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This book is founded on the consensus that most of what passes for liberal studies and general education is so out of touch with today's world that it is simply beside the point. Not only does the curriculum fail to address contemporary reality, but when it does, it does so in such a fragmented form that little useful understanding can be extracted. For example, one of the chief inadequacies brought out by the text is the failure of current disciplines to deal with the inherent messiness and complexity of real world issues such as hunger, conflict, and pollution. As a result of this, today's decision makers are unable to grasp the underlying causes of our global crises, and instead catch at the straws of technological or social fixes. Starting with the general consensus that something is seriously wrong, this book seeks to identify the issues, provide insights on what can be done and issue a few challenges as well.
The 18 contributions and editor's introduction included in this important volume are organized around five sub-themes: Assumptions about the Progress of Knowledge, A Critical Look at the Disciplines, The Value Content of Education, Alternative Visions Not Currently Taught, and Developing the New Curriculum. Within these themes the authors tackle provocative issues such as unmasking the dangerous limitations of hyperintelligence and exploring the place of the East-West dialogue in moral curriculum and value orientation. This collection encompasses some of the most dynamic thinking on the subject of curricular change and will be of interest to educators and students as well as all thinking people.
List of contents
Preface
Introduction by Mary E. Clark and Sandra A. Wawrytko
Making the Connections: The Search for Our Common Humanity by Ernest L. Boyer
Assumptions About the "Progress" of KnowledgeHyperintelligence: Humankind's Next Evolutionary Step by George Bugliarello
Why Smartness Is Not Enough by Mary Midgley
Paradigms and Progress: Integrating Knowledge and Education for the Twenty-First Century by William J. Reckmeyer
A Critical Look at the DisciplinesThe Limitations of Political Theory for Analyzing Conflict by Richard E. Rubenstein
Will the Real Economy Please Stand Up? by Hazel Henderson
Escaping the Overspecialization Trap: Creating Incentives for a Transdisciplinary Synthesis by Robert Costanza
Constructive Linking: Towards a Matrix Approach in Higher Education by Terrence H. White
The Value Content of EducationThe Central Curricular Issue of Our Age by Huston Smith
Toward a Creative East-West Dialogue in Moral Education and Value Orientation by Charles Wei-hsun Fu
Asking the Right Questions: Education as Dialogue on Social Values by Frances Moore Lappé
Alternative Visions Not Currently TaughtThe Need for Global Education by Robert W. Malone
Forgotten Fundamentals of Steady Growth by Albert A. Bartlett
Visioning a Peaceful World by Johan Galtung
Why Not a Separate College of Integrated Studies? by Russel W. Peterson
Developing the New CurriculumCutting the Gordian Knot: Secrets of Successful Curricular Integration by David McFarland and Benjamin F. Taggie
How Do We Know What We Have Done? Assessment and Faculty Development within a Learning Community by James C. Manley and Nancy Ware
What to Do Next: Strategies for Change by William H. Newell
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Mary E. Clark, Sandra A. Wawrytko
