Robert Zimmer was one of the keynote speakers at yesterday¡¯s Times Higher Education and Thomson Reuters conference, Building a World-Class University, held at the Royal Institution in London.

Among his themes, as he looked at the past and future ¡°evolution¡± of universities, were the demands placed on the modern university by the global knowledge economy.

Professor Zimmer noted that ¡°many employers are eager to find persons who can move most easily into positions as quickly as possible, and since more of these positions require specialised knowledge¡­it is important, this argument has it, that universities focus students¡¯ education on attaining such specialised knowledge.

¡°This, it is argued, is an appropriate evolutionary step for universities given the evolution of knowledge and society.¡±

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However, Professor Zimmer said there are ¡°serious problems with this argument¡±.

He suggested that the world is actually a complex web of networks, rather than a set of isolated specialisations.

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A key feature of this network, he argued, is the need to integrate specialisations that may cross disciplines and cultures.

¡°Thus, an education is called for that embraces both specialised knowledge and a synthesising, integrating perspective across disciplines,¡± Professor Zimmer said.

¡°It is this ¨C not an overly simplistic view of a world of specialisation ¨C that we are really called upon to respond to.¡±

He argued that this view ¡°implies that a liberal arts component of education is, if anything, only of more value¡±.

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And such an education should be focused on ¡°teaching students a habit of mind to integrate ideas, to understand problems from multiple perspectives, and to challenge conclusions that may be too deeply rooted in only one perspective¡±.

john.morgan@tsleducation.com

? For full coverage of yesterday¡¯s conference, see Times Higher Education on 7 October.