Journal Entry #5

In English Studies, one debate I found interesting is "The Problem of Specialization." It was not only an academic debate, but a cultural one as well. Joe Moran states that the division of labor has many negative consequences while David Easton looks at the problem at a more academic level. He uses the nursery rhyme "Humpty Dumpty" to help illustrate how academics are becoming specialized and "fragmented" but nobody can deal with everyday problems, like nobody could put Humpty Dumpty back together. In the text, it says that the new divisions in academics makes people only focus on their personal specializations rather than understanding or being an expert in the entire discipline. However, John Dewey argues that school's did not create this problem. Our culture and the world we live in shaped the need to have specialized programs. I disagree with a lot of this, because I simply do not think academic specialization is a bad thing. In school, students are required to take some General Education (or "GenEd") courses that helps give them a basic understanding of other disciplines. But, why should I have to learn copious amounts of material that I know I won't use once I start a career? With specialization, it helps prepare people for jobs in the future rather than have to learn how to perform once they obtain the job. The academics want to argue this case, however, because they believe it needs to be fixed before it gets out of hand, and this is where I disagree.