To keep up with rapidly advancing technology, numerous innovations to the electrical and computer engineering (ECE) curriculum, learning methods and pedagogy have been envisioned, tested, and implemented. It is safe to say that no single approach will work for all of the diverse ECE technologies and every type of learner. However, a few key…

Anyone who has been involved with a cross-disciplinary team that combines scientists and information technology specialists knows just how tough it can be to move these efforts forward. Decades of experience point to the transformative potential of technology-enabled science efforts, and the success stories offer hope for future efforts. But for…

Molecular life science is one of the fastest-growing fields of scientific and technical innovation, and biotechnology has profound effects on many aspects of daily life--often with deep, ethical dimensions. At the same time, the content is inherently complex, highly abstract, and deeply rooted in diverse disciplines ranging from "pure…

"Health, Technology, and Aging" is a course developed to address three significant contemporary trends: aging populations, increasingly ubiquitous technology, and the economic imperative to encourage entrepreneurship. Course content is a blend of gerontology, informatics, and entrepreneurship designed for nonbusiness majors. Six…

This case study, written for use in a multidisciplinary course, exposes students to concepts in business law, economics, and statistics. The case is based upon a hypothetical scenario involving a young woman who, having spent a relaxing day at the beach, heads for home. On the drive home, a flip-flop she is wearing becomes lodged under the gas…

The Striving Readers program aims to support literacy interventions for adolescent readers in middle and high school. In 2006, Springfield Public Schools and Chicopee Public Schools were awarded $16,655,483 over five years for the Springfield/Chicopee Striving Readers Project. Both districts are located in southwestern Massachusetts and have a…

A universal problem to our society is the dramatic increase in the number of security threats, risks, and vulnerabilities to our nation's computer systems, data, and infrastructure. Our future success depends upon the problem-solving and thinking abilities of professionals entering the Information Assurance and Security (IAS) field. These…

In this article, the author gives an autobiographical account of his learning experiences and the lessons he learned from his lecturers. The author learned what he subsequently found is supported by experience and research, that the informal is as necessary as the formal. He also learned that teachers and students need to interact spontaneously,…

Numerous critics of the social studies have argued that the four-year pattern of chronological history courses in place in most U.S. schools was suddenly and pervasively replaced by interdisciplinary courses recommended by the NEA Committee on Social Studies report in 1916. In this historical study, the author challenges this view. By drawing upon…

This paper examines how separate behavioral science disciplines can be brought together to more fully understand the dynamics of contemporary careers. We adopt one interdisciplinary framework--that of the "intelligent career"--and use it to examine how separate disciplinary approaches relate to one another. The intelligent career framework…

Funding agencies in Canada are attempting to break down the organizational boundaries between disciplines to promote interdisciplinary research and foster the integration of the social sciences into the health research field. This paper explores the extent to which biomedical and clinician scientists' perceptions of social science research operate…

"What does it mean to "find home"?" and "How might an experience and understanding of "home" be represented and enhanced by the art form of collage?" These are the two questions that have been guiding my work and life for several years, in ways this article describes. I outline some basics of my initial…

This article describes a classroom art project inspired by the work of Robert Frost, one of the most acclaimed and beloved American poets of all time. Using tints and shades in a composition, this project demonstrates how quality literature may be incorporated into elementary art lessons in a very useful way, making art an important complement to…

Continuing interprofessional education is the means by which experienced health, social care, and other practitioners learn with, from, and about each other, formally and informally, to improve their collective practice and to cultivate closer collaboration. It applies principles of interprofessional education through media commonly employed in…

The goal of this volume is to provide an overview of interdisciplinarity and American higher education. It focuses on the impact of interdisciplinary work related to the functions of teaching, learning, and research. The landscape of higher education contains multiple areas where such a process might run afoul. For example, how does…