Connecting unseen dots

This session is based on research being undertaken around interdisciplinarity in Welsh schools (Mathew) and ongoing research around STEAM education and Transdisciplinarity, with a particular emphasis on the role of the Arts (Carolyn). During the session we explored definitions of interdisciplinarity as activities which are a little like a stew – you can still identify some of the different ingredients (the disciplines) but they are slightly ‘mushed’ together and collectively create something more than the sum of their individual parts. In this way, the disciplinary knowledge is still important, but there is a focus on what is created as a whole, in the interchange between the disciplines.

Acknowledging that both Wales and Scotland have curricula structures that promote interdisciplinary learning, we also acknowledged that structures and policies don’t always lead to significant changes in pedagogic practices, and therefore there is more to do in shaping the narratives about what we are doing, why and how. We explored these issues through a series of interactive response sections to three key questions:

• Why is interdisciplinary learning important?
• Where and how does interdisciplinary learning work well?
• What enables interdisciplinary learning?

In exploring each question, we discussed the imperative of shifts in how knowledge is created, who and how it is accessed and how it is shared, where the role of distinct disciplinary knowledge that is fixed, is challenged by the information ‘turn’. We also discussed the UNCR 21st Century Skills, and specifically the role of competencies such as critical thinking, creativity, communication and collaboration, which are all underpinned by a more democratic view of who and how we generate new thinking (including children and young people). In response to the final question, Mathew shared some initial findings from his research showing that what young people and students bring into the educational space is often underreported, and considered in discussions of interdisciplinarity, despite their ‘lived’ experience in a thoroughly interdisciplinary world.

Transcript