For much of human history, academia was always treated as a holistic pursuit. Science was a type of natural philosophy, and it shared the same inquiry methods as history. It wasn’t uncommon to find an astronomer who was also a philosopher, or perhaps a historian who studied biology. It’s in this melting pot of subjects that teaching and learning flourished, and much of what we study in more well-defined fields today originates from this time.
Over time, this has shifted; as a physics student, I’m only able to take one humanities course this year. While other schools leverage their faculty’s format by offering opportunities to blend the Arts and Sciences, Queen’s reinforces the divide, which I believe puts its student body at a major disadvantage. At this rate, it seems the world will never see a philosopher-mathemetician-biologist-historian-astronomer-poet again.
The modern divide between the arts and science fields is a problem that’s often overlooked, and a prime example of it can be found right here at Queen’s University. The largest faculty at the school, the Faculty of Arts and Science (FAS), is one of only 12 of its kind in Canada. The fact that it’s a uniquely interdisciplinary faculty should point towards a structural force that upholds this, but this isn’t the case.
In fact, the way programs in FAS are structured implicitly encourage this segregation. Most majors in the Bachelor of Science (Honours) program require 60 to 72 credits for completion, leaving little room for electives. There’s also no option to pursue a degree of Bachelor of Arts and Science (BASc), which is offered at several other Canadian universities, or to complete a Joint Honours with a subject from each field.
Additionally, it’s difficult for arts students to enrol in science classes, and vice versa, with spots being reserved for those in the respective program. In some cases, it’s easier to take courses outside of FAS than it’s inside. While many arts students can easily take classes from the Smith School of Business, for example, they’re restricted from taking science classes within their own faculty. What is the point of having a combined arts and science faculty if they’re practically separate by design?
The University of Toronto (U of T), as an example, is another school with a combined Faculty of Arts and Science. To ensure students can take full advantage of this, U of T enforces “breadth requirements,” which require students to take classes in other subject areas besides their field of study. As well, they offer double majors with an arts and a science component, which is also built into some majors, such as the HBSc or HBA in physics and philosophy program. Evidently, encouraging interdisciplinary study is entirely possible, but Queen’s is seeming to do just the opposite.
The lack of integration at Queen’s signals a greater problem for the futures of students graduating with an ArtSci degree. Science isn’t just science—it’s also inquiry, communication, and problem solving, all of which are substantial elements of humanities courses. Likewise, arts majors could benefit from knowledge of science. The scientific method, after all, derives from philosophy, and these analytical approaches can be applied to a number of humanities disciplines.
Sure, you can use mathematical equations and scientific laws to explain how the universe works, but the humanities are aptly named they’re purely human. They’re a product of our species. They encapsulate our distinct understanding of the world around us curated from experience and existence. What people often fail to comprehend is both of these fields rely upon one another, they’re wholly and undeniably symbiotic.
An absence of holistic curriculum fosters a generation of students with tunnel vision, lacking the skills interdisciplinary study would develop. The divide is only getting worse, especially as an increasing number of students view university as “job training” rather than a place to explore and expand upon intellectual interests. Even if students are looking to be employed out of university, studies have shown employers value candidates with a well-rounded educational background. Knowing how to read Shakespeare is just as important as knowing how to calculate a derivative, and everyone can benefit from having both abilities.
Of course, specialization is important in circumstances such as applying to graduate programs, and I’m not arguing the University should turn to a full-on liberal arts style of teaching. However, I do think Queen’s, more specifically FAS, isn’t taking full advantage of its combined entities. It should, at the very least, allow for some flexibility for students who are interested in both, and encourage students to try something new.
Universities should be places where knowledge can grow and thrive, not be thrown into a box. It’s possible for a Queen’s education to break the barriers between these fields, allowing students and faculty to answer questions and conduct investigations that specialization in either arts or science wouldn’t allow.
There has been talk within the faculty of overhauling degree programs and reducing the number of credits needed for a major, most likely due to the ongoing budget deficits. Currently, completion of 60 or more credits is required for a major in an honours program at Queen’s, while most schools in Ontario require less. If this were to be imposed, the Faculty should use this as an opportunity to allow for more learning that bridges the current divide. A Joint Honours degree in an art and a science, or new interdisciplinary programs, for example, could be possible.
There’s hope for a Queen’s where multi-hyphenates who have gained a cohesive and articulate understanding of the world through science and the humanities in their education are common. Progress means turning an outdated, superficial duality between the arts and the sciences into a singularity where all corners of human knowledge converge. However, this is only possible if the institutions who are educating the next generation are willing to make it happen.
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courses, Faculty of Arts and Science, philosophy, Physics
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