The term often used to describe the commitment of universities to continue teaching less popular subjects, for the sake of maintaining academic rigour and integrity, is “academic stewardship.” This concept embodies the responsibility of higher education institutions to preserve and transmit knowledge across all fields of study, irrespective of their current popularity or direct utility in the job market. Academic stewardship recognises the intrinsic value of all disciplines in contributing to a well-rounded, comprehensive education and the advancement of society as a whole.
This approach advocates for a broad and diverse curriculum that upholds the importance of all academic disciplines. It supports the idea that universities should not solely focus on subjects with high student demand or clear career pathways but should also protect less popular or more specialised fields of study. The underlying belief is that every field of knowledge, whether in the arts, humanities, or certain pure sciences, plays a crucial role in fostering critical thinking, cultural awareness, and intellectual diversity.
Academic stewardship is crucial for ensuring that expertise in narrower or less commercially driven subjects remains available to educate future generations and contribute to the body of global knowledge. It also reflects a commitment to intellectual diversity, acknowledging that today’s less popular subjects might become tomorrow’s essential disciplines.
[Written and illustrated with the help of ChatGPT 4 and Dall-e 2.]