working across multiple disciplines

An Odd Assortment of People: Benefits of Working and Learning Across Multiple Disciplines


This presentation includes a discussion of how university researchers and instructors were recruited from multiple disciplines in order to implement an integrative and interdisciplinary learning environment for high school students. The high school students learned several science and technology topics related to hurricanes and produced a multimedia documentary of personal experiences with Hurricane Katrina. A discussion of the results and benefits to all participants is also included.
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PURPOSE The purpose of this presentation is to discuss how to recruit interdisciplinary researchers and instructors and design and manage an interdisciplinary learning environment that is grounded on relevant research and theory. The project for discussion included instructional design and development faculty, instructional design and development graduate students, teacher education and media specialist graduate students, and counselor educators from a College of Education; faculty from meteorology from a College of Arts and Sciences; graduate assistants from a College of Engineering; a high school principal; and professionals in the community (television newscasters, videographers, and an area water system administrator). The learning environment involved a high school/university collaboration where students learned several science and information technology topics related to hurricanes and produced a multimedia documentary of personal experiences with Hurricane Katrina. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK The design of the learning environment was grounded on relevant research and theory that included Keller’s (1987) ARCS Model of Motivation, analysis of critical incidents requiring contribution from several different disciplines (Carter, Kang, & Taggart, 1999), links between informal and school-based learning (La Velle, McFarlane, & Brawn, 2003; Reynolds, Treharne, & Tripp, 2003), and constructive activities related to the disaster that are helpful to people who experienced the disaster (Lazarus, Jimerson, & Brock, 2002; Vernberg & Vogel, 1993). The learning environment was designed so that students participated in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) experiences that were relevant to what happened in their lives as a result of the hurricane. METHODS Strategies for designing the learning environment were developed before the project was conceived. For example, seeking out knowledge of potential interdisciplinary collaborators must be at the forefront of the plan. With knowledge of the work of others in mind, the next step is to initiate a discussion. This begins the collaboration process and one discussion leads to other contacts and discussions. In addition to the university faculty involved in the project, most of the graduate assistants working on the project were teachers and/or media specialists enrolled in a graduate educational research class. The graduate assistants’ participation was associated with an optional assignment for the class. The project provided an opportunity for the graduate assistants to collaborate and conduct research with the university faculty and high school students in a technology-enhanced learning environment. The graduate students also had the opportunity to gather information about student motivation in science and information technology, the use of digital technologies, the design of learner-centered activities, and the management of a technology-enhanced learning environment. DATA SOURCES In this particular instance, knowledge of interdisciplinary collaborators came from colleagues within the Instructional Design and Development program and Counselor Education program in the College of Education. Knowledge of other interdisciplinary collaborators from other colleges came from paying attention to sources of information such as internal university news reports of special projects undertaken by faculty throughout the university, announcements at organization-wide meetings, and articles of special interest in local newspapers. For the purposes of studying the effectiveness of the project, several instruments were used that included the Attitude Toward Science and Mathematics Scale (Teshome, Maushak, & Athreya, 2001), the Computer Attitude Questionnaire (Knezek, Christensen, & Miyashita, 2000, the Impact of Event Scale - Revised (Horowitz, Wilner, & Alvarez, 1979; Sundin & Horowitz, 2003; Weiss & Marmar, 1997), the Hostility-SCL-90, the Modified Depression Scale, reports of interviews with students who participated in the project, reports of interviews conducted by the students themselves within the community, and students’ written reports of their experiences in the class. Evaluation instruments such as those just described are often used in design and development research studies (Richey & Klein, 2007). RESULTS The results of the interdisciplinary recruitment led to the inclusion of instructional design and development faculty, instructional design and development graduate students, teacher education and media specialist graduate students, and counselor educators from a College of Education; faculty from meteorology from a College of Arts and Sciences; graduate assistants from a College of Engineering; a high school principal; and professionals in the community (television newscasters, videographers, and an area water system administrator). Just as important, the students participating in the project worked in a highly collaborative environment. The development of the final hurricane documentary was a collaborative effort of the high school students, the graduate students, and the university faculty. In addition, the digital photos and videos taken during learning activities serve as a chronicle and evidence of the integrative science and technology standards met with this project. IMPLICATIONS FOR SECONDARY EDUCATION This project required the use of information technology within applications of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The high school students received guidance and instruction from university faculty and professional role models from a variety of disciplines. The students fulfilled actual work requirements that included critical thinking and problem solving, gathering and analyzing information, communicating orally and in writing, collaborating with culturally diverse members of a team, and organizing and presenting information with the use of information technology. IMPLICATIONS FOR GRADUATE TEACHER EDUCATION Most of the graduate assistants working on this project were teachers and/or media specialists enrolled in a graduate educational research class. The graduate assistants’ participation was associated with an optional assignment for the class. This project provided an opportunity for the graduate assistants to collaborate and conduct research with the university faculty and high school students in a technology-enhanced learning environment. The graduate students also had the opportunity to gather information about student motivation in science and information technology, the use of digital technologies, the design of learner-centered activities, and the management of a technology-enhanced learning environment. REFERENCES Carter, S., Kang, M., & Taggart, R. (1999). An interdisciplinary approach to a critical incident course. Journalism & Mass Communication Educator, 54(2) 4 – 14. Horowitz, M., Wilner, N., & Alvarez, W. (1979). Impact of Event Scale: A measure of subjective stress. Psychosomatic Medicine, 41(3), 209 – 218. Keller, J. M. (1987). Strategies for stimulating the motivation to learn. Performance & Instruction, 26(8), 1 – 7. Knezek, G., Christensen, R., & Miyashita, K. (2000). Instruments for assessing attitudes toward information technology (2nd ed.). Institute for the Integration of Technology into Teaching and Learning, University of North Texas. Retrieved February 5, 2009, from http://www.iittl.unt.edu/IITTL/newiittl/iittl_instruments/caq/iittl_caq_main.html La Velle, L. B., McFarlane, A., & Brawn, R. (2003). Knowledge transformation through ICT in science education: A case study in teacher-driven curriculum development – case-study 1. British Journal of Educational Technology, 34(2), 183 – 199. Lazarus, P. J., Jimerson, S. R., & Brock, S. E. (2002). Best practices in school crisis prevention and intervention. Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists. Reynolds, D., Treharne, D., & Tripp, H. (2003). ICT – the hopes and the reality. British Journal of Educational Technology, 34(2), 151 – 167. Richey, R. C., & Klein, J. D. (2007). Design and development research: Methods, strategies, and issues. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. Sundin, E. C., & Horowitz, M. J. (2003). Horowitz’s Impact of Event Scale evaluation of 20 years of use. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65(8), 870 – 876. Teshome, Y., Maushak, N., & Athreya, K. (2001). Attitude toward informal science and math: A survey of boys and girls participating in hands-on science and math (FUNTIVITIES). Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering, 7(1), 59 – 74. Vernberg, E. M., & Vogel, J. M. (1993). Part 2: Interventions with children after disasters. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 22(4), 485-498. Weiss, D. S., & Marmar, C. R. (1997). The Impact of Event Scale – Revised. In J. P. Wilson & T. M. Keane (Eds.), Assessing psychological trauma and PTSD (pp. 399 – 411). New York: Guilford.