Tag Archives: Humanities

The humanities should teach about how to make a better world, not just criticize the existing one

The humanities should teach about how to make a better world, not just criticize the existing one

This coming spring, a new group of students will think about choosing university majors when they apply to campuses across North America. In all likelihood, fewer of those students will choose humanities subjects — traditionally understood to include history, literature, philosophy, languages and the arts — as their major, than in past years. This is because of an […] … learn more→

The humanities are crucial to addressing the assault on truth

The humanities are crucial to addressing the assault on truth

This time four years ago, I was interviewing applicants for a joint undergraduate degree in history and literature. This was a job I’d come to treasure over the years; new thinkers are always interesting, and joint honours students often particularly so. But something was different. The interviews took place about a week after Donald Trump’s […] … learn more→

If we want brilliant English, history or geography teachers, why are we making humanities courses so costly?

If we want brilliant English, history or geography teachers, why are we making humanities courses so costly?

The government’s university funding reform package passed the lower house in early September and will pass the Senate if the Coalition succeeds in garnering enough crossbench support. The plan would see fees for some humanities degrees rise by as much as 113%, while fees for courses in fields such as teaching, nursing and STEM (science, technology, engineering […] … learn more→

If the government listened to business leaders, they would encourage humanities education, not pull funds from it

If the government listened to business leaders, they would encourage humanities education, not pull funds from it

The federal government’s announcement they will more than double the cost of humanities and communications degrees for university students has taken the sector by surprise – not least because it goes against increasing evidence that these programs are the key to our nation’s future success. If the government wants to support university courses that lead to jobs, […] … learn more→

Humanities graduates earn more than those who study science and maths

Humanities graduates earn more than those who study science and maths

Education minister Dan Tehan has announced changes to funding rates for university courses as part of a plan to create “job ready graduates”. He said: Projections prepared before the COVID-19 pandemic showed that over the five years to 2024 it is expected that the overwhelming majority of new jobs will require tertiary qualifications – and almost half […] … learn more→

Why science needs the humanities to solve climate change

Why science needs the humanities to solve climate change

Large wildfires in the Arctic and intense heat waves in Europe are just the latest evidence that climate change is becoming the defining event of our time. Unlike other periods that came and went, such as the 1960s or the dot-com boom, an era of unchecked climate change will lead to complex and irreversible changes in Earth’s life support systems. Many […] … learn more→

Why doing Humanities is doing science

Why doing Humanities is doing science

It is increasingly common in this society or, at least, in this country, to divide the intellectuals – and their students – into two great branches of knowledge: letters and sciences, as if the former were not scientific and the latter not they would have a certain domain of humanistic knowledge that has led us […] … learn more→

How do we define student success in the Humanities?

How do we define student success in the Humanities?

I’ve been thinking a lot about the phrase “student success.” I like the way it pushes us to define our terms and ask questions about metrics: What does student success look like? How do you know that what you’re doing will make your students successful? How do you measure whether they are successful? We do […] … learn more→

To save the Humanities, change the narrative

In the classic children’s story Chicken Little, the main character feels an acorn drop on her head and infers from this that the sky is falling. She announces the sky’s imminent collapse to all the animals she encounters. Soon Chicken Little and her friends get an invitation into a fox’s den to escape the danger. […] … learn more→