A Distinctive Vision for the Liberal Arts: General Education and the Flourishing of Christian Higher Education

Abstract

This article argues that a coherent and inspired general education program, infused with a deliberate vision of the liberal arts, is crucial to the flourishing of Christian higher education. This article begins by describing the context and status of general education, emphasizing how this element of the educational program falls short in embodying a distinctive mission of Christian higher education. This article then contends that a vibrant vision of general education will be grounded in particular aspects of a liberal arts education that fulfill crucial outcomes of the Christian university, specifically cultivating the formal virtues and fostering meaning and purpose. The article concludes with recommendations for advancing the aims of general education within Christian higher education, highlighting the benefits of a common curriculum and intentional faculty development.

Notes

¹ Competency-framed models of general education should not be confused with competency-based degrees. A competency-based degree is an “academic credential awarded for demonstrated competency rather than for the accumulation of credit hours through taking courses” (Lumina Foundation, 2014, p. 44).

² Degrees in the humanities, social and behavioral sciences, natural sciences, and mathematics accounted for 40% of the bachelor's degrees awarded in the United States in 2011–2012 (National Center for Education Statistics, Digest of Education Statistics 2013, Table 311.60, http://nces.ed/gov/programs/digest/).

³ Questions are drawn from the work of Ernest L. Boyer, General Education: The Integrated Core, 1988; Edward Hahnenberg, Awakening Vocation, 2010; and Mark Roche, 2010, Why Choose the Liberal Arts?