Ken Robinson describes how subjects are often "hermetically sealed" from one another in schools and how emphasis is generally placed on math, language, and science. While these subjects are important, it means focus is lost on other topics such as art and humanities, despite the fact that they are interconnected with every other area of learning.
One example of integrated learning that I particularly liked was mentioned by Drake and Burns, and was writing opinions on the disposal of hazardous waste. While this seems like a very straightforward task, it can be used to incorporate elements of the language, social studies, and science curricula. Ideas of environmental stewardship are part of both social studies (e.g. responsible land and resource use) and science (e.g. protection of natural habitats and ecosystems) and can be brought together using the language curriculum as a framework for the expression of ideas. Student products could take the form of reports, essays, oral presentations, or even a technology such as a podcast. This is just one example of how different strands can be brought together to bring meaning to a task or project, rather than simply having students do things like read a book and write an essay about it, which is too common in language classes. The isolated nature of our subject areas means a loss of potential learning opportunities for all students, and I can identify with this gap personally. The example of providing opinions on the disposal of hazardous waste spoke to me because it would be an opportunity for someone such as myself that is very interested in science and nature to fulfill requirements of the language curriculum, rather than simply being asked to analyze a given book, which I have no personal interest in.
One of the main goals of teaching an integrated curriculum is to teach to "tomorrow's" workforce, or to 21st century learners. Both of these labels are somewhat dated, but express the idea that there has been a shift from fact-based to skill-based learning. Skills identified by the LCISD are collaboration, problem-solving and innovation, knowledge construction, skilled communication, self-regulation, and use of ICT. These are mere elaborations on the "four Cs" of modern education: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. By integrating curricula you allow students to identify connections between different aspects of their learning as well as real life, which helps develop enduring understandings (the "big ideas") about the world in which we live.
The New York Times just published a rather harsh review of numeracy in America. In the article Andrew Hacker relates how students "can't see how the formulas connect with the lives they'll be leading" and that more emphasis needs to be placed on "citizen statistics," or the everyday uses of mathematics. A decade ago, I would have scoffed at these assertions, but the more time I spend in front of a class, the more I realize there is a clear disconnect between math class and reality.
I did my placement in a grade eight classroom, teaching only math. I must admit that I love math, and excelled at it when I was in school, but after applying to McMaster for the math program, I eventually switched to chemistry. Here I did math all day long, but applied it to another discipline. Taking this idea in hand to my placement, I thought I would incorporate concepts from science into our fractions unit. I threw velocity and energy questions (all using the fractions concepts we were learning) into the mix, and the students vehemently objected. "This is science, not math." One student said. I nearly fainted.
The older I get, the more I realize everything in life is connected. Perhaps I spend more time reflecting nowadays, or perhaps I was just brought up to think that every strand of the curriculum existed in its own little bubble. I'm not sure. But there really needs to be more emphasis on this idea and practice in our schools. An integrated curriculum will help students learn to adapt and apply concepts in a wide range of situations, and not just fall back on claims like "This is science, not math."
I began by mentioning math because I see so many connections between math and social studies. Demographics, land area, climate, and economy are just a few of the many ways data management crosses over between the two subjects. And while statistics are just one way math can be applied to social studies, critical thinking and reasoning skills from social studies could also be very useful in math. My students were very good at doing rote calculations of mean, median, and mode (during my observation days), but fell flat when it came to making inferences and drawing connections between context and data. By giving students real world applications of mathematics via the social studies curriculum, it will allow them to make meaningful connections in their work and improve their retention of knowledge in both strands.
One example of integrated learning that I particularly liked was mentioned by Drake and Burns, and was writing opinions on the disposal of hazardous waste. While this seems like a very straightforward task, it can be used to incorporate elements of the language, social studies, and science curricula. Ideas of environmental stewardship are part of both social studies (e.g. responsible land and resource use) and science (e.g. protection of natural habitats and ecosystems) and can be brought together using the language curriculum as a framework for the expression of ideas. Student products could take the form of reports, essays, oral presentations, or even a technology such as a podcast. This is just one example of how different strands can be brought together to bring meaning to a task or project, rather than simply having students do things like read a book and write an essay about it, which is too common in language classes. The isolated nature of our subject areas means a loss of potential learning opportunities for all students, and I can identify with this gap personally. The example of providing opinions on the disposal of hazardous waste spoke to me because it would be an opportunity for someone such as myself that is very interested in science and nature to fulfill requirements of the language curriculum, rather than simply being asked to analyze a given book, which I have no personal interest in.
One of the main goals of teaching an integrated curriculum is to teach to "tomorrow's" workforce, or to 21st century learners. Both of these labels are somewhat dated, but express the idea that there has been a shift from fact-based to skill-based learning. Skills identified by the LCISD are collaboration, problem-solving and innovation, knowledge construction, skilled communication, self-regulation, and use of ICT. These are mere elaborations on the "four Cs" of modern education: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. By integrating curricula you allow students to identify connections between different aspects of their learning as well as real life, which helps develop enduring understandings (the "big ideas") about the world in which we live.
The New York Times just published a rather harsh review of numeracy in America. In the article Andrew Hacker relates how students "can't see how the formulas connect with the lives they'll be leading" and that more emphasis needs to be placed on "citizen statistics," or the everyday uses of mathematics. A decade ago, I would have scoffed at these assertions, but the more time I spend in front of a class, the more I realize there is a clear disconnect between math class and reality.
I did my placement in a grade eight classroom, teaching only math. I must admit that I love math, and excelled at it when I was in school, but after applying to McMaster for the math program, I eventually switched to chemistry. Here I did math all day long, but applied it to another discipline. Taking this idea in hand to my placement, I thought I would incorporate concepts from science into our fractions unit. I threw velocity and energy questions (all using the fractions concepts we were learning) into the mix, and the students vehemently objected. "This is science, not math." One student said. I nearly fainted.
The older I get, the more I realize everything in life is connected. Perhaps I spend more time reflecting nowadays, or perhaps I was just brought up to think that every strand of the curriculum existed in its own little bubble. I'm not sure. But there really needs to be more emphasis on this idea and practice in our schools. An integrated curriculum will help students learn to adapt and apply concepts in a wide range of situations, and not just fall back on claims like "This is science, not math."
I began by mentioning math because I see so many connections between math and social studies. Demographics, land area, climate, and economy are just a few of the many ways data management crosses over between the two subjects. And while statistics are just one way math can be applied to social studies, critical thinking and reasoning skills from social studies could also be very useful in math. My students were very good at doing rote calculations of mean, median, and mode (during my observation days), but fell flat when it came to making inferences and drawing connections between context and data. By giving students real world applications of mathematics via the social studies curriculum, it will allow them to make meaningful connections in their work and improve their retention of knowledge in both strands.
