In 1930, the great Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset set
forth a program for reforming the modern Spanish university. Aware
that the missions of the university are many and often competing,
Ortega built his program around a conception of a "general culture"
that knows no national boundaries or time limits and could fit into
any national system of higher education. His ideas are especially
pertinent to contemporary debate in America over curriculum
development and the purpose of education.
In this volume Ortega sought to answer two essential questions:
what is the knowledge most worth knowing by all students and what
is the function of the university in a modern democracy? Basing his
answers on his own deep personal culture and an extensive knowledge
of the various European university systems, Ortega defined four
primary missions: the teaching of the learned professions, the
fostering of scientific research, training for political
leadership, and finally the creation of cultured persons with the
ability to make intellectual interpretations of the world. Ortega's
understanding of "general culture" is set out in great detail here.
He meant an active engagement in ideas and issues that were both
historical and contemporary. His concern is with the classical
problems of justice, the good society, who should rule, and the
responsibilities of citizenship.
In his informative and brilliant introduction to this new
edition, Clark Kerr, a lifetime student of Ortega's work, analyzes
Ortega's ideas in their historical context and speculates on how
the great issues he dealt with here can be made contemporary for
modern students facing the challenges and uncertainties of the
twenty-first century. Mission of the University and its new opening
essay will be of interest to educationists, social scientists, and
above all the students of this era.
General
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