Sustainability Education Across Boundaries: A Pedgogy of Complexity
Type of Session
Full Presentation Panel
Abstract
More and more college graduates entering the professional work force of the 21st century are confronted with multi-causal “wicked” problems that cannot be effectively addressed through the lens of any one discipline. In response to this dilemma, various models of multi-disciplinary instruction are emerging in higher education as pedagogical approaches better suited to the realities and complexity of real-world problems. Nowhere is this movement to transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries more evident than in sustainability education.
This panel seeks to explore the pedagogical and institutional challenges of multi-disciplinary team-teaching in sustainability education. We focus on all three dimensions of sustainability; thus, our inquiry encompasses the natural and social sciences and the humanities. Our analysis ranges from the mundane yet unavoidable obstacles and opportunities within the realm of curricula policy and bureaucracy, to more fundamental pedagogical issues associated with holistic approaches to curriculum development. By examining how experiences with multi-disciplinary team-teaching vary by disciplinary combinations we gain insights into the synergy and challenges of epistemological pluralism. Longstanding disciplinary traditions and curricular policies coupled with institutional fiscal realities raise questions about the viability of multi-disciplinary team-teaching as an enduring pedagogical innovation. Thus, we conclude by exploring supra-disciplinary approaches to sustainability education focused on preparing students to tackle the challenges of adaptive management at the human-environment interface.
Primary Contact
Dr. Nancy J Manring, Ohio University
Presenters
Dr. Will Focht, Oklahoma State University
E-mail address (preferred) or phone number
Title of paper
Sustainability Education: A Supradisciplinary, Complexity-based Curricular Framework.
Dr. Susan Caplow, University of Montevallo
E-mail address (preferred) or phone number
Title of paper
How does interdisciplinary teaching differ by discipline? An exploration of experiences at University of Montevallo
Dr. Jeffrey Ayres, Saint Michael's College
E-mail address (preferred) or phone number
Title of paper
Building Disciplinary Bridges and Crossing International Borders: The Environmental Study of Sustainable Places in Vermont and Wales
Dr. Jessica Templeton, London School of Economics
E-mail address (preferred) or phone number
Title of paper
Multidisciplinary teaching in the social sciences: Addressing the challenges of epistemological pluralism
Dr. Jonathan Silverman, Ph.D., Saint Michael's College
E-mail address (preferred) or phone number
Title of paper
Building Disciplinary Bridges and Crossing International Borders: The Environmental Study of Sustainable Places in Vermont and Wales