Education is meant to prepare students for the future, and humanities courses are an essential part of that.
Many students are told that learning about the humanities are a waste of time, whether by parents, mentors or their peers. Subject areas like history, English or art are seen as having low potential for future careers, and because of this, they have “no worth.”
However, this is not true, and the material learned in those courses can teach skills that can improve students’ futures.
One example of this happens in English classrooms, where the majority of classwork is interpreting others’ books or writing, while also developing a student’s own writing skills via essays or stories.
At times, this can feel unnecessary.
The plot of “Unwind” by Neil Shusterman might not be exactly relevant to most futures. It is unlikely that anyone will have to worry about their parents sending them to get their organs harvested.
However, what a student does take away from books like these is how to understand others’ writing beyond a surface level, as well as how to properly express themselves and their own ideas in writing. They can also take away themes from the book about control and autonomy that they could carry into their own lives, another way that taking a humanities course could prepare them for their futures.
This idea applies to just about every other humanities course, as well.
The American Historical Association, for example, states that history does not only teach students about the start of wars, but helps them understand human nature and how it affects society.
Society today is built off of the past, so understanding the past helps people understand what is happening in their current day.
Understanding things like the progression of the Industrial Revolution can give context to how machinery and technology work today.
All of these skills are much less likely to be honed in STEM classrooms, where most things are fairly black and white and have right or wrong answers. The humanities offer nuance and flexible thinking, which are necessary in any workplace.
Humanities courses are an important part of education and should be taken alongside more STEM-focused classes, not ignored in favor of them.
