Two University of Rhode Island teachers, of journalism and economics, designed student projects simulating real interactions between professional journalists and economists. The projects increased both groups' ability to communicate, awareness of communication needs, interdisciplinary understanding, and mutual respect. (MSE)

By focusing on a polluted river and a visit to a rural Tennessee town, sixth-grade students from suburban Asheville, North Carolina, learned more about this controversy than many of their well-informed parents and teachers. Steps for creating similar interdisciplinary thematic units are described, along with the benefits of team teaching and…

Describes the development and implementation of interdisciplinary four world studies courses at Queens College (City University of New York). Discusses the planning process in which teaching teams from the social sciences and humanities developed course content and objectives. States that the courses were designed to be part of the undergraduate…

Describes teachers' efforts at a New Jersey middle school to learn alternative assessment strategies and implement a portfolio system. As they became more student-centered and interdisciplinary colleagues, these teachers realized they needed new student assessment tools. Portfolio neophytes are advised to start small and simple, using a limited…

Describes a team-taught, interdisciplinary multimedia-development course for undergraduate students that was created to address issues concerning students' needs to learn how to evaluate and develop applications for new communication technology. Topics include a collaborative-learning model; course objectives; and student assessment. (Author/LRW)

Describes the evolution of a collaborative initiative involving undergraduate and graduate students in two teacher education programs. The article maintains that this collaboration, integrating language pedagogy and science instruction, is necessary for teachers who are to collaborate in schools and create enhanced interdisciplinary classroom…

Describes a transformative experience in an interdisciplinary course on multicultural families and the xenophobia they experience. The course was created in collaboration with students in order to achieve a more authentic teaching-learning experience. Four pedagogical implications are offered regarding interdisciplinary perspectives, collaborative…

One of the most important functions of a teacher is to help students make important connections between the subject matters they study. Too often, the different curricular subjects, such as social studies, language arts, math, and science, are presented to students in a vacuum. Accordingly, many students leave school without ever noticing the…

In Portland State University's Freshman Inquiry program, 5 teachers, each from different disciplines, meet weekly to design the syllabus and the assignments used by all of the sections which are designed around the theme of "The City: Visions and Realities." A participant observer takes field notes and studies these for ways to extract…

This collection of essays on Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) defines terms, presents helpful suggestions, and provides models for useful documents (everything from workshop evaluation forms to contracts for visiting consultants). After a preface by Elaine P. Maimon, the collection's 12 essays are: (1) "Writing Across the Curriculum: An…

The CHEMATH course at Edmonds Community College integrates instruction in algebra and chemistry. The course emphasizes problem-solving techniques and relies on active learning through the use of structured group process techniques. CHEMATH is team taught by science and math faculty and is intended primarily for students planning to major in…

The goal of this year-long project was to foster coherence throughout the humanities program, an interdisciplinary, team-taught sequence of four required undergraduate courses. The humanities program has no faculty of its own, but draws instructors from existing departments throughout the university. Growth of the program has brought…

This research investigation focused on a middle school interdisciplinary team of teachers in an attempt to understand how such an arrangement, as an aspect of school organization, has the potential to influence teacher interactions and the classroom practices of teachers. Major sources of data were the interactions among participant teachers as…

The Illinois State University Elementary Teacher Education CORE Program is described. The four-semester program provides for extensive preservice clinical experiences both at on-campus and off-campus locations, an interdisciplinary teaching of content and methods, and a culminating semester at an off-campus Teacher Education Center. The program…

This publication contains suggestions from specialists in a number of disciplines for use in initiating a teaching team approach in consumer education. Following an overview of consumer education, the contributions of these disciplines to consumer education are discussed: (1) agriculture, (2) art, (3) business education, (4) continuing education,…