Why interdisciplinarity? Interdisciplinary learning and teaching have become increasingly popular across different levels of education. They suggest new ways of working and offer a number of benefits, including: Deep engagement with complex challenges Ability to solve problems and develop critical thinking Increased relevance and responsiveness to the world Learning with a wide range of collaborators […]

As discussed in What is interdisciplinarity? there are various approaches available that allow us to work between disciplines in different ways. One model that has been very popular, in a variety of educational contexts, is challenge-led learning. Richard L. Wallace and Susan G. Clark argue that ‘[i]nterdisciplinarity is inherently “problem-oriented” – that is, its theory […]

Collaboration is an important, and often essential, part of interdisciplinary learning and teaching; it can take various forms. However, teamwork is not always well supported in learning programmes and collaboration is sometimes just expected to happen. This section highlights the benefits of teamwork for learners. It provides some resources and tasks to support collaborative learning […]

One of the challenges of interdisciplinary education is how to engage learners with the wide range of research methods available from across the disciplines. Complex projects with multiple opportunities and demands can reach their full potential if the right methods are selected and practised with confidence and creativity. At the start of a new project, […]

Interdisciplinary learning and teaching often challenge established models and offer alternative ways of knowing and responding to the world. This is explored at the level of classroom activities and lesson plans throughout TILT, in sections on working with challenges, methods for interdisciplinary practice, collaboration and ethical practice. This section addresses how assessment can be authentically […]

Education in formal institutions has historically been a site of both exclusion and oppression through various means, including the top-down imposition of curricula, knowledge, values and constructs. This institutional baggage, combined with entrenched and often outdated educational models, can be at odds with what is needed to deliver meaningful interdisciplinary learning and teaching. The approaches […]