An Historical Review of Liberal Education.

Overview & Synopsis

Section I of this paper presents a brief history of liberal education and reviews some of the ideas that have been expressed about its origin, and some of the ideas that have influenced liberal education throughout history. The definition of the purpose of liberal education is Woodring's: "It is the education that liberates men from the bondage of ignorance, prejudice, and provincialism. It enables us to see the whole world and to see ourselves in perspective." Section II examines what is liberal education and reviews some of the other definitions assigned to it by different authors. Section III deals with the aims, purposes and objectives of liberal education. The paper concludes with the thought that while educators have long espoused that one of the cardinal principles of education is to encourage and nurture the ability to think, in reality, most independent thinking and creativity is stifled, and that only a true liberal education and not a general education can help a student become a liberated person. (AF)