Liberal education has long been a fascination for scholars in a variety of disciplines and is closely associated with the idea of the educated person. Seen at one time as a matter for colleges and universities, over the years it has become central to the debate surrounding general education in high school and even the earlier grades. Yet so many and varied are the uses of the term 'liberal education' that the question arises of whether and how the idea is any longer a useful or helpful construct. In what way might it speak helpfully to educational challenges we face today? In what ways does it still speak helpfully to educational challenges we face today? In what ways might it be a guide as we search for a better way forward? These are the central questions that are addressed in this book. In doing so, the positions of three theorists—John Henry Newman, Mortimer J. Adler, and Jane Roland Martin—who have written about liberal education in a compelling way and from different perspectives are selected for close analysis. The analysis is built upon to fashion a new ideal of the educated person and a new theory of liberal education.
Daniel G. Mulcahy is a professor in the School of Education and Professional Studies at Central Connecticut State University and former professor of education at University College, Cork, Ireland. He is a past president of the Educational Studies Association of Ireland and of The New England Philosophy of Education Society and a two-time recipient of the Fulbright award.
Table of Contents
Part 1 DedicationPart 2 AcknowledgementsPart 3 IntroductionChapter 4 Liberal Education in ContextChapter 5 Newman: Liberal Education as Cultivation of the IntellectChapter 6 Adler: Liberal Education for AllChapter 7 Martin: Gender-Sensitive Liberal EducationChapter 8 Liberal Education as a Preparation for LifeChapter 9 Toward a New Paradigm for Liberal EducationPart 10 Index