What is the role of Science in a Liberal Arts education?

The Liberal Arts, by definition, includes Humanities and the Sciences—Social, Mathematical and Natural. The word ‘Arts’, however, has come to mean the Humanities in some contexts. For example, during Isaac Newton’s time, his area of work was called Natural Philosophy, not Physics. The terminology of disciplines evolves and changes but not the content.

Ashoka’s inclusion of the Natural Sciences was a natural progression of its Liberal Arts programme. We already have Mathematics, Computer Science and Psychology (a Science in my view), and now we are introducing Physics and Biology from the coming academic year. Chemistry will be introduced later. The Sciences have different and additional infrastructural needs—such as laboratories for experimental work—and so had to be introduced accordingly. Integrating the Natural Sciences in the programme is essential to accomplish the ambition of a 21st-century Liberal Arts undergraduate education.

Years ago, Harvard did not offer engineering because MIT was down the road. And MIT didn’t introduce Humanities because Harvard offered it. Now they offer both. There is something about a holistic education in an institution that gives it a strong, pedagogic foundation as well as makes it cutting-edge.

Will Ashoka’s Sciences be different from the others?

The content of the curriculum will not be radically different. For example, we studied the undergraduate curriculum in Physics of 100 universities across the world, and it was pretty much the same. What constitutes the foundation of Physics is well accepted and understood. The differences lie in its adaption to pedagogy in a classroom or a lab and in ‘discovery learning’. The delivery of our Sciences programme will be concept- driven,

towards understanding and comprehension, rather than rote learning or memorising. But, being in a Liberal Arts programme, the students will study the history, philosophy, politics, social responsibility and ethics of Science, which are often absent in undergraduate curricula in the country.

Our graduates will be intellectual multitaskers with an understanding of a broad range of disciplines. They will develop ‘transdisciplinary skills’, including communication skills, which are increasingly valued in the workplace.

Similarly, we also expect that the presence of the Natural Sciences will have a beneficial effect on the Humanities and Social Sciences at Ashoka as well.

What kind of research will the Ashoka Sciences drive?

We believe that if you provide people with information and not concepts, they cannot drive anything. The idea is to teach the Sciences in a way that students can approach knowledge in a broader sense. We expect that our undergraduates will benefit from and, in some cases, even participate in research that the faculty will conduct. Young people bring fresh approach to old problems and their participation enriches research activity.

Research in the Sciences at Ashoka will be influenced by the ethos of a Liberal Arts programme. But additionally, in keeping with Ashoka’s commitment to social engagement, our research could address issues with a larger local impact. We could perhaps look at diseases such as diabetes that affect the subcontinent more prominently than other countries. Or matters of ecology and the environment: Could we research on developing crops that could be sustained with lower rainfall in some places?

We would like to be alert to our surroundings, be it local, global or universal. Our research could have a much bigger impact if we are successful. But we will not dilute scientific rigour and discipline, which are essential for real and sustainable progress of our knowledge in the long run.