Cronon and Dewey

Cronon poses a very unique question when he asks what it means to be liberally educated. He believes that “it aspires to nurture the growth of human talent and the service of human freedom” (1). He also poses questions about the success of these educations and the criteria that revolves around it. Education is laid out in the form of lists whether it includes course lists, reading lists, lists of facts, etc. Cronon also poses the questions of whether or not having all these class requirements really allow for human freedom within the education of each individual, since often times it is difficult for people to explain their purpose (2). The tendency to have so many required classes, in his opinion, could really just be the easy way out and people are overlooking their real purpose to nurture the goals of freedom and growth for each individual. Overall, Cronon’s list of the qualities people seem to embody who have experienced liberal education are far from what one would expect to get out of classes, but are nevertheless essential to being a well-rounded individual including the general skills of being a good communicator and listener and have the ability to deeply understand. I think in general this article is spot on, he poses questions that I have asked myself in the past and I would agree with his qualities that he believes a liberally educated person achieves.

Dewey’s approach and writing was much different and more complex than Cronon. Because of this, I also found the article much more unclear in the case he was trying to make. The main point of the article I took away is that communication is the key component of education, which would also agree with one point that Cronon made. He mentions that “education, in its broadest sense, is the means of this social continuity of life” (2), in which I believe he means that we learn through social experiences and developing our communication skills. Those who lack the growth and experience can be identified as lacking education. Dewey does add that he believes schools are only one way to provide education (4) many people may disagree with this or not even consider this option, but he does add that without formal education it is not possible to transmit all the resources we need to succeed in society. He ends the article with a quote I found to be very truthful, “communication is a process of sharing experience till it becomes a common possession” (9).

Question:

Although it may not necessarily define an uneducated from and educated person, do you believe that Cronon’s 10 qualities that liberally educated students embody are fairly accurate? What else do you think is an important quality for a an individual to attain?