
Jambon 10 Instead of stating that students should stick to degrees that made the most profit, Mr. Lafont actually said that the current emphasis on STEM classes is due to the shortsightedness of Obama and other powerful government officials (np). Instead of attempting to understand the power the humanities could have in the workforce, the Obama administration’s current emphasis on STEM classes is caused by their desire to meet testing quotas and gain higher scores than the highest contenders in the international ranks (np). Along with worries over ensuring that our economy stays afloat, American society's fear of losing to other countries due to a lack of substantial education has created a bigger emphasis on creating specialized STEM workers (np). Rather than allowing students to pursue their favored subjects, critics are pushing for greater emphasis on STEM classes in order to create a work force that can keep America up both technologically and economically (“Improving” np). Education is no longer about allowing the student to explore the endless possibilities of academia but instead insuring that he or she can pass their SAT or GRE with the best scores possible. However, it may actually be that America's concerns over a lack of enrichment in classrooms are a reaction to a lack of info on foreign cultures. The News-Press, a local news source from Florida, sent a group of reporters to Asia, the continent that contains many of the countries that have beat the US in terms of test scores (Breitenstein np). What they found was rather astonishing in terms of how Asian education differs, or rather doesn’t differ, from American education. Classes that they attended in countries such as South Korea and China actually taught material that was almost identical to their American counterparts (np). Their observations indicate that if a math equation is taught in a South Korean pre-algebra class, it is most likely featured in the American curriculum for pre-algebra (np).
Jambon 11 Instead of placing the blame on an improper education system, these reporters came to the conclusion that Asian students did better in school than their American counterparts due to their desire to succeed (Breitenstein np). In their interviews with "college officials, faculty, principles and parents" that were involved with "nine Asian schools and universities", these reporters found that the average students that attended these schools were described as "committed, diligent, competitive, passionate, focused and ambitious" (np). Quotes from students and educators also showed that Asian students dedicated themselves to their education in order to ensure success in a society that desires only the best (np). When Hwy-Chang Moon, the "professor and dean of Seoul National University's graduate school of international studies," was asked about why Asian students valued education, he responded with "[Students] have to be first-rate, otherwise [they] may not be able to survive" (np). This information is necessary to the state of the liberal arts in American education as it reveals to us how the humanities may actually survive in this chaotic nation. While students of the humanities may not be as valued as their STEM counterpart, one feature that they share with Asian students can actually assist students and teachers alike in ensuring that humanities are still studied in a seemingly STEM-focused economy. Simply put, I believe that humanities students are often individuals who are focused on their studies and getting the most that they can out of their education. After all, these are students who are willing to stay with degrees that are commonly stereotyped as worthless in the current job market. A student would have to be very dedicated to the study of English, history, or any other degree that falls under the title of the humanities to continue with it after being told by a seemingly endless amount of polls, charts, analysis, and working adults that their major is worthless.
Jambon 12 Still, this theory I present that humanities students are dedicated to their work needs some kind of physical evidence. To solve this problem, I turned to data of the graduation rates of students attending the University of California in San Diego. In their listing of graduation and retention rates, they noted the number of students that graduated within four, five, and six years. Six departments were used for this pamphlet: Arts, Humanities, Engineering, Science/Math, Biology, and Social Science (Retention 10-11). For all six departments the percentages of students who graduated in 6 years from 2002 to 2006 were from 80% to 89% (10-11). However, I found that these numbers noticeably changed when looking at the graduation rates of five-year students from 2002 to 2007 and the graduation rates of four-year students from 2002 to 2008 (10-11). The graduation rates for five-year students in the Humanities department were all 80% percent or higher (10-11). These numbers were also achieved by Biology and Social Science, with Arts, Engineering, and Science/Math having rates that fell below the 80% mark (10-11). The graduation rates for four-year students earning a humanities degree were much lower than their five and six year counterparts, with none of them reaching higher than 68%, but all of them were higher than 59% (10-11). The remaining five departments, on the other hand, were unable to reach this goal (10-11). This data does show that humanities students have a higher degree of sticking with their chosen major to graduation. Of course, variable such as the amount of students enrolled in humanities or the area in which the University of California resides in could influence this data, but it still shows that students obtaining degrees in the humanities have the ability to stay within their chosen area of study in a society that pressures them to earn a degree that supposedly guarantees high paying jobs after graduation. While it may seem as though this dedication is being looked over in favor of the high enrollment rates of STEM classes, there is actually evidence that both employers and educators
Jambon 13 are taking notice of the dedication of students with a degree in humanities. For example, John Doucet, the director of Nicholls’ Arts and Sciences department, is highly supportive of the study of humanities within Nicholls. Although he is primarily a scientist, he is also a writer who has both hard skills and soft skills. This combination of skills not only assisted him in his journey to becoming one of the campus directors but also gave him an appreciation for society’s need for students with soft skills. He also believes that the classes that fall under the arts and humanities department are actually much better than what society may perceive them as. For example, the Language and Literature Department at Nicholls actually has nominees for the Pulitzer and the National Book Award enrolled in their faculty (Lafont np). Katherine Conner, an assistant professor in Nicholls’ Language and Literature Department, also believes that the dedication of English students is still being supported within Nicholls. According to Dr. Conner, a variety of improvements have been made to the English department in the last few years. These improvements include the recent division of the English degree into four subgroups that students can take specified courses in (Conner np). The subgroups consist of classes that either teach creative writing, literature, writing and rhetoric, or film (“Course” np). The subgroups allow students to divert their focus on specific goals and the topics they believe will be the most important to them in their future careers. Nicholls’ subgroups have also allowed teachers to offer classes on a variety of topics (Conner np). Some of these topics include business writing, postmodern fiction, young adult novels, and Bollywood movies. These changes show that the directors of Nicholls are aware that there are English students who are not only dedicated to their choice of degree but are also able to find success both in the classroom and in the job field. With the advancements being made and the previously mentioned
Jambon 14 need for English majors in the business field, it may actually be possible for students who are truly devoted to the world of English to find success in today’s global market. However, Conner is unsure if everyone notices the dedication of the humanities student. She has noticed a dangerous trend in society where the humanities and the study of English are seen as lesser than their STEM counterparts due to society’s desire for job training. Even though she discussed the various opportunities available for an English student, society is under the belief that STEM classes, which train a student for only one or two specific jobs, are more valuable to our economy than humanities courses (Conner np). This bias for STEM classes over the humanities was not observed by just Dr. Connor. Both Mr. Lafont and Dr. Doucet have noticed how society is biased against the study of the humanities. While Mr. Lafont believes these biases are due to the government’s faulty thinking, Dr. Doucet believes they come not only from the government but also due to society’s need for technology (Lafont np, Doucet np). With these biases comes not only an education system that is more focused on STEM classes but also a perception of humanities students being lazy, ignorant, and worthless for the real world. As a Ph.D. in literature, Slouca is no stranger to how society perceives humanities students. In the first paragraph of “Dehumanized”, he recalls how his soon-to-be mother-in-law reacted to his major by exclaiming, “A doctor of philosophy…What’re you going to do, open a philosophy store?” (Slouca 32) This is just one of the examples of the stereotypical comments made by those who perceive obtaining a humanities degree as being worthless. In fact, the idea of a humanities degree being worthless in modern society has caused articles such as Matt Saccaro’s “The Case For Removing (Almost) All Liberal Arts From College” and Tim Worstall’s “Should We Abolish Liberal Arts Degrees? Quite Possibly, Yes” to be written and published. Although Saccaro’s piece appeared on Thought Catalogue, a website
Jambon 15 that allows writers to publish writings on any topic, no matter how offensive they may be, the fact that a writer who had previously worked for The Daily Dot and Salon told readers that “if someone can’t handle the STEM majors…they have no business in college” makes me wonder about how many people within American society actually perceive the humanities as a worthless subject for lazy students (Allen np, “Matt” np, Saccaro np). While Saccaro definitely is not the most credible source of information, it’s rather frightening to see that he shares similar opinions with Worstall, whose article about removing liberal arts degrees appeared on Forbes. The worst part about this situation, however, may be that Saccaro and Worstall share the same opinion on why the study of courses such as English should go. In their opinion English can now be studied in the comfort of one’s home, with cheap classics available on a reader’s Kindle and Internet forms made for discussing literature. STEM classes, on the other hand, need the university’s funds for equipment and the knowledge of the teacher to assist the student in obtaining an education (Saccaro np, Worstall np). While they see STEM classes as something that must be taught, the humanities and the liberal arts are subjects that a student can examine in their free time. Allowing students who want to earn a degree in the humanities to enter the university wastes the university’s time and effort on lectures on novel interpretations and writing seminars. In his own article, Worstall even says, “It’s difficult to see anything in English Literature that cannot be learned from books” (Worstall np). These are just a few of the opinions that show why American society believes that a degree in the humanities will only lead to failure. Even our own government seems to reflect this fear in their movements to increase the quality of STEM education for public school students and Obama’s degrading of the humanities with promises made on how students “‘ can make a lot
Jambon 16 more, potentially, with skilled manufacturing or the trades then they might with an art history degree’ (“Educate” np, Li np). In order to get rid of dangerous stereotypes such as these, the humanities must find out how to show America the worth of allowing the subjects to stay in the university. Should supporters raise awareness of the lessons literature teaches us through conferences and speeches? Should we place more emphasis on reading programs such as Accelerated Reader in the classrooms? Surprisingly, the answer to this problem may be much simpler than these solutions. My final interview was with Scott Hutchinson, a junior attending Nicholls. Scott is currently attending an English class that studies Southern Gothic literature. Taught by Dr. Conner, this class features works from celebrated authors such as William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, and Truman Capote. Participation for the class includes class discussions, three reading responses that consist of small discussions on certain parts of a work read before the class, two analytical essays based on works read in the class, and a final exam. Normally, it wouldn’t seem odd for Scott to be in this type of class since it would be assumed that Hutchinson is an English major. In actuality, he is a Chemistry major who took this class for an elective slot in his transcript (Hutchinson np). When I was discussing the class with Scott, I thought he would tell me about how much he disliked the class. I believed that he would tell me he felt that the class was worthless for his field and that he wished he had taken another class. Naturally, I was rather surprised when Scott told me he actually liked the class. Even though he felt that the class was time-consuming, he had also been aware of what he was getting himself into when he signed up for the class. Even more surprising was the fact that Scott said he doesn’t have a bias against the field of English and would actually consider taking a class like this again if he could (Hutchinson np).
Jambon 17 What does this one student’s opinion tell us about the process of removing the harmful stigmatisms placed onto the study of the humanities? It may be that in order to get rid of the society’s perception of the humanities as worthless, we need to show them how helpful subjects such as English can be in live outside the university through education. By allowing more STEM students to take higher-level humanities courses, these students can learn about the effort humanities students place in their work and the usefulness of the knowledge they receive. While learning about Southern Gothic fiction may seem like a waste of time to many students who are focused on STEM studies, allowing them to take courses that deal with this genre would allow them to see how Southern Gothic fiction reflects the values, morals, and customs of a society that eventually gave rise to the modern Southern society of this day and age. They will also see that liberal arts classes don’t just teach the student about the humanities as they learn critical thinking skills and writing skills that will assist them in future employment. Although many STEM students may see the humanities as not worth their time, allowing them to enter a class that is more focused on literature and writing that ENGL 101 or 102 could change them for the better. Of course, there are still a wide variety of issues that has enforced the popularity of STEM classes in modern American education. The need to keep up with popular demand in technology, as well as what limitations humanities majors place on themselves in the classroom and the workplace, have also assisted with the rise of hard skills and the promise of high-paying jobs after college in the realm of academia (Slouca 40). With the info I have gathered, however, I believe that American society is starting to slowly change their opinion on the humanities. With employers looking for workers with both hard and soft skills, STEM students are starting to see the advantage humanities could give them in the work field. By taking classes that teach subjects such as English or history, they would gain communication and writing skills that may serve as
Jambon 18 the deciding factor for entering the workforce. These classes could also demolish any doubts or prejudice they may have against humanities majors. The humanities major, on the other hand, does not need to feel as though he/she needs to change his degree in order to have a chance of obtaining a job in America’s job market. The high graduation rate among humanities students in the University of California and the improvements that have come to Nicholls’ Language and Literature department prove that these degree programs consist of highly motivated and focused students who are willing to dedicate themselves to a major that is perceived as useless by society in the current economy. This dedication is a valuable resource that could not only improve the productivity of the economy but also give America a solution to the growth of better education and educated students within other nations. In his final paragraph Slouca states, “Perhaps there’s still time to reinstate the qualifier to its glory, to invest our capital in what makes us human” (40). While I don’t believe American society has reached that point at the moment, my research into the problems surrounding the humanities’ place in modern education makes me know that America is starting to see the value the humanities have in this modernized world.
Jambon 19 Bibliography Adams, Susan. "The College Degrees That Get The Most Job Offers." Forbes. Forbes, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. Adams, Susan. "The College Degrees With The Highest Starting Salaries." Forbes. Forbes, 10 Jan. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Allen, Samantha. “The Trouble With Thought Catalogue.” The Daily Dot. The Daily Dot, 13 Aug. 2014. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. "Best Education In The World: Finland, South Korea Top Country Rankings, U.S. Ranked Average." Huffington Post. The Huffington Post, 27 Nov. 2012. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. Breitenstein, Dave. "Asian Students Carry High Expectations for Students." USA Today. Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc., 4 Aug. 2013. Web. 22 Oct. 2014. "Business Cycle Dating Committee, National Bureau of Economic Research." The National Bureau of Economic Research. The National Bureau of Economic Research, 20 Sep. 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. Clark, Amanda. “Why Using Spellcheck on Your Resume is not Enough: Proofreading Matters.” Business 2 Community. 5 Sep. 2014. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Conner, Katherine. Personal interview. 14 Oct. 2014. “Course and Degree Program.” Nicholls State University: Department of Language and Literature. Nicholls State University, n.d. Web. 24 Oct. 2014. Doucet, John. Personal interview. 10 Oct. 2014. “Educate to Innovate.” The White House. The White House, n.d. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Edutopia Team. "Big Ideas for Better Schools: Ten Ways to Improve Education." Edutopia. The George Lucas Education Foundation, 11 Aug. 2005. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.
Jambon 20 "Employer Expectations: Hard and Soft Skills." West Virginia University. West Virginia University, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. “Fast Facts: Advance Mathematics and Science Courses.” National Center for Education Statistics.U.S. Department of Education, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2014. Gordon-Reed, Annette. “Critics of the Liberal Arts Are Wrong.” Time. Time, 19 Jun. 2013. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Grasz, Jennifer. "Overwhelming Majority of Companies Say Soft Skills Are Just as Important as Hard Skills, According to a New CareerBuilder Survey." CareerBuilder. CareerBuilder, LLC, 10 Apr. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Huhman, Heather R. "The 10 Unique Soft Skills Employees Desire in New Hires." Entrepreneur. Entrepreneur Media, Inc., 18 Jun. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Hutchinson, Scott. Personal interview. 14 Oct. 2014. “Improving STEM Curriculum and Instruction: Engaging Students and Raising Standards.” Successful STEM Education. Education Development Center, Inc., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2014. Kenny, Charles. "The Real Reason America's Schools Stink." Bloomberg Business Week. Bloomberg L.P., 19 Aug. 2012. Web. 21 Oct. 2014. Lafont, Vic. Personal interview. 10 Oct. 2014. Li, Kevin. “Does Obama Hate the Liberal Arts? President Mocks Art History Majors During Wisconsin Speech.” Latin Post. Latin Post, 3 Feb. 2014. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. “Matt Saccaro” Thought Catalogue. Thought Catalogue, n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. Morrison, Nick. "The 10 Things School Leaders Would Do To Improve Education." Forbes. Forbes, 7 May 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.
Jambon 21 Retention and Graduation Rates 2012-2013. University of California, San Diego, 2013. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. Saccaro, Matt. “The Case For Removing (Almost) All Liberal Arts From College.” Thought Catalog.Thought Catalogue, 19 Feb. 2013.Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Scholes, Robert. The Rise and Fall of English: Reconstructing English as a Discipline. New Haven: Yale University Press. 1998. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Schuman, Rebecca. “Thesis Hatement.” Slate. The Slate Group LLC, 5 Apr. 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2014. Slouca, Mark. “Dehumanized: When Math and Science Rule the School.”Harper’s Magazine. Harper’s Magazine, Sep. 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Strauss, Steve. “Why I Hire English Majors.” HuffPost Small Business. Huffington Post, 23 Aug. 2013. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Supiano, Beckie. "Employers Want Broadly Educated New Hires, Survey Finds." The Chronicle of Higher Education. The Chronicle of Higher Education, 10 Apr. 2013. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Vergne, Susan de la. “What Literate English Majors Can Do for Project Management.” For English Majors. 17 Oct. 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Worstall, Tim. “Should We Abolish Liberal Arts Degrees? Quite Possibly, Yes.” Forbes. Forbes, 1 Sep. 2012. Web. 7 Oct. 2014.
Jambon 2 “Fast” np). Parents are placing pressure on their children to earn college degrees in STEM subjects instead of subjects such as history, foreign languages, and English (Schuman np). While this focus on STEM and business education may be beneficial for the country’s GDP, it may also end up harming our youth’s growth as human beings. As Mark Slouska tells readers in his essay “Dehumanized”, forcing students to enter a field of logic and rules causes them to lose the “self-building” that can assist them in becoming “an individual capable of humility in the face of complexity” (37). From the stereotypes placed on the study of the humanities to the USA’s competition with growing nations to the parent’s worry over their child not receiving the education needed to ensure a good-paying job after college, Slouska explores a variety of variables and facts he believes have caused the American education system to focus on the growing fields of math and science in order to explain why he feels that students will suffer without an education that either focuses on or features aspects of the humanities. Since I wanted to see how accurate Slouska’s beliefs were nine years after the writing of “Dehumanized,” I researched America’s current beliefs about the education system, America’s current education rank in the world, the type of future a student of the humanities could expect after college, and how society perceives the humanities. I also asked figures involved with STEM education, business planning, and education in the humanities about how they viewed America’s current education system and their beliefs on the future of the humanities’ department in both Nicholls and other American colleges. While some of the sources I found completely agreed with Slouska’s beliefs, others, especially my interview subjects, provided their own ideas and opinions about how both the realm of academia and the study of the humanities could be improved. Through an analysis of the opinions of various figures and articles on the topics of the rise of STEM in the education system, the need for students to obtain knowledge in the
Jambon 3 humanities, and how the humanities can improve themselves, it will be possible to see how a multitude of opinions from a variety of speakers can provide the beginnings of the path humanities will need to take in order to survive this new world. "The play's almost over. I don't think it's a comedy" (Slouca 32). With these words Slouca takes his readers upon a journey through the STEM-ifying of school curriculums and the corruption of the education system for political and economic gain in his essay "Dehumanized." As a doctorate in literature, Slouca would have much to worry about in the current state of the American humanities graduate (Slouca 32). According to the National Association for Colleges and Employers, only 33% of English students who graduated in 2013 had at least one job offer right after their graduation (np). Students that graduated in the degrees that made up the Liberal Arts/Humanities spectrum also pulled in low numbers, with only 36.8% able to find a job after earning their diploma (“Most Job” np). On the other hand, STEM students and business students easily found themselves at the top. The top five degrees, Business Administration, Engineering, Accounting, Economics, and Computer Science, had job offer rates of 54.3%, 59%, 61.2%, 61.5%, and 68.7%, respectfully (np). Not only does a student who majored in STEM subjects or in the business spectrum have a better chance of gaining a job after college, but they are also likely to earn more money than graduates majoring in the humanities. In the NACE's list of jobs with the highest average salaries, engineering, computer science, business, and math and science jobs took positions in the top five (np). Humanities, on the other hand, found itself dead last ("Starting Salary” np). Numbers such as these are possibly causing parents across the entire nation to encourage their children about the values of picking an engineering degree over an English degree.
Jambon 4 In order to discourage the worries of the student and his/her parents, Slouka decided to turn the argument for leaving humanities upside down by arguing against the enforcement of STEM classes as the backbone of the education system. With his observations on current trends in education and his doctorate in literature, Slouca believes he has the ability to tell readers why they must worry about the direction the American school system in heading towards. Slouca’s subtitle, "When math and science rule the school,” may make readers think that Slouca plans to demolish the STEM community in his essay (Slouca 32). However, they would find themselves mistaken as he actually discusses how the influence of American economics and politics fit into the picture (32). From a poor economy to a need to exceed the job pool of countries such as Singapore, Slouca discusses a variety of reasons for what he believes to be the slow decline of the American classroom. In an idealistic world, Slouca assumes, education would be used to create a country of independent, well-rounded thinkers (Slouca 34). He believes the purpose of the educator, the education system, and those that adhere to the formation and enforcement of this entire system should be "to participate in the complex and infinitely worthwhile labor of forming citizens, men and women capable of furthering what's best about us and forestalling what's worse" (34). In other words, allowing students to experience the joy of learning should be more important that ensuring that students are prepared for the working world. Of course, Slouca is no stranger to the true ways of the American school system. "I'm joking of course," he tells his readers after showing them his utopian vision of education (34). "Education in America today is almost exclusively about the GDP," he states (34). According to Slouca the business world practically owns the realm of academia in America (34). With a nation wanting to ensure their progeny will have the ability to enter the job field as soon as they receive their diploma, parents and educators
Jambon 5 have allowed the business spectrum to have a greater presence in the hallways of their public schools and colleges. Education has become more about relieving parents’ and business owners’ worries about their nation's future by teaching children the skills needed to gain a $50,000 yearly salary after leaving college. In Slouca's eyes, education is no longer about teaching students to think in new ways--it's to ensure that the nation carries on as one of the greatest world powers by "pounding swords into cogs" (Slouca 33). However, it may be that Slouca’s statement on the business world's need for education to create bland, uncultured drones for the cubicle may actually be wrong. While this viewpoint may have been true in 2009, the year “Dehumanized” was written, my research into the field of business showed that some business owners are starting to look towards skills that have little presence in the modern STEM-oriented classroom. Vic Lafont, the President of the South Louisiana Economic Council and one of my interview subjects, is one of these business owners. According to him, owners such as himself are starting to look for students with both hard and soft skills (np). Hard skills, such as STEM subjects, are mainly emphasized in the classrooms and halls of modern America (np). Soft skills, on the other hand, come from the study of subjects such as humanities and business (np). He believes a student with a combination of these skills would have the most likely chance of getting hired in companies and organizations such as his (np). This combination may seem rather confusing to those who are unfamiliar with the skills businesses are looking for in new employees. "Why," they may ask, "would it be a good choice for a student to not focus on one subject? Wouldn't a student have a better chance of being hired if he/she didn't divide his/her classes between science labs and classroom discussions on Shakespeare’s works? Why would businesses want students to know about the difference
Jambon 6 between Chaucer and Whitman if they’re applying for an engineering position?" Of course, businesses are not looking for students who can boast an encyclopedic knowledge of Modernist poetry or 18th century drama along with knowledge about the mechanical framework of an engine. Instead, they are actually searching for students who have developed social skills in the classroom (Lafont np). They believe that students who take humanities courses have better communication, writing, and thinking skills (np). These skills could allow for employees to have a greater chance of pleasing potential buyers and make faster sales (np). With a combination of these soft skills found in humanities and business classes and the hard skills found in STEM classes, a student's rate of being hired in the business spectrum could go up immensely (np). To show why this desire for skills developed in humanities classes has gone up in the last few years, Mr. Lafont told me about changes made in Cameco Industries, a business that specialized in agriculture machinery (np). Most businesses that developed agricultural machinery, such as John Deere, would send salesmen out to international borders in order to ensure that their tools were the first to mark their presence in the country (np). However, a problem came about when discussing the needs of the buyers (np). The salesmen could not assist the buyers when they had specific questions about the merchandise since the salesmen did not have the knowledge of the engineers who built the machinery (np). Because of this, these salesmen were forced to sacrifice valuable time for getting in contact with the engineers about the issues they had come across and to wait for their responses (np). Cameco solved this problem by hiring workers who had both engineering skills and marketing skills (np). With this combination workers who visited international buyers could not only convince them into buying the product but could also answer all their questions about the product without having to wait for
Jambon 7 a response from the other side of the world (np). This practice eventually became effective enough to force John Deere to buy out the company (np). Fortunately, Mr. Lafont is not alone in his assurance that having humanities skills is as valuable as having STEM skills. West Virginia University, Entrepreneur, and even career assistance sites such as CareerBuilder agree that a lack of soft skills could prove detrimental to a worker's future success in his or her chosen field ("Employer" np, Huhman np, Grasz np). These soft skills can assist a student with their first job, allow ease for workers who change their career, and can even "make all the difference between success and failure in [a worker's] career" ("Employer" np). A variety of employers and career specialists have also stated that soft skills that are developed in English studies, such as proofreading and writing, can not only greatly assist a student's in the workplace but are also currently searched for by a variety of employers (Clark np, Strauss np, Vergne np). Even though one could argue the previously-mentioned numbers of best college degrees and average starting salaries, there is proof that students who focus on the liberal arts have a better chance of finding success in their jobs than the previously-stated numbers would suggest. Studies from last year have shown that many employers believe that colleges are not assisting students in their studies to their fullest potential. Instead, they feel that recent graduates are ill prepared for the working world. One of these surveys, done by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, also stated that many employers were in favor of providing students with a broader education that could assist them in their future jobs (Supiano np). In her Time article "Critics of the Liberal Arts Are Wrong", Annette Gordon-Reed shows the necessity for colleges to transfer to this new way of thinking about employment when she states, "The ones who will do best in [the work force] will be those whose education has prepared them to be
Jambon 8 flexible. Those with the ability to draw upon every available tool and insight—gleaned from science, arts and technology...will stand themselves and the US in good stead" (np). Slouca may say the US is looking for mindless drones, but his beliefs prove to be faulty when faced against the desires of modern employers and business owners (Slouca 33, Lafont np). In a world where technology is slowly taking over our lives, it would be easy to believe that communication and reading were being pushed out of the spotlight of the university by STEM education. However, the frantic takeover of technology only proves to employers that there is a need for workers who can understand the workings of an engine while also having the ability to convince a potential buyer of the efficiency of the engine (Lafont np). Even students who have spent most of their time taking courses in the humanities during college have a greater rate of finding jobs than what may be perceived by American society (Supiano np). Although the humanities have not retaken the coveted position the subjects previously held in the realm of academia, they seems to have found their own way in the working world among the realms of science, math, and business. However, readers shouldn't be eager to demonize Slouca for his beliefs on what business and employers want students to be taught. After all, it should be noted that "Dehumanized" was published in September 2009, only a few months after the United States' last major recession had ended ("Business" np). After such a crisis such as this, it would be natural for society to leap towards any idea that could guarantee college students a high-paying job for the rest of their lives after serving their time in lecture halls, classrooms, and laboratories. This need to ensure that future generations would not suffer as their parents did was also pushed into the education system with the appearance of an “enemy” that had recently appeared in the last few years: foreign students. Nations such as Japan, Finland, and Singapore have found
Jambon 9 themselves holding high ranks in polls that determine the best education systems throughout the world while the US is often found much lower on the scale ("Best" np). Statistics that pointed to the USA failing in their education standards brought about a rise of parents, teachers, and critics discussing how education could be improved. Ideas such as parent involvement in classes, the adaptation of modern technology into the curriculum, reformations in school inspections, and even convincing parents to buy more books have all been cited as ways that the education system could finally catch up to the golden standard set by the children of Hong Kong and South Korea (Edutopia np, Morrison np, Kenny np, "Best" np). With an education system that fails to impress when compared to the scores of international students, why wouldn't figures such as Obama try to push students towards STEM classes in an attempt to ensure that our country is supported in the future by workers who have grounded themselves in high-paying jobs that can ensure the existence of a highly-developed nation ("Educate" np)? Of course, Slouca is not a stranger to these complaints. "Ah Singapore," he comments as he begins his examination on America's fear of losing their coveted economic status to the educated youth of developing countries (Slouca 35). "[The reader will] hear a good deal about Singapore if [they] listen to the chorus of concern over American education...If only our education system could be as efficient as Singapore's" (35). In an age where your SAT score can seemingly determine your future, Slouca knows there is a great amount of frustration among parents, educators, and politicians as they try to prepare their students for a future of outsourcing and possible unemployment (35). Of course, he's not the only one worried. In my interview with Mr. Lafont, he also stated his worries about the international competition students face in today's job market (Lafont np). However, his statements about America’s fear of international competition actually surprised me.
Jambon 10 Instead of stating that students should stick to degrees that made the most profit, Mr. Lafont actually said that the current emphasis on STEM classes is due to the shortsightedness of Obama and other powerful government officials (np). Instead of attempting to understand the power the humanities could have in the workforce, the Obama administration’s current emphasis on STEM classes is caused by their desire to meet testing quotas and gain higher scores than the highest contenders in the international ranks (np). Along with worries over ensuring that our economy stays afloat, American society's fear of losing to other countries due to a lack of substantial education has created a bigger emphasis on creating specialized STEM workers (np). Rather than allowing students to pursue their favored subjects, critics are pushing for greater emphasis on STEM classes in order to create a work force that can keep America up both technologically and economically (“Improving” np). Education is no longer about allowing the student to explore the endless possibilities of academia but instead insuring that he or she can pass their SAT or GRE with the best scores possible. However, it may actually be that America's concerns over a lack of enrichment in classrooms are a reaction to a lack of info on foreign cultures. The News-Press, a local news source from Florida, sent a group of reporters to Asia, the continent that contains many of the countries that have beat the US in terms of test scores (Breitenstein np). What they found was rather astonishing in terms of how Asian education differs, or rather doesn’t differ, from American education. Classes that they attended in countries such as South Korea and China actually taught material that was almost identical to their American counterparts (np). Their observations indicate that if a math equation is taught in a South Korean pre-algebra class, it is most likely featured in the American curriculum for pre-algebra (np).
Jambon 11 Instead of placing the blame on an improper education system, these reporters came to the conclusion that Asian students did better in school than their American counterparts due to their desire to succeed (Breitenstein np). In their interviews with "college officials, faculty, principles and parents" that were involved with "nine Asian schools and universities", these reporters found that the average students that attended these schools were described as "committed, diligent, competitive, passionate, focused and ambitious" (np). Quotes from students and educators also showed that Asian students dedicated themselves to their education in order to ensure success in a society that desires only the best (np). When Hwy-Chang Moon, the "professor and dean of Seoul National University's graduate school of international studies," was asked about why Asian students valued education, he responded with "[Students] have to be first-rate, otherwise [they] may not be able to survive" (np). This information is necessary to the state of the liberal arts in American education as it reveals to us how the humanities may actually survive in this chaotic nation. While students of the humanities may not be as valued as their STEM counterpart, one feature that they share with Asian students can actually assist students and teachers alike in ensuring that humanities are still studied in a seemingly STEM-focused economy. Simply put, I believe that humanities students are often individuals who are focused on their studies and getting the most that they can out of their education. After all, these are students who are willing to stay with degrees that are commonly stereotyped as worthless in the current job market. A student would have to be very dedicated to the study of English, history, or any other degree that falls under the title of the humanities to continue with it after being told by a seemingly endless amount of polls, charts, analysis, and working adults that their major is worthless.
Jambon 12 Still, this theory I present that humanities students are dedicated to their work needs some kind of physical evidence. To solve this problem, I turned to data of the graduation rates of students attending the University of California in San Diego. In their listing of graduation and retention rates, they noted the number of students that graduated within four, five, and six years. Six departments were used for this pamphlet: Arts, Humanities, Engineering, Science/Math, Biology, and Social Science (Retention 10-11). For all six departments the percentages of students who graduated in 6 years from 2002 to 2006 were from 80% to 89% (10-11). However, I found that these numbers noticeably changed when looking at the graduation rates of five-year students from 2002 to 2007 and the graduation rates of four-year students from 2002 to 2008 (10-11). The graduation rates for five-year students in the Humanities department were all 80% percent or higher (10-11). These numbers were also achieved by Biology and Social Science, with Arts, Engineering, and Science/Math having rates that fell below the 80% mark (10-11). The graduation rates for four-year students earning a humanities degree were much lower than their five and six year counterparts, with none of them reaching higher than 68%, but all of them were higher than 59% (10-11). The remaining five departments, on the other hand, were unable to reach this goal (10-11). This data does show that humanities students have a higher degree of sticking with their chosen major to graduation. Of course, variable such as the amount of students enrolled in humanities or the area in which the University of California resides in could influence this data, but it still shows that students obtaining degrees in the humanities have the ability to stay within their chosen area of study in a society that pressures them to earn a degree that supposedly guarantees high paying jobs after graduation. While it may seem as though this dedication is being looked over in favor of the high enrollment rates of STEM classes, there is actually evidence that both employers and educators
Jambon 13 are taking notice of the dedication of students with a degree in humanities. For example, John Doucet, the director of Nicholls’ Arts and Sciences department, is highly supportive of the study of humanities within Nicholls. Although he is primarily a scientist, he is also a writer who has both hard skills and soft skills. This combination of skills not only assisted him in his journey to becoming one of the campus directors but also gave him an appreciation for society’s need for students with soft skills. He also believes that the classes that fall under the arts and humanities department are actually much better than what society may perceive them as. For example, the Language and Literature Department at Nicholls actually has nominees for the Pulitzer and the National Book Award enrolled in their faculty (Lafont np). Katherine Conner, an assistant professor in Nicholls’ Language and Literature Department, also believes that the dedication of English students is still being supported within Nicholls. According to Dr. Conner, a variety of improvements have been made to the English department in the last few years. These improvements include the recent division of the English degree into four subgroups that students can take specified courses in (Conner np). The subgroups consist of classes that either teach creative writing, literature, writing and rhetoric, or film (“Course” np). The subgroups allow students to divert their focus on specific goals and the topics they believe will be the most important to them in their future careers. Nicholls’ subgroups have also allowed teachers to offer classes on a variety of topics (Conner np). Some of these topics include business writing, postmodern fiction, young adult novels, and Bollywood movies. These changes show that the directors of Nicholls are aware that there are English students who are not only dedicated to their choice of degree but are also able to find success both in the classroom and in the job field. With the advancements being made and the previously mentioned
Jambon 14 need for English majors in the business field, it may actually be possible for students who are truly devoted to the world of English to find success in today’s global market. However, Conner is unsure if everyone notices the dedication of the humanities student. She has noticed a dangerous trend in society where the humanities and the study of English are seen as lesser than their STEM counterparts due to society’s desire for job training. Even though she discussed the various opportunities available for an English student, society is under the belief that STEM classes, which train a student for only one or two specific jobs, are more valuable to our economy than humanities courses (Conner np). This bias for STEM classes over the humanities was not observed by just Dr. Connor. Both Mr. Lafont and Dr. Doucet have noticed how society is biased against the study of the humanities. While Mr. Lafont believes these biases are due to the government’s faulty thinking, Dr. Doucet believes they come not only from the government but also due to society’s need for technology (Lafont np, Doucet np). With these biases comes not only an education system that is more focused on STEM classes but also a perception of humanities students being lazy, ignorant, and worthless for the real world. As a Ph.D. in literature, Slouca is no stranger to how society perceives humanities students. In the first paragraph of “Dehumanized”, he recalls how his soon-to-be mother-in-law reacted to his major by exclaiming, “A doctor of philosophy…What’re you going to do, open a philosophy store?” (Slouca 32) This is just one of the examples of the stereotypical comments made by those who perceive obtaining a humanities degree as being worthless. In fact, the idea of a humanities degree being worthless in modern society has caused articles such as Matt Saccaro’s “The Case For Removing (Almost) All Liberal Arts From College” and Tim Worstall’s “Should We Abolish Liberal Arts Degrees? Quite Possibly, Yes” to be written and published. Although Saccaro’s piece appeared on Thought Catalogue, a website
Jambon 15 that allows writers to publish writings on any topic, no matter how offensive they may be, the fact that a writer who had previously worked for The Daily Dot and Salon told readers that “if someone can’t handle the STEM majors…they have no business in college” makes me wonder about how many people within American society actually perceive the humanities as a worthless subject for lazy students (Allen np, “Matt” np, Saccaro np). While Saccaro definitely is not the most credible source of information, it’s rather frightening to see that he shares similar opinions with Worstall, whose article about removing liberal arts degrees appeared on Forbes. The worst part about this situation, however, may be that Saccaro and Worstall share the same opinion on why the study of courses such as English should go. In their opinion English can now be studied in the comfort of one’s home, with cheap classics available on a reader’s Kindle and Internet forms made for discussing literature. STEM classes, on the other hand, need the university’s funds for equipment and the knowledge of the teacher to assist the student in obtaining an education (Saccaro np, Worstall np). While they see STEM classes as something that must be taught, the humanities and the liberal arts are subjects that a student can examine in their free time. Allowing students who want to earn a degree in the humanities to enter the university wastes the university’s time and effort on lectures on novel interpretations and writing seminars. In his own article, Worstall even says, “It’s difficult to see anything in English Literature that cannot be learned from books” (Worstall np). These are just a few of the opinions that show why American society believes that a degree in the humanities will only lead to failure. Even our own government seems to reflect this fear in their movements to increase the quality of STEM education for public school students and Obama’s degrading of the humanities with promises made on how students “‘ can make a lot
Jambon 16 more, potentially, with skilled manufacturing or the trades then they might with an art history degree’ (“Educate” np, Li np). In order to get rid of dangerous stereotypes such as these, the humanities must find out how to show America the worth of allowing the subjects to stay in the university. Should supporters raise awareness of the lessons literature teaches us through conferences and speeches? Should we place more emphasis on reading programs such as Accelerated Reader in the classrooms? Surprisingly, the answer to this problem may be much simpler than these solutions. My final interview was with Scott Hutchinson, a junior attending Nicholls. Scott is currently attending an English class that studies Southern Gothic literature. Taught by Dr. Conner, this class features works from celebrated authors such as William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, and Truman Capote. Participation for the class includes class discussions, three reading responses that consist of small discussions on certain parts of a work read before the class, two analytical essays based on works read in the class, and a final exam. Normally, it wouldn’t seem odd for Scott to be in this type of class since it would be assumed that Hutchinson is an English major. In actuality, he is a Chemistry major who took this class for an elective slot in his transcript (Hutchinson np). When I was discussing the class with Scott, I thought he would tell me about how much he disliked the class. I believed that he would tell me he felt that the class was worthless for his field and that he wished he had taken another class. Naturally, I was rather surprised when Scott told me he actually liked the class. Even though he felt that the class was time-consuming, he had also been aware of what he was getting himself into when he signed up for the class. Even more surprising was the fact that Scott said he doesn’t have a bias against the field of English and would actually consider taking a class like this again if he could (Hutchinson np).
Jambon 17 What does this one student’s opinion tell us about the process of removing the harmful stigmatisms placed onto the study of the humanities? It may be that in order to get rid of the society’s perception of the humanities as worthless, we need to show them how helpful subjects such as English can be in live outside the university through education. By allowing more STEM students to take higher-level humanities courses, these students can learn about the effort humanities students place in their work and the usefulness of the knowledge they receive. While learning about Southern Gothic fiction may seem like a waste of time to many students who are focused on STEM studies, allowing them to take courses that deal with this genre would allow them to see how Southern Gothic fiction reflects the values, morals, and customs of a society that eventually gave rise to the modern Southern society of this day and age. They will also see that liberal arts classes don’t just teach the student about the humanities as they learn critical thinking skills and writing skills that will assist them in future employment. Although many STEM students may see the humanities as not worth their time, allowing them to enter a class that is more focused on literature and writing that ENGL 101 or 102 could change them for the better. Of course, there are still a wide variety of issues that has enforced the popularity of STEM classes in modern American education. The need to keep up with popular demand in technology, as well as what limitations humanities majors place on themselves in the classroom and the workplace, have also assisted with the rise of hard skills and the promise of high-paying jobs after college in the realm of academia (Slouca 40). With the info I have gathered, however, I believe that American society is starting to slowly change their opinion on the humanities. With employers looking for workers with both hard and soft skills, STEM students are starting to see the advantage humanities could give them in the work field. By taking classes that teach subjects such as English or history, they would gain communication and writing skills that may serve as
Jambon 18 the deciding factor for entering the workforce. These classes could also demolish any doubts or prejudice they may have against humanities majors. The humanities major, on the other hand, does not need to feel as though he/she needs to change his degree in order to have a chance of obtaining a job in America’s job market. The high graduation rate among humanities students in the University of California and the improvements that have come to Nicholls’ Language and Literature department prove that these degree programs consist of highly motivated and focused students who are willing to dedicate themselves to a major that is perceived as useless by society in the current economy. This dedication is a valuable resource that could not only improve the productivity of the economy but also give America a solution to the growth of better education and educated students within other nations. In his final paragraph Slouca states, “Perhaps there’s still time to reinstate the qualifier to its glory, to invest our capital in what makes us human” (40). While I don’t believe American society has reached that point at the moment, my research into the problems surrounding the humanities’ place in modern education makes me know that America is starting to see the value the humanities have in this modernized world.
Jambon 19 Bibliography Adams, Susan. "The College Degrees That Get The Most Job Offers." Forbes. Forbes, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. Adams, Susan. "The College Degrees With The Highest Starting Salaries." Forbes. Forbes, 10 Jan. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Allen, Samantha. “The Trouble With Thought Catalogue.” The Daily Dot. The Daily Dot, 13 Aug. 2014. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. "Best Education In The World: Finland, South Korea Top Country Rankings, U.S. Ranked Average." Huffington Post. The Huffington Post, 27 Nov. 2012. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. Breitenstein, Dave. "Asian Students Carry High Expectations for Students." USA Today. Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc., 4 Aug. 2013. Web. 22 Oct. 2014. "Business Cycle Dating Committee, National Bureau of Economic Research." The National Bureau of Economic Research. The National Bureau of Economic Research, 20 Sep. 2010. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. Clark, Amanda. “Why Using Spellcheck on Your Resume is not Enough: Proofreading Matters.” Business 2 Community. 5 Sep. 2014. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Conner, Katherine. Personal interview. 14 Oct. 2014. “Course and Degree Program.” Nicholls State University: Department of Language and Literature. Nicholls State University, n.d. Web. 24 Oct. 2014. Doucet, John. Personal interview. 10 Oct. 2014. “Educate to Innovate.” The White House. The White House, n.d. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Edutopia Team. "Big Ideas for Better Schools: Ten Ways to Improve Education." Edutopia. The George Lucas Education Foundation, 11 Aug. 2005. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.
Jambon 20 "Employer Expectations: Hard and Soft Skills." West Virginia University. West Virginia University, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. “Fast Facts: Advance Mathematics and Science Courses.” National Center for Education Statistics.U.S. Department of Education, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2014. Gordon-Reed, Annette. “Critics of the Liberal Arts Are Wrong.” Time. Time, 19 Jun. 2013. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Grasz, Jennifer. "Overwhelming Majority of Companies Say Soft Skills Are Just as Important as Hard Skills, According to a New CareerBuilder Survey." CareerBuilder. CareerBuilder, LLC, 10 Apr. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Huhman, Heather R. "The 10 Unique Soft Skills Employees Desire in New Hires." Entrepreneur. Entrepreneur Media, Inc., 18 Jun. 2014. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Hutchinson, Scott. Personal interview. 14 Oct. 2014. “Improving STEM Curriculum and Instruction: Engaging Students and Raising Standards.” Successful STEM Education. Education Development Center, Inc., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2014. Kenny, Charles. "The Real Reason America's Schools Stink." Bloomberg Business Week. Bloomberg L.P., 19 Aug. 2012. Web. 21 Oct. 2014. Lafont, Vic. Personal interview. 10 Oct. 2014. Li, Kevin. “Does Obama Hate the Liberal Arts? President Mocks Art History Majors During Wisconsin Speech.” Latin Post. Latin Post, 3 Feb. 2014. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. “Matt Saccaro” Thought Catalogue. Thought Catalogue, n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. Morrison, Nick. "The 10 Things School Leaders Would Do To Improve Education." Forbes. Forbes, 7 May 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.
Jambon 21 Retention and Graduation Rates 2012-2013. University of California, San Diego, 2013. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. Saccaro, Matt. “The Case For Removing (Almost) All Liberal Arts From College.” Thought Catalog.Thought Catalogue, 19 Feb. 2013.Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Scholes, Robert. The Rise and Fall of English: Reconstructing English as a Discipline. New Haven: Yale University Press. 1998. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Schuman, Rebecca. “Thesis Hatement.” Slate. The Slate Group LLC, 5 Apr. 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2014. Slouca, Mark. “Dehumanized: When Math and Science Rule the School.”Harper’s Magazine. Harper’s Magazine, Sep. 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Strauss, Steve. “Why I Hire English Majors.” HuffPost Small Business. Huffington Post, 23 Aug. 2013. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Supiano, Beckie. "Employers Want Broadly Educated New Hires, Survey Finds." The Chronicle of Higher Education. The Chronicle of Higher Education, 10 Apr. 2013. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. Vergne, Susan de la. “What Literate English Majors Can Do for Project Management.” For English Majors. 17 Oct. 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2014. Worstall, Tim. “Should We Abolish Liberal Arts Degrees? Quite Possibly, Yes.” Forbes. Forbes, 1 Sep. 2012. Web. 7 Oct. 2014.
