Purpose: This study aims to assess the effectiveness of active teaching methodologies, namely, problem-oriented learning and the case method, to develop sustainability competencies. It also analyses the advantages and challenges for teachers when implementing the sustainable development goals (SDGs) in eight undergraduate and postgraduate degrees…

Many traditional engineering schools are struggling to balance the calls to provide an innovative engineering education that meet the demands of graduates and their employers with the constraints and momentum of their existing curriculum. In this paper we present the conceptual design behind a framework that integrates existing discipline-specific…

Purpose: The achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) for all communities and jurisdictions require a comprehensive roadmap that encompasses all dimensions of data infrastructure, social, economic, environmental and governance ecosystems. With this in mind, this paper aims to establish the link between the curriculum and intended…

A recent trend in developed countries' school curricula has been the transition from disciplinary to generic forms of knowledge, resulting in an emphasis on interdisciplinary organisation and more active forms of learning. Subject specialists are increasingly expected to demonstrate how their subject interconnects and equips pupils with key life…

Many of the actions of Colombia's National Programme for the Development of Foreign Languages (Programa Nacional de Desarrollo de Lenguas Extranjeras--PNDLE) have been carried out in elementary and secondary education, but there is not much information about its impact in institutions of higher education. The aim of this article is to present the…

In his seminal work connecting composition studies and sustainability, Derek Owens (2001: 8,6) notes that "learning how to live sustainably ought to be our primary cultural concern and, as such, must play a central role in our curricula". Within composition studies, Owens suggests that sustainability might begin with the study of the environment,…

As the result of an extensive self-study for the purpose of reaccreditation, the Department of Theology at The University of Portland began offering a new series of courses called Theological Perspective Courses (THEP). THEP courses are upper division and offered by theology faculty in conjunction with another department that has required core…

Recently, the Modern Language Association (MLA) called for a major reorganization of undergraduate academic programs and even the structure of foreign-language departments. Typically, the initial two years of language instruction are taught by non-tenure-track instructors with little or no voice in the department. Faculty members mainly teach the…

Department chairpersons should guide their departments to meet contemporary challenges by focusing on fostering student learning more effectively, stimulating faculty development, and engaging in curriculum development that responds to new academic syntheses and multidisciplinary approaches. (JB)

Graduate degree programs in the University of Minnesota Graduate School are set up without formal reference to departments. The graduate faculty having governance of a given major field generally includes scholars in more than one department. The idea of transdisciplinary programs is thus widely accepted. Problems arise, however, when it comes to…

Stresses the importance of speech communication departments defining their goals for the next five to ten years and then implementing a curriculum to achieve these goals. Suggests investigating the development of new programs in health communication, communication management, public information, or programs for disadvantaged students. (PD)

The programs that will become the chief medium for giving women's studies a permanent place in the academic world are those in which scholars with other intellectual affiliations and interests work simultaneously (1) to develop women's studies and (2) to integrate its materials into the long-established university department. (MLW)

Liaison between departments and disciplines has been achieved at the University of Minnesota, where the teaching of the basics of psychiatry relating to medical practice has been the responsibility of the faculty of the Department of Medicine. Benefits to staff and residents are discussed. (LBH)

Describes the development of the communication program at Illinois State University during the last 10 years. Explores the type of curriculum changes that are required for communication study to survive. (PD)

Discusses the trend in colleges and universities toward interdisciplinary instruction organized under a Communication Arts program, but deplores the decline of English as a discipline. (RB)