Both Newstok and Scheur agree that students ability’ to think critically is perhaps the most useful skill they can obtain from their education. In his “Critical Thinking and the Liberal Arts,” Scheur brings attention to the lack of understanding of the liberal arts and the value that they hold in comparison to the STEM related focuses that are generally more favored today. Scheur argues that the liberal arts allows students to develop versatile skills that they can apply to multiple aspects of life and allow them to become better citizens, rather than simply the assimilation of facts to recall upon question. He contends that “… critical thinking skills enable students to become lifelong learners and engaged citizens … and to adapt to change and to multiple career paths” (Scheur 3). Scheur asserts that the value of college is to teach students not what to think, but how to think critically, both in the classroom and in real-life situations. Similarly, when Scott L. Newstok describes the value of Renaissance style learning and thinking in his “How to Think Shakespeare,” he argues that critical thinking is one of the most valuable skills that current education systems have lost today. However, he prefers the term “‘negative capability’: … ‘capable of uncertainties. Mysteries, doubts.’” (Newstok 5). This reflects his stance on the importance of critical thinking to expand curiosity and how it is misinterpreted, just like the liberal arts whose key value is this ability to think critically. Both Newstok and Scheur focus on the skills obtained through learning, rather than content. I believe that the Renaissance educational system values and skills relate directly to those of the liberal arts, and that these 16th century thinkers employed the skills obtained through the liberal arts. Thus, this emphasis on the liberal arts is what is lacking in the educational system today. I will agree that STEM focuses are important. However, I believe that if there is a stronger focus on the liberal arts and the critical thinking that these focuses yield, those students in STEM will be more well-rounded citizens and potentially succeed in their field even more successfully.
