The liberal arts education in Korean higher education has been undergoing lots of changes since 2000s to the extent of being called ‘Liberal Arts Education Movement’. The demands of the state, the market, and the changes of the university itself a...
The liberal arts education in Korean higher education has been undergoing lots of changes since 2000s to the extent of being called ‘Liberal Arts Education Movement’. The demands of the state, the market, and the changes of the university itself are being discussed as the background factors of those changes.
The state demands social relevance of liberal arts curriculum through policies on regulatory reform and competition promotion as propounding financial support projects on the front. The market strongly influences liberal arts curriculum by suggesting survey on the satisfaction for a university education and the right people for companies. As accepting the demands of the state and the market, the university restructures liberal arts curriculum under the pretext of the enhancement of university competitiveness as a great cause.
The mechanism facilitating the restructuring liberal arts education curriculum is developed as orienting towards the values such as generalization of competition, commercialization of university, efficiency of education, and practicality of liberal art education. The state and the market, and the university itself share a mutual understanding of the enhancement of competitiveness and the improvement of excellence in education, and they objectify and lead liberal arts education.
The aspects of the restructuring liberal arts curriculum of Korean universities prove their pursuit of specialization within the frame of isomorphism. The isomorphism of liberal arts curriculum is revealed by structure, contents, object, implementation of liberal arts education. First, the domain of liberal arts curriculum is consisted with almost identical domains such as domains of instrumental subjects, distribution requirement subjects, basic major subjects, general education subjects. Second, instrumental and practical subjects occupy significant importance in terms of contents. Third, the object of liberal arts curriculum shows similar tendency. Fourth, a separate organization in charge of liberal art education is established for implementing liberal arts curriculum.
Korean universities, meanwhile, pursue the specialization of liberal arts education. The types of specialization can be classified into discipline-centered liberal arts curriculum and general education-based liberal arts curriculum pursuing liberal subjects, and vocational education-centered liberal arts curriculum and competency-based curriculum pursuing practical subjects.
The discipline-centered liberal arts curriculum is typical liberal arts education implemented by most universities. The general education-based liberal arts curriculum reinterprets the values of general education which is the prototype of liberal arts education, and applies them into the current situation. The vocational education-centered curriculum reflects realistic situation which utilizes graduate employment rate as a key indicator of judging the achievement of a university education. The competency-based curriculum being emerged lately applies a competency discourse to liberal arts education of universities as the concept of competency as regarded overall abilities for successful life in a modern society is getting the spotlight.
The aspects of restructuring liberal arts education of Korean universities reveal several limits although liberal arts education movement is arising and the restructuring liberal arts education is being variously progressed. First, the ideology of restructuring liberal arts education is insufficient. The intensive academic studies on the idealized direction and model of liberal arts education are not sufficient. Second, the soundness and integrity for the subject of restructuring liberal arts education in universities are not secured. The philosophy and mind of liberal arts education should be established by the university itself prior to the demands of the state and the market. Third, there is ‘double misunderstanding of category’ of liberal arts education in universities. Confusing major curriculum and liberal arts curriculum, and mixing up ‘liberal arts education in higher education’ and ‘liberal education in secondary education’ cause serious problems. Fourth, the restructuring should be developed under the consideration of securing educational condition for realizing the purpose of liberal arts education. Fifth, the restructuring liberal arts education should be activated by the direction of creating alternative model in terms of future-oriented liberal arts education.
The restructuring liberal arts curriculum should be developed in the direction of establishing new paradigm for 21st century liberal arts education of Korean universities. Also, unique liberal arts education should be created by the restructuring liberal arts curriculum of Korean universities as pursuing universal ideology of a university education.
Key words : Liberal arts education, Restructuring of liberal arts curriculum, Restructuring mechanism, Isomorphism, Specialization, higher education