This year's symposium addresses higher education in the 21st century using the German concept of bildung. Bildung was originally used by the Germans to refer to learning as a distinct form of education centered on the spiritual and/or aesthetic aspects of life.
"Education functions to further the acquisition of knowledge, skills and competencies that fulfill the needs and requirements of the day," said Walter F. Edwards, director, Humanities Center. "Bildung, in contrast, is a value in itself and is on the side of individuality, ethics and spiritual independence."
Wayne State faculty members will address the philosophical, theoretical, legal, socio-economic and historical influences of higher education in the current century compared to previous centuries. They also will examine the purpose and value of a college education in the early 21st century and argue the role of alternative schooling.
Keynote speakers include professor Liliane Weissberg, Christopher H. Browne distinguished professor in the School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, and author and professor Paul A. Bove of the University of Pittsburgh. Weissberg will lead "Bildung: A Short Critical History of a German Term (and Tradition)," and Bove will discuss "Educating Us All: Henry Adams and Human Arts."
The symposium is free and open to the public. For a complete list of symposium topics and information about the Humanities Center, visit http://research2.wayne.edu/hum/Humanities/symposium/symposium.html or call (313) 577-5471.
About the Humanities Center
The Humanities Center at Wayne State University is dedicated to promoting interdisciplinary research in the arts and humanities through the funding of several faculty and student fellowships, grants, and other awards.
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Wayne State University is a premier urban research university offering more than 400 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 32,000 students.