Integrating Curriculum
The dilemma of an expanding curriculum, a fragmented school day and classroom experiences that do not reflect life outside school walls are real issues to all educators.
It seems that our lives become more fragmented every day. There's too much to accomplish and too little time to get it done, especially in a classroom. But the traditional subject matter divisions continue to persist. At the elementary school level, subjects get divided into “morning” and “afternoon” time slots, leading kids to observe that math is something you do in the morning and social studies happens after lunch. In high school the fragmentation is worse. Students search for meaning in the subject matter they encounter while shuttling between discrete blocks of classes that bear little relevance to the lives they lead outside campus walls.
Concurrently, the world is demanding more highly skilled workers, who can problem solve on their feet in the middle of a production run; scientists who can integrate solutions for global problems with economists, governments and expanding population demands on finite natural resources; politicians who are statesmen, economists, naturalists, and leaders; business owners who can be innovative, adapt to new market changes and compete comfortably in multiple foreign markets; and individuals who can work independently while linked to many global work groups through computer technology and satellite communications.
How will students in this century learn the skills of integration, the primary characteristic needed in the 21st Century, from their educational institutions today? Through the art of curriculum integration.
If our goal is to prepare children to become lifelong learners and competent decision makers, then we must help them make connections between real life and academic skills, concepts and attitudes. Studies show that students participating in an interdisciplinary approach have fewer discipline problems, improve their attendance, increase homework completion and have better attitudes toward school and lifelong learning. Teachers are encouraged to adopt a holistic approach to teaching and learning. Even with this new emphasis on a ’wholeness“ approach, it’s not obviously clear what is meant by an interdisciplinary or integrated curriculum. Let's take a look at an innovative new approach to integrating curriculum, the Scottish Storyline Method.
