History majors rock, and so do arts majors; Trump tweets
History majors
Re “What’s so bad about liberal arts?” (Viewpoints, July 4): A history scholarship award winner at Sierra College recently told me that one of her counselors tried to steer her away from a history major toward one that was more practical. This is shortsighted and wrong. The big push by bureaucrats and administrators is to get students in and get them out as quickly as possible. This makes some sense, but not complete sense. A student with a passion in any academic discipline, with eyes wide, should pursue it. As far as employing liberal arts majors, who wouldn’t want a graduate who can communicate orally and write critically, look contextually at problems and seek an understanding of their place in society and life? Maybe it won’t get your name branded on casinos, but is that really important in the larger scheme of things?
David Kuchera, Sacramento
Arts majors
Any discipline can be taught to students in a manner that encourages creative thinking and application. But the arts are uniquely positioned to cultivate habits of creative thinking. High school students studying the arts are motivated to use their imagination, and learn valuable life lessons such as the importance of taking chances and learning from mistakes. These aspects of an arts education have been neglected due to the emphasis on standardized testing. Workers capable of creative thinking are needed. Creative people will develop innovative solutions to the complex problems that face society today.
Christina Chin-Newman, Castro Valley
Tweeting Trump
Re “Donald Trump’s voter fraud panel wants your personal information. It’s ridiculous.” (Editorials, July 5): What’s next? Maybe information on people who makes fun of his inane tweets. That list would also be longer than the people who voted for him.
Terry Skjelstad, Fair Oaks
EXTRA LETTERS ONLINE
Find them at:
sacbee.com/letters-to-the-editor
HOW TO SUBMIT
Online form (preferred):
www.sacbee.com/submit-letter
Other: Letters, P.O. Box 15779,
Sacramento, CA 95852
150-word limit. Include name, address and phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity, brevity and content.
This story was originally published July 6, 2017 at 8:59 AM with the headline "History majors rock, and so do arts majors; Trump tweets."