TY - JOUR
T1 - The role of liberal arts in a skills economy
T2 - A case study in Oman
AU - Hemmy, Kirsten
AU - Mehta, Sandhya Rao
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2020.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - This study focuses on the place and role of the humanities, especially the liberal arts in emerging economies which rely vastly on the development of national skills and expertise. It is based on one example of a publicly funded university in Oman where the urgency of creating a skilled workforce has led to an exercise in aligning higher education with the creation of an employable pool of skilled graduates. Given a variety of social, cultural and administrative considerations, the role of an English program has been challenged for its capacity to address changing market requirements. Based on current students, alumni, and faculty perceptions and recommendations, this study investigates the possible immediate and far-reaching goals of an English program in a tertiary educational institution and suggests ways in which liberal education could be rearticulated to align itself with rapidly changing realities for students and the community.
AB - This study focuses on the place and role of the humanities, especially the liberal arts in emerging economies which rely vastly on the development of national skills and expertise. It is based on one example of a publicly funded university in Oman where the urgency of creating a skilled workforce has led to an exercise in aligning higher education with the creation of an employable pool of skilled graduates. Given a variety of social, cultural and administrative considerations, the role of an English program has been challenged for its capacity to address changing market requirements. Based on current students, alumni, and faculty perceptions and recommendations, this study investigates the possible immediate and far-reaching goals of an English program in a tertiary educational institution and suggests ways in which liberal education could be rearticulated to align itself with rapidly changing realities for students and the community.
KW - employability
KW - English education
KW - higher education
KW - Liberal arts
KW - Oman
KW - program outcomes
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85089780434&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85089780434&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/cfb79507-13c0-3951-98bd-9445f2d9a7aa/
U2 - 10.1177/1474022220949432
DO - 10.1177/1474022220949432
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85089780434
SN - 1474-0222
VL - 20
SP - 274
EP - 294
JO - Arts and Humanities in Higher Education
JF - Arts and Humanities in Higher Education
IS - 3
ER -