The Ideas of Liberal Education in Changing Times

This paper examines the ideas of liberal education in the Fourth Industrial Revolution as well as artificial intelligence where technological breakthrough brings about socio-economic changes. The modern ideas of liberal education were propounded by such important thinkers as John H. Newman and J. S. Mill in the course of the previous Industrial Revolution. This paper explores how their ideas underwent reinterpretation and reconstruction in the 20th century. In particular, it discusses how the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) emphasizes the importance of practical liberal education along with newly proposed learning outcomes and their assessment tools. It reaffirms that the traditional ideas of liberal education are still valid in these ever changing times.