Bring ARTS and SCIENCE together to educate the next generation

When I was young--please don't ask the exact number of years ago--I was somehow made to believe that students whose grades were not very impressive should study arts and give up their dream of ever becoming an engineer or a businessman. 

By dividing the high-school level into arts and sciences, somebody from our Education Ministry obviously believed that it was much better to pigeonhole us and shatter our dreams early. In fact, this is completely opposite to the system followed by international high schools, where students are allowed to take both subjects.

Sadly, several decades later many Thai teachers, advisers and school administrators still believe in this myth of keeping arts and science separate.

Recently, I read that the Education Ministry is trying to launch a new plan under which students will be allowed to take a wide range of arts and science subjects - or shop around and see what they really like - before declaring their major after a year or two. This is exactly what many world-class universities around the globe have been doing. 

Unfortunately, I seriously doubt that this will happen soon here. 

Currently, most university curricula have been designed in such a way that students take as many similar sets of classes as possible for easy management and, perhaps, more financial profit. Even though there are a few "free elective" courses, students are, despite the title, frequently offered little freedom to choose and their advisers even encourage them to take classes in their major field for deeper, instead of broader, knowledge and experience.

In addition, nowadays some universities even enrol a selected group of promising high-school students as early as one year into their high-school education. These elite students, while still taking high-school classes full-time, spend their afternoons and evenings at universities, listening to special lectures and taking classes that professors believe will help prepare them for university education. Once in a while, a professor from a different field talks to them.

However, little connection is made between arts and sciences, and apparently they are not trained to use both sides of their brains.

As a result, we have many university graduates who not only work alike but also think alike. That indeed sounds like mass manufacturing, which is fast, easy and meets market demands, while ignoring individuality. The fact that many Thai businessmen spend most of their free time in golf courses with associates and in department stores with their families, rather than at exhibitions, concerts, museums, plays, etc, only proves that the quality of the lives of our current working population is not that high.

Recently, thanks to Singapore's National Arts Council, I visited a new initiative in arts education called "School of the Arts" (SOTA).

On the outside, considering that talented students are admitted into the school right after primary school, to concentrate on four subjects - dance, music, theatre and visual arts - it seems as if they are trying to start a future for professional artists from the young age of 13.

In actuality though SOTA is far more intriguing. It is not their rigorous training in arts, but rather the other classes they offer - analysis, research and communications; English literature; Singapore's four official languages; humanities and social sciences; as well as physical and life sciences, for example. The most impressive principle is obviously how they encourage their students to "build connections between disciplines for purposeful and meaningful learning, and enduring understanding". These crossovers are built not only among various disciplines of arts, but also between arts and sciences.

For instance, "Rhythm in Music and Poetry" is co-taught by English literature and music teachers; "Motion and Geometry" and "Sequences" classes are led by music and maths teachers; "Golden Ratio and the 1/3 Rule" by maths and visual arts teachers; "Balance" by dance and science teachers; and "Light-boratory" by science and theatre teachers. The list goes on.

With the mission "of creating a vibrant environment for learning that is uniquely anchored in the arts, celebrating experimentation, expression and discovery, with the aim of developing leaders who will draw on their creative talents to enrich society", it is evident they are investing time, effort, and, of course, money in individuals for the future.

At the end of their six years at this unique school, some may or may not go on to become professional artists, but they will definitely become HIPs or highly individual persons who know what they want in life and how science and art are relevant and integral to life.

In my previous articles, I proposed that more collaboration be made among artists of various disciplines and traditions, resulting in more contemporary work and an expansion in audiences. Would it be too much if I were to suggest that educators at all levels look at the possibility of finding a connection between arts and sciences so that the vision of our next generation is not as narrow as mine?