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Funny you say that not all kids are meant to go to college or university, talk about useful skills, and then talk about people being taught dependence.

One of the main benefits of a liberal arts education is honing critical thinking. In a world awash in misinformation and conspiracy theories, I wish more people were taught to think independently, instead of just function.

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Liberal arts are useful, but they’re not an end onto themselves. Too many kids study liberal arts as an end in itself where they expect a professional job out of it. It’s not their fault. The education system sets them up for that.

> kids study liberal arts as an end in itself where they expect a professional job out of it.

Your statement here is self-contradictory, or perhaps you intended to write “means to an end” instead of “end in itself”? (The two are opposites.)

Liberal arts honing critical thinking has got to be one of the biggest scams. As for that matter most education..

Can you point to any empirical basis like a study for that statement?

Here's a paper called "The Effects of Liberal Arts Experiences on Liberal Arts Outcomes" that seems to suggest otherwise. https://www.wabash.edu/news/docs/ASHE_LAE_proposal_2006.pdf

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