Introduced in South Korea in 2015, the integrated curriculum for liberal arts and sciences aims to foster creative and convergent talent, and is designed to equip students with both humanities and science and technology skills. However, critics point to the dangers of excessive learning burden and superficial understanding, and argue that a more cautious approach is needed to realise effective integrated education.
The need for interdisciplinary integration
Interdisciplinary integration is a process that is bound to happen at some point. In today’s rapidly changing global environment, creative thinking that can understand and converge various fields is required rather than talented individuals who simply excel in one field. In this context, interdisciplinary education seems to be an inevitable evolution.
According to the ‘2015 Integrated Curriculum Outline for the Humanities and Sciences’ released by the Korean Ministry of Education on 24 September 2014, from 2018, when sixth graders enter high school, the distinction between the humanities and sciences will be eliminated and students will be taught ‘integrated social studies’ and ‘integrated sciences’. The aim is to cultivate basic skills in humanities, social sciences, and science and technology so that students can grow into creative and convergent people with humanistic imagination and scientific and technological creativity.
The proposal to integrate the liberal arts and sciences has been sharply contested. Not only those involved in education are interested in the proposal, but also parents, as it is expected to have a major impact on university entrance exams. Even though the change has been announced, there is a precedent of being criticised for implementing the change without thorough preparation, resulting in many adverse effects, so it will be necessary to discuss it thoroughly before it is implemented.
The need and background of creative convergence talent
A creative convergence talent is a person who can create new knowledge by combining humanities, imagination, science and technology creativity, and good character, and create new value by fusing various knowledge. In today’s society, technology, humanities, and sociology do not exist as separate academic fields, but are closely connected to each other to create new creative values.
Steve Jobs is a representative figure. He fused humanistic imagination with scientific and technological creativity to grow Apple into a company with great influence in the global market. Jobs’ example shows that in the modern world, it is essential to be able to solve problems by collaborating with experts in various fields, not just technicians and managers. This change needs to be reflected in the education system, and interdisciplinary education is the first step towards this.
Comparison with international examples
Interdisciplinary education is not unique to Korea. In developed countries such as the United States and Europe, the curriculum is organised so that students can study a wide range of disciplines without distinguishing between the arts and sciences. In the U.S., high school students are not divided into liberal arts and sciences, but rather learn a common set of basic subjects and then choose more advanced subjects based on their career path. This provides students with a strong foundation in a wide range of disciplines, and this learning experience can be very helpful for college admissions and later career choices.
Several countries in Europe have already implemented interdisciplinary education, and the result is a creative and interdisciplinary workforce. Germany, in particular, has a dual education system that allows students to develop a wide range of academic skills alongside vocational training, which has been successful in fostering both creativity and practicality.
Students‘ and teachers’ perspectives
Students’ reactions to the integration of the liberal arts vary. Some students have welcomed the opportunity to be exposed to a wider range of disciplines by having more subjects to choose from. It can also be a great advantage to be able to experience different fields before deciding on a career path. On the other hand, there are concerns that the study load may increase. With a wider range of subjects, there is the potential for students to lose the depth of understanding required in each subject.
On the other hand, teachers have a variety of opinions about the integration of the subjects. While they are excited about the positive changes that integrated education will bring, they also point out that new teaching methodologies are needed to effectively implement it in the classroom. In particular, when teaching integrated subjects, it is important to develop educational programmes and teaching materials that make organic connections between the disciplines.
