Experimenting with Interdisciplinary Science

Water: A Powerful Theme for an Interdisciplinary Course

“…(My earlier experience at a traditional liberal arts college pointed out the need to find faculty in other key disciplines who are supportive of interdisciplinary teaching. The good news is that faculty and college administrators seem much more supportive of such ventures than they were 10 or 15 years ago and many successful efforts have been reported in this Journal (11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16). From a career point of view, it must be recognized that what students see faculty doing in organizing and interconnecting to present such a course is what they, the students, will more and more be expected to do when they enter the profession.…”

Supporting STEM Education in Secondary Science Contexts

“…• fosters an understanding of connections among principles, concepts, and skills across discipline specific domains (Jordan, 1989;Nikitina & Mansilla, 2003); • arouses students' curiosity and sparks their creative imagination and critical thinking (Capon & Kuhn, 2004); • helps students to understand and experience the process of scientific inquiry (Biggs, 2003;Hmelo-Silver, 2004;Ramsey, Radford, & Deese, 1997;Stepien, Gallagher, & Workman, 1993); • encourages collaborative problem-solving and interdependence in group work (Biggs, 2003;Pease & Kuhn, 2008;Ward & Lee, 2002); • expands students' knowledge of mathematical and scientific knowledge (Engel, 1991;Tchudi & Lafer, 1996;Torp & Sage, 2002); • advances active knowledge construction and retention through self-directed study (Dodds, 1997;Ward & Lee, 2002); • fosters connections among thinking, doing, and learning (Goodnough & Cashion, 2006); • promotes student interest, participation, and increased attendance (Lieux & Duch, 1995); and A. Asghar, R. Ellington, E. Rice, F. Johnson, and G. M. Prime…”

Connecting Chemistry to Mathematics by Establishing the Relationship between Conductivity and Concentration in an Interdisciplinary, Computer-Based Project for High School Chemistry Students

“…Interdisciplinary refers to the generation of new concepts and theories by integrating concepts, methods, and theoretical frameworks of different disciplines, so as to generate new insights and understandings of problems encountered in scientific research . The goal of making connections between different disciplines has led to many courses that have linked chemistry to other fields, such as biology, geology, philosophy, art, forensic science, industry, or the environment. − Through the study of interdisciplinary courses, students understand the role of one subject in another, which may provide them with new approaches and new ideas to solve problems.…”