Martina Juričková

by E. Ciprianová

De Greef, L., Post, G., Vink, Ch., Wenting, L.: Designing Interdisciplinary Education: A Practical Handbook for University Teachers. Amsterdam University Press, 2017. 180 pp. ISBN 978 94 6298 476 9

Since the 1990s  interdisciplinarity has been at the centre of interest of educationalists, teachers and curriculum developers across various academic backgrounds. The handbook under review significantly contributes to the promotion and development of an interdisciplinary mindset of teachers and students at university level of education. It comprises eleven chapters in which the team of four experts presents the reader with their ideas on interdisciplinary teaching and learning based on twenty years of experience at the Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Amsterdam. 

In Chapter 1 “Introduction”, the authors provide the rationale for interdisciplinarity in university education. So, what is an interdisciplinary approach all about? According to the authors, it appears as a response to an increasingly complex and interconnected modern world. Many contemporary global challenges concern all of us and require new workforce. Therefore, there is the need for raising university students as  “integrative thinkers“  (p.10) with developed “interdisciplinary thinking skills” (p.12). Interdisciplinarity arises from the necessity to find solutions to complex, real-life problems by combining insights, concepts and methods from diverse disciplines. The proposed curriculum design is based on John Biggs constructive alignment (CA), an outcomes-based approach to teaching in which students take active roles in constructing meanings connecting new knowledge with their previous experience. The handbook is primarily intended for university teachers and curriculum developers who are interested in developing and implementing an interdisciplinary approach in their classrooms. Indeed, the following ten chapters in the handbook clearly and persuasively fulfil the objectives the authors state in the Introduction.

Chapter 2 “An overview of the development stages” describes major steps in the curriculum design process, which always has to start with the creation of an interdisciplinary team of academic staff members who are willing to cooperate and cross the departmental boundaries. Their communication and collaboration skills, flexibility, creativity, empathy, and commitment constitute the foundation for success. In this chapter, the authors offer a five-staged cyclical plan involving: the analysis stage (clarifying the impact and scope of the interdisciplinary programme), the design stage (formulating the learning outcomes), the development stage (defining teaching philosophy, didactic and assessment methods), the implementation stage (interdisciplinary teaching), and the evaluation stage (evaluating and adjusting the programme).

The definition of the notion of interdisciplinarity, in comparison to the related terms “multidisciplinarity” and “transdisciplinarity”, is the starting point of Chapter 3 “Unravelling interdisciplinary understanding”. The key characteristics of interdisciplinary education are the integration of insights and methodologies from several, often disparate, disciplines to explore the same subject.  The clarification of the central concept is vital for educators to precisely formulate learning outcomes of an interdisciplinary programme or course. Above all, the understanding of the essence of interdisciplinarity serves as a precondition for putting the theoretical ideas into practice, which necessarily involves building three major skills: critical thinking, collaboration and reflection.

The next chapter, Chapter 4 “Developing the raw sketch” sets the framework for drafting an interdisciplinary programme and provides numerous examples, factors and questions to be considered by the development team. At this initial stage, the choice of a theme or a problem  relevant to the newly-designed programme takes a particular significance.

Chapter 5 “Formulating interdisciplinary outcomes” makes the concept of interdisciplinarity in university education even more tangible. Basically, in this chapter the reader will find answers to two fundamental questions regarding the skills, attitudes and knowledge an ideal graduate should possess upon the completion of the programme and how these can be turned into measurable learning outcomes of individual courses. At the course level design, the selection of content, sequencing and specific learning activities all have to be carefully taken into account to identify what will be taught and how. 

Chapter 6 “Embedding integration in the programme design” addresses the complexities of interdisciplinary curriculum development. In fact, the teams can face many challenges posed by the depth and breath of knowledge to be incorporated into teaching. This view is particularly important, and it is obvious that the authors do not try to create a false impression by presenting the synthesis of various perspectives during programme development as an easy task. On the positive side, they show the ways to cope with a variety of options and provide illustrative education formats to reach the balance between disciplinary knowledge and interdisciplinary training, and thus facilitate a successful integration and decision-making within teachersʼ teams.

Chapter 7 “Hiring and engaging faculty” leads the reader further into the process of developing interdisciplinarity in real classroom settings. Teachers are central to the effectiveness and success of any educational endeavour. In a similar vein, the authors claim that teachers “are the most important pillars of the programme” (p.92). The chapter focuses on the selection of interdisciplinary team members: highly motivated, knowledgeable professionals who possess not only knowledge of their fields but also courage to shift from their expert roles to become co-learners in the classroom environment. Other qualities, such as collaboration, enthusiasm, tolerance, and mutual respect, are indispensable in all interdisciplinary initiatives.

Chapter 8 entitled “Exploring the teaching philosophy and didactic methods” presents a statement of shared beliefs and practices as common ground for the clarification of  “what the teaching team considers as good teaching” (p.110). In order to achieve interdisciplinary understanding, priority is given to pedagogical strategies promoting authentic experience, such as collaborative and problem based-learning (PBL), for example, case studies or community service projects with the potential to create connections  among academia, science, and society. 

Following the detailed  account of designing and development of interdisciplinary curriculum, Chapter 9 discusses “Assessment of interdisciplinary learning outcomes”. In addition to outlining general criteria, the authors present four assessment forms (portfolio assessment, assessment of group work, assessment of interdisciplinary work from multiple perspectives, and student-centred assessment) which they consider most significant for evaluating the effectiveness of interdisciplinary teaching. Each of these forms merits and is given proper focus.

As the title indicates, Chapter 10 “Interdisciplinary teaching in practice” bridges the gap between curriculum design and the actual teaching of interdisciplinary classes. This chapter equips the reader with well-defined suggestions on how to create a safe learning environment and which techniques to use for enhancing interdisciplinary skills. Specifically, it focuses on reflective functioning (studentsʼ ability to reflect on their knowledge, needs and feelings), collaboration (studentsʼ ability to collaborate and communicate effectively within teams) and critical thinking. 

Having discussed the implementation, the final Chapter 11 “Programme assessment and adjustment” calls attention to the evaluation of the programme. The assessment procedures, either formal or informal, serve two main purposes: to discover whether the intended learning outcomes have been achieved and to get feedback from teachers and students revealing whether their expectations have been met. Conducting the evaluation also provides opportunities for refining, adjusting and improving the quality of the interdisciplinary programme.

In sum, the handbook succeeds in its stated mission as all chapters in a logical progression demonstrate how “interdisciplinarity lies at the heart of academic practice” (p.8). The authors tacitly assume that the reader is not a complete novice to the field of educational design, but they offer very transparent step-by-step guidance and practical advice for university educators on how to implement an interdisciplinary approach in their teaching. A concise, easy-to-follow presentation of theoretical insights and best practices is the major handbookʼs strength. It contains as many as 27 different case studies. The reader will certainly benefit from frequent checking questions for reflection, brainstorming activities accompanying individual sections, and other interactive tasks attached to the chapters. The reader-friendly approach adopted by the authors is further supported by the visual organization, the overall layout of the handbook, and the inclusion of colourful tables and diagrams. To conclude, the reviewed handbook encourages teachers, regardless of their specialties or experience, to overcome the existing individualistic, isolated, silo mentality and replace the established frameworks with collaborative efforts that are equally important for both teachers and students.