San José State University : Center for Faculty Development : Strategies for Faculty and Staff

Strategies for Faculty and Staff

Some suggested strategies for helping students engage in integrative learning are noted in various publications. The following are suggested in Mapping Interdisciplinary Studies (1999) by Klein, p. 16; published by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U):

Organize courses around a topic, theme, issue, idea, problem, or question
Cluster disciplinary courses around a particular theme or field of interests
Link disciplinary courses with integrative seminars or discussion groups
Devise courses and units that reflect on the process of integration
Team teach
Build learning communities
Use particular integrative approaches, such as systems theory, feminism, and textualism
Give students models of interdisciplinary knowledge and integrative process
Require integrative portfolios
Offer residential living-learning experiences
Foster interdisciplinary approaches to fieldwork, internships, travel-study, and service learning