The Liberal Arts Foundation’s Impact on Critical Thinking and AI

I started as an art major, switched to English literature as an undergraduate, then pursued business communication in graduate school. That foundation in literature gave me something I use every single day: historical perspective, the precision of well-crafted language, a deep understanding of grammar that shapes meaning, and insight into how social norms evolve over time. These aren’t academic curiosities. They are the building blocks of how I think.

A recent article from the World Economic Forum caught my attention because it addresses what many of us are grappling with—how education must evolve in the age of AI. The article argues that experiential learning through entrepreneurship and real-world problem-solving should become the primary mechanism for developing critical thinking skills. I agree that experience matters. But we need to be careful about what we are willing to set aside in that evolution.

The True Value of the Liberal Arts

The liberal arts—philosophy, sociology, history, literature—teach the roots of critical thinking. They show us not just what people did, but why they did it. They reveal patterns in human behavior, systems of belief, and the consequences of ideas over time.A background in the liberal arts pushes deeper analysis because it trains the mind to recognize when something doesn’t add up, when an argument has gaps, or when a solution treats symptoms rather than root causes.During my years in corporate roles, I often shared a critical-thinking worksheet with my teams. At first glance, it looked basic: Who, What, Why, When, Where, and How. But beneath each category were layered questions that rarely got asked. For example:

• Who have you heard discuss this—if anyone, and why is that important?
• What is most important, and what is least important, when analyzing this situation?
• When could this become a problem?

These questions require moving beyond the obvious—understanding context and anticipating consequences. What I discovered was that the worksheet was largely ignored, because most people assumed they already knew it. Going deeper takes time, effort, and intellectual discipline—skills developed through wrestling with complexity, competing philosophies, and uncomfortable questions.Liberal arts training teaches us to recognize the unseen angles of a situation—and to prepare accordingly.

AI Is a Tool, Not a Replacement

The World Economic Forum article rightly acknowledges that AI has changed the game. But information without judgment, direction, or purpose is an empty egg. AI can generate text, analyze data, and produce arguments faster than any human. What it cannot do is determine whether those arguments make sense in context, whether they address the right problem, or whether they are grounded in genuine understanding.It’s often a dead giveaway when AI is used without human judgment. The voice flattens. Insights become generic. Sentences and “facts” don’t quite align. Because AI is computer-generated, it doesn’t understand the specific situation, audience, or nuance that actually matters. AI cannot be creative without ideas and guidance.

Why This Matters Now

We saw this shift coming. We are in an era where organizations are cutting resources and seeking people who think differently—not those who can merely prompt AI, but those who can think independently, creatively, and critically.The liberal arts prepare us to question assumptions, look beneath the surface, and connect ideas across disciplines. They teach us how to analyze, philosophize, and recognize when logic breaks down. That strength carries into any field, any role, any challenge.This isn’t about memorizing facts or writing code. AI has already surpassed us there. It’s about knowing how to think—and how to question.

The Path Forward

AI has been part of most fields for far longer than we often acknowledge. The answer is not to abandon what has always made us effective thinkers, but to strengthen it. The liberal arts foundation that many dismissed for decades has always been a powerful differentiator.The future isn’t about producing more content; it’s about better thinking. Liberal arts training doesn’t compete with AI—it disciplines the mind that uses it.