The focus of Ontario's educational reform is literacy and numeracy, and there is a move to teach literacy in all subject areas. Teachers are also to include character education and environmental awareness in instructional planning. Curriculum guidelines direct teachers to teach cross-disciplinary core concepts--Big Ideas such as change, systems,…

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how a large comprehensive family and consumer sciences unit has incorporated sustainability into its curriculum and research agenda. It summarizes how each area within the department (Interior Design, Apparel Design and Merchandising, Consumer Affairs, Family Studies, Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food…

The STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) movement has developed from a non-educational rationale. Although some think it may enliven the delivery of maths and science in classrooms, the social and economic rationales are those that have initiated this movement. Spurred on by the global financial crisis, it is hoped that…

Language is both a means and an end in educational systems. As a means to learning, it manifests itself in countless, shifting modalities; while as an end or objective of learning, it is often perceived as an autonomous, formal entity. Through a case study of an interdisciplinary secondary school project in Luxembourg, this paper explores the…

Integrating the visual and performing arts is one clear and concrete strategy to engage students in learning social studies content and concepts while making them interactive and relevant to their daily lives. In this article, the authors offer a rationale for teaching integrated arts with social studies, provide a framework for planning, and…

In this study, I explore the role of the "small schools" context on the development and learning of two first-year urban high school teachers with respect to equity-focused teaching. Analysis points to specific ways in which the small schools context fostered teaching for social justice: strong student-teacher relationships, interdisciplinary…

Indiana's declining SAT scores prompted the publisher of a statewide magazine covering the literary, performing, and visual arts to take action and create a program to use the magazine as a supplemental resource for students. It was believed that such a supplemental resource could enhance critical thinking and writing skills and help raise SAT…

Secularism is controversial in today's political debates, championed by some and vilified by others. So when Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., opened a center for the study of secularism in September 2005, some people worried that it could become a source of friction on campus--yet another battleground in the culture wars that are wreaking havoc…

To form and orchestrate intelligent groups is a real challenge for 21st-century education and research. In this paper the authors show how a regional state university was able to facilitate interdisciplinary research and education through forming an interdisciplinary institute. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)

This phenomenological study examined the impact of Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) teacher-developed curriculum on teaching styles and strategies at two RET sites with common Legacy Cycle training. The study was conducted to assess and document program-specific and National Science Foundation (NSF) goals related to classroom practices and…

Data literacy is recognized as a critically important skill in today's society, but thinking with and about data is often ignored in K-12 curricula. The Thinking With Data (TWD) project advocates that data literacy is a skill that should be addressed in an interdisciplinary manner. This article provides an overview of the TWD curriculum for middle…

The author's specialization as a Christian theologian is in the combined area of morality and spirituality. The focus of his teaching and research has been in the areas of bioethics; the theology of sexuality, marriage, and the family; and Christian spirituality. In his research he came across several authors who advocated some positions different…

Introducing the general education curriculum in a required first-year seminar can be challenging. However, it provides a great opportunity to influence students' perceptions. The results of this study indicate that doing so increases student appreciation for general education and increases student confidence in general education course selection.…

Since 2002 the authors have offered an undergraduate major in Mathematical Biology at Harvey Mudd College. The major was developed and is administered jointly by the mathematics and biology faculty. In this paper the authors describe the major, courses, and faculty and student research and discuss some of the challenges and opportunities they have…

Because quantitative biology requires skills and concepts from a disparate collection of different disciplines, the scientists of the near future will increasingly need to rely on collaborations to produce results. Correspondingly, students in disciplines impacted by quantitative biology will need to be taught how to create and engage in such…