IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nas/journl/v116y2019p1865-1869.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Branches from the same tree: The case for integration in higher education

Author

Listed:
  • David Skorton

    (Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560)

Abstract

The nature of work is changing rapidly in the digital age, increasing the demand for skills in specific disciplines. Across the United States and beyond, this evolution has led to an increased emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education at every level. Meanwhile, at US institutions of higher education, the proportion of undergraduate students who earn a degree in the humanities is declining. However, while the public discussion often pits the disciplines against one another, the sciences, arts, and humanities are—as Albert Einstein once wrote—“branches of the same tree” [(2006) The Einstein Reader ]. They are mutually reinforcing. Therefore, the best way to prepare the next generation for the future of work, life, and citizenship is to provide broad, holistic educational experiences that integrate the STEM disciplines with the arts and humanities. A new study from the Board on Higher Education and Workforce of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine bolsters the case for such an approach, finding considerable evidence that the mutual integration of disciplines leads to improved educational and career outcomes for undergraduate and graduate students.

Suggested Citation

  • David Skorton, 2019. "Branches from the same tree: The case for integration in higher education," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 116(6), pages 1865-1869, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:nas:journl:v:116:y:2019:p:1865-1869
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.pnas.org/content/116/6/1865.full
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Quan-Hoang Vuong & Thanh-Hang Pham & Trung Tran & Thu-Trang Vuong & Nguyen Manh Cuong & Nguyen Phuc Khanh Linh & Viet-Phuong La & Manh Toan Ho, 2020. "STEM education and outcomes in Vietnam: Views from the social gap and gender issues," Working Papers CEB 20-003, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    2. Ho, Manh-Toan & La, Viet-Phuong & Nguyen, Minh-Hoang & Pham, Thanh-Hang & Vuong, Thu-Trang & Vuong, Ha-My & Pham, Hung-Hiep & Hoang, Anh-Duc & Vuong, Quan-Hoang, 2020. "An analytical view on STEM education and outcomes: Examples of the social gap and gender disparity in Vietnam," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nas:journl:v:116:y:2019:p:1865-1869. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Eric Cain (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.pnas.org/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.