Based off of the title it is clear the article talks about liberal arts and how that is connected to critical thinking. I think it will focus more on what is wrong with them or how our society does not use them. To me liberal arts are school subjects; math, english, etc..

What Are the Liberal Arts?

There have been many different discussions about what really are liberal arts. Essentially it started out with seven basic topics : Grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy. Then arts got involved with encompassed philosophy, jurisprudence, theology and medicine. So it changed from the basic ideals of learning to more critical thinking, topics that forced you to think way outside the box and be more creative. “A liberal education isn’t intended to inculcate practical skills or to dump data into students’ brains, though it may teach a fact or two. Instead, it’s a wellspring of ideas and questions, and a way of promoting flexibility and openness into diverse perspectives” (para. 15). This quote summarizes the whole section in a few sentences. It connects critical thinking and the arts to the basic seven topics of teaching.

Why Do We Need the Liberal Arts?

This second says that we need the liberal arts because it teaches kids how to be good citizens. It gives the three “easy to identify” categories and actions that makes you a good citizen, that supposedly comes from being a liberal arts major. “Nor is it for everyone; (…) But we all need to be well-informed, critical citizens. And the liberal arts prepares students for citizen ship in all three senses — civic, economic, and cultural”(para21). While this quote summarizes their answer of “why do we need the liberal arts,” I think that not all liberal arts educations and classes or courses can teach someone to be a good citizen, yes it teaches/encourages them to be a critical thinker, but how does it make them a good citizen?

What is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is where most of the higher learning takes place. It is a really complex skill and it forces you to think out of the box. It is hard to learn and harder to define. “In the end, critical inquiry is not a map or a list of firm rules but a navigational skills”(Para. 27). Critical thinking helps you find your way through school and you end up making connections between things you never would have thought possible. Critical thinking is a large part of liberal art students.

The Importance of Critical Inquiry

Critical inquiry is important because it is the connection between our STEM disciplines and larger ideas like philosophy. “We need skilled thinkers, problem solvers, team workers, and communicators,(…) The liberal arts embody pre wisely the skills a democracy must cultivate to maintain its vital reservoir of active, thoughtful, and productive citizens”(para. 40). We need critical thinking because we need people to make connections and not just have step by step processes that solve everything. Yes we need pilots and farmers and other careers like those, but we also need more open and creative thinkers and that is what a Liberal arts and critical thinking education creates.

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