course material

1. Specialized Education versus General Liberal Education
Specialized Education versus General Liberal EducationEducation is a significant
phenomenon that dictates our life goals. It is the process of gaining knowledge over a period
of time through direction and learning. Education plays a key role in the expansion of
knowledge and skill development, and contributes to a person’ s confidence, personality,
cognitive development, social growth, and performance of activities, because of that the
importance of education cannot be denied at any level as it is the process through which a
person learns about him/her and its environments. In addition, thanks to the education a
person might have a better understanding of nature with respect to science. Information
about any concept and education are two different concepts that may differ in terms of
formal acquisition and delivery. The two concepts hold distinction as education plays a key
role in the expansion of knowledge and skill development. Through learning people get
knowledge and skills, and observation of nature are all parts of education. These are
effective tasks and helps in understanding the backgrounds of an individual. Knowledge is
not the only tool required but as well combination of knowledge and efficiency is required
which is accomplished by education. New phenomena are discovered if a person has a
complete understanding and knowledge about what, when and how the process is being
accomplished. According to Lorig and Holmes (2003) these all tasks are achieved by
education which is the reason that all the policies and programs of government and private
organizations focus on the provision of basic facilities of education.The purpose of this
paper is to discuss the two types of educational formats, liberal education and specialized
education, and my position supporting specialized education as opposed to general liberal
education.General Liberal Education:General liberal education at the student level is also
know as liberal arts concentration (Blank add year) is the most extensive form of delivering
knowledge, and refers to education which allows human beings to deal with the intricacy,
diversity and change of the world and its emerging consequences. This is related to the
knowledge of major fields or sections including science, humanity, society, and culture in
which the student might take some courses about different things for example, writing and
chemistry. According to Black (year) “ Most four-year colleges and universities offer a
liberal arts curriculum as either a major portion or all their available coursework” (pg).
Those who possess knowledge pertaining to these elements, gain the ability to cope with
changing environments and the complex nature of life. The main objectives of liberal
education according to Pring (2005) are:• Liberal education is focused towards the
provision of comprehensive knowledge in all the major aspects of learning which includes

2. physical environment, social functions, and humanities for understanding of an
individual’ s own self and behavior for self recognition.• Liberal education develops, in a
person, the ability to perform a task efficiently and effectively through the use of skill,
integration and interpretation of nature and its relationship to human beings.• Liberal
education allows individuals to enhance or imply their knowledge to other fields or
phenomena after the accomplishment of perception of physical and social aspects.These
three objectives provide a detailed analysis of the elements required by an individual to
completely understand their surroundings. Education is a tool through which our sense of
awareness is developed and intellectual and cognitive performance is sharpened. The
concept of liberal education has been evolving in our current society, because now
university students have the option to even finish their degree in general studies. Mortimer
Adler a philosopher and educator believes that a general education was the best training for
both life and work, arguing that “ it gives students the skills to be better citizen and better
people” (pg). In addition, he states that liberal education can give the students the tools
such as writing and critical thinking that might works and be valuable in any field of
workplace.Upon completion of their educations, College and university students directly
contribute toward the viability of a nation, through formulating the future and
characterizing its goals. Publically speaking, Democratic states are widening the spectrum
of thought, in order to facilitate future generations to have more control of their personal
educational goals. Allowing students to make appropriate educational decisions,
characterizes their future toward meeting the current demands and requirements of life.
We see greater emphasis on post secondary and graduate education, because a society with
a deficit of educated citizens ceases to maximize its potential and global acceptance among
other nations. The population of a society must proportionately contribute toward its
ongoing growth the development. Employing manpower to facilitate the necessary
functions within a society is achieved by promoting educational opportunities that are in
line with current labor market statistics. Creating awareness assists students in the process
of making educational decisions that meet their interests, and improve their future. Another
important aspect related to liberal education, is that it combines many aspects of life in
general, such as our experience, cultural beliefs, perceptions, etc. |These aspects of life are
relatively ambiguous in nature, open to thought and opinion, subjective, as opposed to
concrete facts. A Liberal education serves to open up the mind and look deeper into other
dimensions of possibility, and overall perspectives of life. “ It cultivates the capacities and
appetite for self-expression and reflection, for exchange and debate of ideas, for life-long
learning, and for dealing with problems for which there are no easy answers”
(APA)Historically, liberal arts subjects or skills were considered vital for citizens to possess
in order to actively participate in civic life, public debate, and military service. The purpose
of these studies was to create moral, knowledgeable, and eloquent people. Further,
Grammar, rhetoric and logic were regarded as the primary liberal arts. Even by today’ s
standards, “ liberal education is described as “ enlightenment” education, for the purpose
of communication liberal arts to every person. Therefore, liberal education serves every
person for meeting their intellectual needs” (Butin, 2006). This concept at the end for me
might not be such a good idea since the student does not have proper skills for the

3. workplace, since they are not specializing in any field of career such as medicine or law for
mention some.Specialized Education-Adult Career-BasedSpecialized education is a course
of studies that generally focus on a specific area. Although specialized education can work in
conjunction with liberal education in certain cases, for example; a Physician begins with
liberal education, followed by specialized education. I will examine how specialized
education functions independently as a method which focuses on a specific subject, with the
main emphasis geared toward training and preparing students for the workplace; also
referred to as providing “ Job-ready skills” . It is available to those who are certain about
their career/profession choice. Traditionally, Vocational schools utilized specialized
education to teach industry related skills and trades. Today, specialized education has
grown enormously due to great demand derive from two critical issues:1) To educate
students in careers, specifically designed to accommodate current/forecasted economic,
labor and industry statistics.2) To address the growing social ramifications caused by an
unstable and changing economy. Whether due to job loss through downsizing, or needing to
re-enter the workforce after a lengthy absence, many people will need to learn a new
profession, or at the very least, upgrade their skills significantly for any chance of acquiring
relatively secure employment.This type of education involves a condensed, structured
course of study, which often includes a co-op or other work-based experience as part of the
program. The Instructors are primarily industry-specific professionals with a vast amount
of relative knowledge and experience. Specialized education programs also give the student
an advantage in the job market, since many of the programs are specifically developed for
the purpose of addressing current market need. People are finding that they need to remain
in the workforce past retirement age, but must due to the condensed format of many
Specialized education programs, they can be ideal for a student who wishes to change
careers, without having to make a lengthy time commitment. As Blank said “ it is generally
easier to make the transition from a general to a specialized than vice versa and” As for my
experience I prefer the specialized education because at least you are specializing in a
particular area rather than taking many different courses.A huge majority of those who
argue for general or liberal education argue that it prepares an individual for further on job
training and ensures that the individual is well primed to learn from experience. Further,
such proponents argue that whereas it is difficult to acquire general knowledge from a
situation in which one has specialized knowledge, it is quite easy for an individual with
general knowledge to actually acquire specialized knowledge. As such, the flexibility one
gains through gaining general knowledge is invaluable, as it allows for a greater degree of
dynamism, in a world where not only is knowledge evolving, but its application is evolving
as well. Arnold (2010) highlights the current shift by a number of institutions of higher
learning are moving towards liberal education, by offering knowledge which they argue
increases intellectual awareness, improves communication skills, breadth of learning as
well as critical thinking.General education programs are however not the answer, as they
are in most cases burdened with a number of fatal flaws, which Arnold (2010) claims makes
them the wrong repository within which to bank hopes of educating students liberally. His
first argument against general education, is the fact that in most cases they are simply a
menu of courses usually selected with no consideration for intellectual cohesion, while in

4. cases where that is not the case, students will ideally be required to have some prior
knowledge that will ensure the starting point is a common one. This is often not the case, as
students will probably arrive at an institution with different forms of academic preparation
and experiences. When issues such as transfers in and transfers out, as well as the financial
pressures that may accompany facilitating large lectures in general education, it is quite
clear that general courses may not really be the best. Furthermore, Arnold (2010) argues
that whereas proponents of general course may argue that it fosters critical thinking,
reflection and exploration, this is not the case, with perhaps even the opposite premise
holding true. In order for true learning to take place, the interests of those being taught and
those teaching, must be in tandem, although the usage of disciplinary specialists to tutor
students on the various disciplines goes against this belief.In a way, according to Arnold, the
greatest flaw in the attempts to achieve liberal education, is the attempt to separate the
major from liberal education, while at the same time broadening the students’
perspectives, awareness as well as critical thinking. He calls for the inclusion of liberal
education into various majors, by making it a mandatory unit within the different majors
being offered by the university. The author also recommends that every major should
include certain aspects of general education, foremost among them being the provision of a
course on problem formulation, as well as the various methods and approaches to inquiry
as employed within the discipline. Secondly, Arnold (2010) suggests the incorporation of
interdisciplinary seminars within training programs for the specialized education, would
act as a very important step towards the realization of incorporating and intertwining the
major the student is training in, to other courses. This would give the student a unique
perspective on the standing of the major they are studying and how it relates to other
courses. Finally, the author suggests that in order for the hybrid system of general and
specialized education to work, a system that encourages continuous self assessment and
self evaluation should form an important pillar of such training. Arnold cites the example of
training within health sciences in which one foot is kept outside the classroom, allowing
students to learn new theories and revert back to testing the validity of these theories
within the clinical setting. Overall therefore Arnold (2010) argues that both specialized and
general knowledge are important in the development and education of proper and
competent professionals, as combining both would ensure that students develop essential
critical thinking skills, unparalleled competence when it comes to context setting, as all
these aspects of general education would be embedded within the major.Axelrod, Anisef
and Zeng (2001) agree with the assertion that liberal education might not be the answer
most academic institutions believe it to be. They argue that whereas liberal education does
have its advantages, it forms an important basis upon which evidence based training can be
practiced. The authors argue that through the employment of the scientific method, liberal
education provides a basis for the training of specialists and the discovery of new
knowledge. The authors therefore, similar to Arnold (2010) acknowledge that while liberal
knowledge can be important, the role of specialized education must not be overlooked at all.
More so considering that simply training students based on general knowledge may ill
equip them when it comes to meeting demands unique to their profession. This lack of
specialized training, in a way hampered students when it came to fulfilling their

5. professional obligations as found by cohort studies carried out by Axelrod, Anisef and Zeng
(2001). The findings clearly demonstrated that in certain courses liberal training cannot
form the only theoretical basis for practice, more so within health related fields. Within a
majority of other fields, such as fine arts, training through liberal education was found to
significantly improve the student’ s profile. This suggests that even though liberal
education may not adequately prepare students for the needs of the market, it does still
have a role to play in the training of professionals and individuals sensitive to the demands
of not just their professional tasks, but also of the needs of the community.Specialized
education does prepare professionals adequately for their job demands, as training is done
based on best practices developed through research. Knowledge of such evidence based
practices ensures that students are well prepared to forecast, plan for and deal with
problems that might arise (Roundtable, 2006). Further, specialized education in most cases,
usually equips students with practical skills that ensure they are ready for work, and
deployment into the job market. For instance, medical training equips doctors with the
necessary skills utilized in assessing and diagnosing patients.Specialized educational
programs are also more cost effective because they essentially require less time to
complete, and also require fewer resources to offer, in that, unlike general education,
special education does not entail large lectures which are difficult to facilitate. The period
between completion of training and resumption or beginning of work is also much shorter
with specialized education.Conclusion:This paper therefore, attempts to justify the
assertion that specialized education is better compared to liberal education, as it enables
one to gain an understanding about human nature. The life circumstances of the student are
likely to be the biggest influence on the choice between general and specialized education.
Liberal education enhances one’ s skills whereas special education trains an individual to
perform routine tasks and fulfill basic needs. Further, the review of certain literature has
essentially introduced a different aspect to the debate. Whereas a majority of the arguments
may take the form of which is preferable, it is perhaps worthy of noting that despite the
obvious superiority of specialized education, there are obvious advantages of liberal
training. The first of them is the obvious fact that it improves the student’ s critical thinking
as well as problem solving skills. It also equips the student with the necessary knowledge to
be able to interact adequately with their environment, which immensely aids in the
identification of potential or real problems. When this is combined with the benefits of
specialized education as aforementioned, the end result is a candidate who is not only
capable of identifying potential problems, but one capable of solving these problems in a
timely and professional manner. Suggestions that liberal education be incorporated into
specialized training are therefore worth exploring, although if one had to chose between the
two forms of education, specialized education would definitely be the best
pick.ReferencesAxelrod, P., Anisef, P., & Zeng, L. (2001). Against all odds? The enduring
value of liberal education in universities, professions and the labour market. The Canadian
Journal of Higher Education, 31(2), 47-
77.http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed/ppandg.htmButin, D. W. (2006). The limits of
service-learning in higher education. The Review of HigherEducation, 29(4), 473-498.David,
L., A. (2006): Moving From General Education to Liberal Education. Change: The Magazine

6. of Higher Learning, 38(3), 48-49.Hanushek, E. A., Kain, J. F., & Rivkin, S. G. (2002). Inferring
program effects for specialpopulations: Does special education raise achievement for
students with disabilities? The Review of Economics and Statistics, 84(4), 584-599.Horner,
R. H., Carr, E. G., Halle, J., Mcgee, G., Odom, S., & Wolery, M. (2005). The use ofsingle-subject
research to identify evidence-based practice in special education. Exceptional Children,
71(2), 165-179.Lorig, K. R., & Holman, H. R. (2003). Self-management education: History,
definition,outcomes, and mechanisms. Annals of Behavioral Medicine,26(1), 1-7.Pring, R.
(2005). Philosophy of education. (1st ed.). London: British Library Cataloguing-in-
Publication.Roundtable (2006). Education Vs. Experience. Fire Engineering