CHIANG MAI, Thailand -- The chorus of university critics in general keeps increasing, both in numbers and intensity. In a way, the debate is natural -- as every institution seems to need adjustment in this cataclysmic era of globalization -- as well as beneficial for correcting eventual shortcomings and addressing new areas of activity. My own horizon is circumscribed by personal experiences with universities in the Far East, especially with regard to the field of humanities, liberal arts, social sciences, etc. I will leave the area of the sciences to those truly qualified to speak with authority and knowledge.
My initial reaction is astonishment at the declining interest in what we could define as "theoretical studies" or "humanities" in a broad sense. The emphasis is shifting further from these traditional fountainheads of knowledge toward what is perceived as more practical, more substantial and more rewarding in times of fierce professional competition: Science, business administration, information technologies, etc.
Of course, this is the current of our times and no one can swim against the stream. Nor would it be wise to try to assign various subjective levels of importance to the variety of academic disciplines. But we should not go to the extreme of striking out altogether the humanities, as they will be always relevant if our aim is the wholesome progress of the human race.