Liberation Plan

Contrary to popular belief, the K Plan—that ideal combination of a liberal arts curriculum, the SIP, study abroad, and career development experiences (e.g., externships, internships, and guild participation)—loses nothing by forgoing general education requirements. In fact, the new curriculum is an improvement over the old one.

Kalamazoo College must ensure a liberal education, not one necessarily in the liberal arts—and that liberal education is exactly what the new curriculum will ensure.

An article in Liberal Education makes it clear: “Study exclusively in the liberal arts disciplines does not guarantee a liberal education… Liberal education may be pursued through any subject matter, but the term implies distinct purposes: breadth of awareness and appreciation, clarity and precision of thought and communication, critical analysis, honing of moral and ethical sensibilities.”

According to a 2008 report on the Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) initiative of the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), students must become “intentional learners”—responsible for direction in their education. Students motivated by their own interests will learn far more than students motivated only by graduation requirements.

Similarly, early-twentieth-century educational reformer John Dewey viewed students as individual learners whose natural curiosity leads to the best learning outcomes. Dewey believed teachers serve as mentors and coaches or “assistants” to students as they discover knowledge independently.

Kalamazoo College students experience that kind of “guided practice” in the disciplines that interest them throughout the four years and as they draw upon knowledge from prior coursework to complete the capstone Senior Individualized Project. A set of general education requirements is simply unnecessary and intrusive.

An AAC&U publication, Practicing Liberal Education: Formative Themes in the Re-invention of Liberal Learning, proposes three main formative themes in liberal education for the twenty-first century, all of which appear in the new curriculum. The goals of the first theme—cultivating inquiry skills and intellectual judgment—are met by first-year programs and seminars that help students “develop better analytical, research, and communication” skills, as exemplified by K’s award-winning first-year experience, including the first-year seminars.

K students actively meet the goals of the second formative theme—social responsibility and civic engagement—through participation in one or more of K’s many long-standing and dynamic community partnerships, which facilitate service-learning programs as well as internship opportunities for students.

The third theme—integrative and culminating studies—emphasizes interdisciplinary studies, a capstone project, and making connections between liberal and professional education. The new curriculum offers seniors interdisciplinary seminars that tackle an issue from a multidisciplinary perspective; not to mention, K has many other interdisciplinary courses. The SIP remains the epitome of a capstone project for seniors.

Also, K’s new guilds play an increasingly important role in the K Plan, especially with the inception of the Center for Career and Professional Development (CCPD).

In sum, a Kalamazoo College education need not include a set of general distribution requirements. In fact, it is best not to have them. Instead of being forced to sit through courses they’re uninterested in, students’ individual enthusiasm for specific subjects should be nurtured so that eventually—say, during an interdisciplinary senior seminar and the SIP—a student can creatively apply a host of prior knowledge they find still relevant and inspiring.