Considers some documentary evidence for the view that the U.S. is on the educational and cultural decline and contends that the principal symptoms of weakness have been with us for decades. Lays the responsibility for many of the problems in the present crisis in humanities education on the humanities faculty. (SED)

Describes a year-long core humanities course at Washington State University in which freshman composition is linked to a world civilizations context. Explains how the linked course aims to prepare students for the writing and thinking tasks they need for other courses in college and after they graduate. (MG)

Noting that speech instruction as a liberal study must include significant subject matter, rigorous intellectual application, high ethical standards, and responsibility, this paper describes the humanities core course at Allegheny College (Pennsylvania) as providing such a climate for speech instruction. The paper first describes the course goals…

This paper discusses how to teach art history in college level interdisciplinary courses. Today, art historians find themselves involved in teaching art history not only in art history curricula, but also in interdisciplinary studies, such as Ancient Greek Culture, Renaissance in France, and Women in Art. When teaching art history in…

Arguing that great ideas from the past possess intrinsic value and provide students with the knowledge and attitudes essential in developing the liberated mind, this paper identifies the world's significant thinkers from Plato (427-347 B.C.) to Bertrand Russell (1873-1971). Structural ideas from each philosopher are discussed in an effort to…

Examined is the Humanities Program at St. Anselm College, a two-year program of readings and lectures ordered chronologically from ancient to contemporary times--from the age of Classical Greek thought and the Old Testament to the twentieth century. The first year of the Humanities Program is organized in eight units on general modes of…

A model for faculty development and curricular change that focuses on the history, culture, and contributions of women in the humanities is the subject of this overview of a National Endowment for the Humanities final report on establishing a women's studies section at Stephens College (Missouri). The report is divided into sections describing…

An undergraduate professional elective course emphasizing the study of literary and fine arts works portraying pharmacy and pharmacists, developed to give pharmacy students a variety of experiences with role perceptions, is described. Students examine, discuss, and critique fiction, drama, music, the visual arts, and other creative works. (MSE)

Describes an interdisciplinary course, Images of Creation in Science and Poetry, which was designed for science, humanities, and social studies majors. Explains the chronological time lines that serve as the course's organizing themes. Includes an outline, the table of contents of the class manual, and student reactions to the program. (ML)

This report on a curriculum project incorporating the study of the humanities and mass media is presented in four chapters. The first chapter is an overview and describes the three components of the curriculum project: (1) a new course entitled "Television as Popular Culture," (2) a team-taught course on media theory entitled "The Electric Media,"…

A redesigned college composition/humanities program that has as its primary goal the raising of the self-esteem of a predominately black student body is described in this paper. First discussed are the deficiencies of an earlier program, traditional freshman composition followed by sophomore humanities, that centered around the cultural…

Based on thirteen examples of humanities programs across the U.S., this book attempts to address the question of what an effective core humanities curriculum should include. It looks at issues such as course requirements, standardized versus more flexible programs of learning, and the question of how responsive such programs should be to current…

Focusing on a wide range of interdisciplinary themes and ideas for humanities instruction, the 17 articles in this journal issue discuss the following topics: (1) literature, humanities, and the adult learner; (2) the role of the humanities in educating for a democracy; (3) humanities in the marketplace; (4) literature versus "great books" in high…

Maintains that ethics is behavior as judged according to some understood standard. Recommends the use of "occasional" ethics, an informal but reflective approach that can be used in many course designs. Illustrates the concept with examples from the author's instruction in humanities courses. (CFR)