Interdisciplinary Teaching at the High School Level

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Interdisciplinary Teaching at the High School
Level

• Robert W. Smith
• Brooke Hazelwood
• Whitney Clay
• University of North Carolina Wilmington

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Integrated Curriculum definition

• Education that is organized in such a way that
  it cuts across subject-matter lines, bringing
  together various aspects of the curriculum into
  meaningful association to focus upon broad areas
  of study. It views learning and teaching in a
  holistic way and reflects the real world, which
  is interactive. (Shoemaker)

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Main components

• combination of subjects
• an emphasis on projects
• sources that go beyond textbooks,
• relationships among concepts
• thematic units as organizing principles
• flexible schedules
• flexible student groupings (Lake).

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Forces for Change

• National Association for Secondary School
  Principals Breaking Ranks II Report, 2004
• The high school will reorganize the traditional
  department structure in order to integrate the
  schools curriculum to the extent possible and
  emphasize depth over breadth

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Collaborative Leadership / Professional Learning
Communities
Principal Vision, Direction Focus Site
Counsel Staff
Redefine teacher role Personal Learning Plans for
Principal Teachers Political/Financial
Alliances Five-Year Review
Small Units Flexible Scheduling Democratic
Values 90-Student Maximum
Higher Education Partnerships Celebrate
Diversity Coaching Students
Improved Student Performance
Personal Plans for Progress (PPPs) Personal
Adult Advocate Families as Partners
Essential Learnings Alternatives to
Tracking Integrated Curriculum Real-World
Applications Knowledgeable Teachers Integrated
Assessment
Caring Teachers Activities/Service Tied to
Learning Community Learning Critical
Thinking Learning Styles Youth Service
Personalizing Your School Environment
Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
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Forces for Change

• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - 922m for
  high school reform
• Support for small high schools 3Rs
• Rigorous Instruction Challenging all students
  with high expectations
• Relevant Curriculum Helping students connect
  their studies to the real world
• Meaningful Relationships Fostering supportive
  relationships between students and adults

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Forces for Change

• New Schools Project, NC. Supporting
  theestablishment of forty-five small high
  schools across the state.
• Characteristics
• - highly personalized environments
• - integrated and relevant curriculum

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Arguments for Interdisciplinary Approach

• Avoids the fragmented acquisition of isolated
  facts. Insteadstrength of interdisciplinary
  approach is in developing students ability to
  make connections and solve multifaceted problems
• Offers more meaningful learning to students
• Meaningful learning will increase student
  achievement

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Research

• The evidence in support of benefits of
  Interdisciplinary approach tends to be anecdotal.
  Few studies particularly looking at effects on
  learning.
• Cordogan, 2001, 4 Year study comparing students
  in an interdisciplinary program (I.P.) (n247)
  and those in a traditional discipline-based
  program (n161)
• Findings
• Students in I.P. had consistently lower absence
  rates, generally lower suspension rates.
• Freshmen scores on Iowa Test of Ed. Development
  were equal or higher
• ACT data, much higher of IP students took the
  test and slightly higher scores
• IP students were more likely to graduate from
  high school
• Recognizing some limitations of the study,
  concluded that the findings solidly support the
  continuation of IP.

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Challenges to Implementing an Interdisciplinary
Approach

• Resistance of experienced faculty
• Misinformed parents
• High-stakes testing and the focus on learning
  discrete information
• Ensuring that the roles traditionally served by
  dept. chairs are met in the reorganization of
  responsibility

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The Lyceum Academy

• An Interdisciplinary Approach to Secondary
  Education
• An integrated curriculum of the four core
  subjects within the junior and senior years.
• A team of four teachers teach social studies,
  English, science, and math within a four-hour
  block of time.
• The team stays with the students through their
  senior year.

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The Journey Begins..

• A challenge from G.Thomas Houlihan, Johnston
  County Schools.
• Project Genesis
• Interdisciplinary projects experiment.
• Four teachers were hooked.
• Of the things we were exposed to during our 3
  year educational reform process, several works
  really stuck out and became the theoretical basis
  of what was to become the Lyceum.

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Principles and Beliefs
The teacher is the single most important factor
that affects student performance. Schools
should be thoughtful places where students
develop the intellectual habits necessary for a
successful life. (Sizer, Horaces School) We
believe that schools should create a community of
learners who support each other in their
educational endeavors.
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Principles and Beliefs cont.
Schools must teach children how to use the
knowledge they acquire. This is more than the
mere practical application of a technical skill.
(Sizer, Horaces School) We believe an
integrated curriculum is vastly superior to a
modular one. When separated into distinct
disciplines, education becomes disjointed.
(Marzano, A Different Kind of Classroom)
Students possess multiple intelligences and that
a comprehensive education should teach to all
intelligences. (Lazear, Seven Ways of
Knowing)
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The Lyceum Academy
100 students, 4 teachers, one in each of the
core academics. 2 year course of study.
Integrated curriculum b/w the core academics to
demonstrate relevance to the real world.
Requires many thought-provoking projects which
require much insightful discussion and
synthesis of material. Assumes homeroom
responsibility for fostering a constant
advisor/advisee relationship - we are constantly
an advocate for the students future.
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The Lyceum Day
Flexibility in scheduling is essential. Lyceum
students are assigned to the program for 4
continuous hours from 730 AM to 1140 AM each
day. Teachers decide the time needed for each
subject and amend the schedule daily. This
allows for maximum utilization of our
educational environment. The remainder of the
day, students leave The Lyceum to take
additional elective classes. The faculty uses
these last 2 blocks of time for student
remediation, group planning and individual
planning.
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• Normal
• Schedule

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• Seminar
• Schedule

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• Group
• Project
• Schedule

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Junior Year Curriculum
The Junior Year focuses on the United States.
There is a natural connection between United
States History and American Literature. Honors
English 3 or AP Language and Composition Honors
US History or AP US History Biology 2 or AP
Biology Honors Algebra 2 or Pre-Calculus
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Some Integrated Activities

• Scopes Trial and Evolution (Biology)
• English connections Actually get to read The
  Crucible, The Scarlet Letter, The Jungle,
  Narrative of Frederick Douglas, Thoreau
  Emerson, Huck Finn
• Decades Project (English History)

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Senior Year Curriculum
The Senior Year focus is more global with the
driving force being Environmental Science.
Honors British Literature or AP
Literature Honors Government Politics or AP
Government Politics Honors Environmental
Science or AP Environmental Science Honors
Discrete Mathematics or AP Calculus
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Some Integrated Activities

• Calculating Compactness (fairness of
  gerrymandered Congressional Districts
• Policymaking and the Environment
• Calculating fair voting procedures
• EPA and Consumer Regulations

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Sample Project
Life Goes On.................. In 3 words I can
sum up everything Ive learned about life-it goes
on Robert Frost In a 5 minute oral biography,
followed by a 3 minute question/answer session,
you will demonstrate an understanding of material
covered thus far in the four core academic
classes. Using your assigned name, birth date and
place, death date and place, and artifact, create
an historically accurate life that applies your
knowledge of the four disciplines. Incorporate 3
tools from the multiple intelligence toolbox to
enhance your presentations. Be sure to address
each of the points listed below Core
Academics US History Illustrate how 5
significant events or trends in US History
impacted the life of your
character. Math Explain how 2 mathematical
concepts covered in Algebra 2 or Pre-Calculus
have application in your characters
life. Science Demonstrate the application of 2
areas of study in the field of Biology and their
effects on your characters
life. Language Given an artifact you must
write a narrative story in first person from the
viewpoint of the artifact
describing a significant event. Maximum of 2
pages, double spaced, 12 point
font, Times New Roman.
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BEYOND THE ACADEMICSCreating the Community

• Location

Involvement

• Student Advisory Board
• Parent Advisory Board

Communication
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Implementing Interdisciplinary Instruction In
Your Classroom

• Varying degrees of implementation, start small
  and work up to larger scale lessons
• Ask for teachers input from other disciplines as
  a collaborative effort

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Creating an Interdisciplinary Lesson

• Choose an anchor
• Civil Rights
• topic of interest
• Research
• A starting point
• BE CREATIVE

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Varying Techniques

• Social Studies is most often associated and
  enriched by the addition of English
• Math and Science are also easily incorporated

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Incorporating Math and Science

• Math
• Albert Einstein and his contributions to the
  civil rights movement
• Science
• Understand three types of DNA testing that can
  provide data about ancestry, difference between
  genetic ancestry and "race."

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Incorporating English

• English
• Discuss influential writers and journalists of
  the civil rights era
• Richard Wright
• Ralph Ellison
• Gwendolyn Brooks

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Presentation Available http//people.uncw.edu/smi
thrw/InterdisNCCSS.ppt
Dr. Robert Smith smithrw_at_uncw.edu Brooke
Hazelwood sbh1029_at_uncw.edu Whitney Clay
wclay_at_nhcs.k12.nc.us