This study explores science teachers' views regarding Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) pedagogy and its interdisciplinary nature. It also seeks to identify teachers' views on the contextual factors that facilitate and hinder such pedagogy in their schools. Qualitative methodologies were used through focus group discussions…

Continued agricultural productivity hinges on understanding how to manage soil resources. A 2-week undergraduate introductory-level module: "A Growing Concern: Sustaining Soil Resources Through Local Decision Making" was collaboratively developed through the InTeGrate Project. InTeGrate modules and courses engage students in grand…

Statistics is taught in mathematics courses in all school levels. We suggest that using rich tasks in statistics can develop statistical reasoning and create both intra and interdisciplinary links in students. In this paper, we present three case studies where middle school mathematics teachers used different tasks in lessons on pie charts. We…

An interdisciplinary science course has been implemented at a university with the intention of providing students the opportunity to develop a range of key skills in relation to: real-world connections of science, problem-solving, information and communications technology use and team while linking subject knowledge in each of the science…

There is a growing interest in STEAM (STEM + Arts) education nationwide. To uncover why these interdisciplinary initiatives can play a significant role in the student educational experience, it is crucial to identify characteristics of university students, who are participating and enrolled in STEM and arts curricula. We are interested in students…

University programs are currently faced with a number of challenges: how to engage students as active learners, how to ensure graduates are "work ready" with broad and relevant professional skills, and how to support students to see their potential as agents of social change and contributors to social good. This paper presents the…

This descriptive and interpretive case study investigates how 12 undergraduate college students perceived participation in their high school Senior Capstone Project (SCP) impacted their college academic experience. Learning transfer was explored from the learner's perspective. Data was collected using qualitative methods in three sequential phases…

The Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneurship (HESE) Program engages students and faculty across Penn State in the rigorous research, design, field-testing, and launch of technology-based social enterprises that address global development challenges. HESE ventures are embedded in a series of five courses that integrate learning,…

Increasing complexity is one of the most pertinent issues when discussing the role and future of design, designers and their education. The evolving nature of digital media technology has resulted in a profession in a state of flux with increasingly complex communication and design problems. The ability to collaborate and interact with other…

College and university educators seek to increase student engagement in learning content, skills, and applications. To achieve this goal, we used transformative teaching techniques in the design of a World Challenge: a two-week, group-based, reflective course for sophomores leading their own learning in developing creative solutions to the problem…

This study explored qualitative variation in first year undergraduates' induction into the discipline in four dimensions: (1) induction into disciplinary knowledge; (2) induction into disciplinary research; (3) integration of learning from different courses; and (4) induction into disciplinary skills. Data were drawn from focus groups with…