硕士生英语读译教程 2014-15学期

《学术英语读译》2013~2014学年秋季学期

questions:

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Am I preparing myself for my first job or for my whole career? Am I educating myself only for work or also for life?

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3. Those students who aspire to higher goals may be interested in learning more about why the liberal arts education matter. First of all, what are the liberal arts? What is liberal arts education?

4. The term ―liberal education‖ was first used in classical Greek and Roman times. It was chosen to emphasize the fact that education was not available for the many people in those societies who were held in slavery, but only for those who were free. The reference to liberty was included in the term because people who were educated started out free, and became more free as their education progressed. The Greeks and Romans recognized that education arms a person to confront the influence of others critically. Such a person is less easily manipulated and deceived. Still today, in order to form a more perfect union, we need citizens who are informed, discerning, and morally courageous. (Liberal) education forms the basis of every democratic society. 5. In The Republic, the Greek philosopher Plato explained how a well-rounded education should include the study of astronomy, mathematics, music and poetry. Of course our fields of knowledge have grown ―astronomically‖ since his day, but his basic message underlies the tradition of liberal arts education. Plato taught his students to appreciate logic and order, ideals and beauty. Later teachers included the study of the growing fields of science and the burgeoning wealth of literature. They broadened the study of societies, governments, and history. But the main purpose of traditional liberal education stayed the same. It was designed to develop one‘s critical faculty, so necessary to the pursuit of wisdom and virtue. Isn‘t this aim still relevant today?

Relevance of liberal education in today’s world

6. Some people argue that wisdom and virtue are much less important than job training. They are not sure it benefits young people in this world to have ideals they feel passionately about, to have broad interests that excite and consume them, and to have an awareness of the joys and sorrows of people who live far away, or next door.

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《学术英语读译》2013~2014学年秋季学期

This may be too much to ask, they argue, of the ordinary person struggling to make a living. Better to focus on learning some specific set of skills, because then at least one has a chance of getting a job.

7. Does a broad, idealistic, liberating education also prepare a person to be valuable to a company? Many business leaders say it does. They argue that the job market has changed. Workers no longer stay at one company doing the same job until retirement. Technology drives change at such a pace that in less than five years, most facts college students learn are out of date. Business recruiters are looking for graduates who are inventive and flexible enough to learn new skills. Many students and parents worry about the short-term: preparing for the first real job. Most corporate executives, however, value an education that prepares one for a lifetime of imaginative and productive work. Indeed, business leaders know that survival in today‘s unstable job market depends upon the intellectual discipline that only a liberal education can offer. Strengths for employment

8. Education in the arts, sciences, and humanities develops in students three types of skills that employers prize above all others. These are reasoning skills, communication skills, and social skills. Reasoning skills

9. Educators know that graduates must have strong reasoning and problem-solving abilities to succeed in today‘s workplace. Graduates must be able to think logically and critically to solve problems on the job. They must also be imaginative. Employers appreciate graduates who have learned to be enthusiastic about learning, who are willing to develop new skills and try new methods and technologies. A liberal arts education is valuable because it teaches students to ask questions that matter, to weigh conflicting evidence, to appreciate the complexity of situations, and to develop logical, convincing arguments for solutions.

10. A student who studies the liberal arts chooses to learn something about a lot of different fields: the arts, the sciences, the humanities. This develops the ability to see connections among very different ideas and very different approaches to studying the world. Study in the liberal arts trains the brain to be flexible: to think logically, yes,

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《学术英语读译》2013~2014学年秋季学期

but metaphorically as well. Scientists now know that new linkages in the brain (called synapses) are actually formed when the brain is being used in new ways. The student develops the ability to analyze, or break ideas into parts, and to synthesize, to bring parts together to make a whole. These are considered the most difficult intellectual skills, and the person who has developed them gains a wider perspective and greater mental agility. Communication skills

11. Such intellectual agility also develops the student‘s ability to organize and communicate thoughts. Employers search for graduates who are able to communicate ideas clearly and coherently, who can be articulate and persuasive in proposing new ideas. Communication skills divide those who move up the career ladder from those who stagnate. Although many people can master the technical skills of a job, very few have the communication skills needed to present a truly professional image in speech and writing. Social skills

12. Finally, employers want to hire people who have strong social skills, people who cooperate well with others. Having studied literature, history, and the social sciences, such people appreciate the variety of humanity. They treat people who are unlike them with respect and understanding. They are sensitive to cultural and economic differences. People with strong social skills are idealistic enough to strive for cooperation and fairness. They can inspire a team with enthusiasm. They make better leaders, and better citizens. Strengths for living

13. These broad skills in reasoning and communication form the basis for success in one‘s personal aspirations as well. Emphasizing the utility of education for job training creates a false dichotomy between work and the rest of life. Our capitalistic society overemphasizes people‘s roles as producers and consumers of material goods. Overlooked are our roles as citizens and voters, spouses and parents, Girl Scout troop leaders, soccer coaches, church choir members, and neighbors. Liberal education encourages students to consider their eventual roles in working for the good of

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《学术英语读译》2013~2014学年秋季学期

individuals and of the community. It encourages students to consider which values they would like to express though a good and decent life. It encourages students to view their experiences in the larger context of history and social change. This gives young people a greater sense of purpose in life. This sense, often missing from the lives of young people today, is that of feeling involved in the great effort at civilization and moral progress, which began before we were born and will continue long after we die.

14. One of the saddest results of narrowing the goal of education is that it causes students to overlook the lifelong rewards of a broad education in the arts, sciences, and humanities. Chief among these is the joy of learning. Learning something about a lot of subjects leads to a greater curiosity about the natural world and how it is represented and understood. It infuses it with greater meaning and joy. Watching children play on a bright spring day calls to mind a poem by William Blake. Seeing a magnificent bridge spanning an ancient river leads to a reflection on the years it took the waters to carve the streambed, and the years it took human beings to learn enough to build the bridge. Education is like a Fountain of Youth: it allows people to see the world with the wisdom of the ages, but with minds that are forever curious, forever young.

15. The best thing about a broad, thorough, liberal education is that it can never be taken away. Students sometimes ask, ―Why do we have to study chemistry (or history, or foreign languages) when we will never use this stuff again?‖ The answer is very simple. One may never use chemical formulas again, but studying chemical formulas makes one‘s brain work better. One sees connections more quickly. One‘s thoughts are organized more clearly. It‘s like sweeping the cobwebs out of your head. Teachers have known for centuries that studying different subjects trains the mind to work in different ways: analytically, synthetically, creatively, logically, metaphorically. And now, scientists know that studying different subjects actually change the biochemical structure of the brain, forming new connections that make it more limber and agile. One is changed forever, and this is the greatest gift. Liberal arts education enriches life in ways that can‘t be measured in terms of money, and that begs to be handed

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