As the new semester begins, I find myself wondering yet again "What is the main purpose of university education?", and "What is most important in the lessons I teach?" Is the main purpose of university education to prepare students for jobs by helping them to learn English, etc., or is it to encourage them to think deeply about things which they would not normally think about?
I teach a course called Critical Thinking Skills in which the emphasis is on the latter. This semester, we have discussed questions such as "What causes wars, conflict and arguments?", "What brings us happiness?" , "Can we find lasting happiness by buying things?", "Why has the number of unmarried Japanese adults increased?", "What are the good and bad points of marriage?", etc. In another class, an English writing class, the students have been writing about the question "Is it OK to kill animals and eat them?"
What do you think, dear reader?