the challenges of interdisciplinary team teaching
TRANSCRIPT
Strategies for Success in Interdisciplinary Team Teaching
Dr. Michael FurickSchool of BusinessGeorgia Gwinnett College
Dr. Jennie StearnsSchool of Liberal Arts (English)Georgia Gwinnett College
Clicker practiceI am …….?
1. Female2. Male3. Other
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What is interdisciplinary team teaching?
Two or more teachers from different disciplines
Integration of disciplines to create and teach
Synthesis of disciplines, as opposed to a multi-disciplinary approach which adds disciplines together
Concepts exist across a continuum
Cone, Park, & Cone, 1998
Advantages of Interdisciplinary Teaching
Life is interdisciplinaryEmployers want students to work
and think in teamsNew careers blur the discipline lines
◦(bioengineering, neuroscience)Technology replacing linear models
of knowledge acquisition with broad-based models disregarding specialty
Have you ever taught a course as part of an interdisciplinary team?
1. Yes2. No3. Other/Guest lecture
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Would you team teach again?1. Yes2. No
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If “No”, then why not?1. Not interested2. Too many issues3. Maybe in the
future4. Other
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Lower schools use team teaching frequently
79% of middle school principles use interdisciplinary teaching teams
(Valentine, Clark, Hackman,Petzko,2002)
Studies show it improves student achievement
(Felner, Jackson,Kasak,Mulhall, Brand,Flowers, 1997)
Advantages at the college levelGains from multiple perspectiveso Instructors discuss content, style,
alternatesoMini-peer review everydayo Two “experts” in every class with
different perspectives on the same subject
Students see teamwork in actiono Instructors model the workplace
environment
College use of interdisciplinary teaching is mixed
Stanford has 1000 faculty in its program
(Elam,Matson,Eckert,Roberts,2007)
Others have no formal program (Felner, Jackson,Kasak,Mulhall,
Brand,Flowers, 1997)
Does your institution have a program to foster interdisciplinary teaching?
1. Yes2. No3. Maybe/ in progress
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Issues – philosophical and pragmatic Philosophicalo Better suited to fostering thinking skills than to
delivering contento A two-faculty classroom has less central
authority and can be less efficient
Pragmatico Requires more effort and timeo Requires flexibility and compromiseo Misperception among peers/dean about
workloado Administration has to agree (e.g. course credit)
This studyCourse:
Communicating in the Business Environment• Team taught by Business School faculty and
English faculty for two semesters o (Fall ’08, Spring ’09, total of 57 students)
• Two semesters taught by Business faculty onlyo(Summer ’09, Fall ’09, total of 77 students)
Intention was to provide individual writing and speaking attention to students and improve their communication ability
Concepts exist across a continuum
Cone, Park, & Cone, 1998
Fall 2008 Spring 2009
Discussion
Course design•Syllabus designoEnglish dept or business schoolooutcomes & learning objectives
•Textbook selection
•Faculty presence in each class o Partnership method rather than connected or
shared method
•Assignmentso number and type; content vs. style
Discussion
Logistics• Professor course credit & workloado Admin support for expense of using two
teachers for one classo Impact on other obligations
•Grading methods•Multiple classrooms may be needed• College not set up to do this
naturally
Discussion
Managing student expectations•Need to be prepared for two
teachers• Style issues – English course vs.
business course•Grading – rubrics and other
strategies for guaranteeing consistency•Whom to ask for help?
Sample of student commentsFall 2008
◦Did not like having two professors
◦Different teaching styles - hard to go between them
◦Two professors graded assignments differently
Sample of student commentsSpring 2009
◦Dealing with two professors for one class
◦Two professors made the course much more challenging
◦The other sections did not have two professors so why did my class
◦Did not like that the speeches were given twice
Discussion
Course Evaluations• Separate evaluations for each
instructor•Whom to evaluate•What to evaluate
Would you expect student performance in an interdisciplinary class to be:
1. Better than a one professor class
2. The same as a one professor class
3. Worse that a one professor class
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For those that have team taught , did your student learning outcomes improve?
1. Yes, quantitatively2. Yes, qualitatively3. No4. Did not measure
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Impact on outcomes was positiveMean student grade = 80.4% for
the interdisciplinary semesters
Mean student grade = 77.2% for the traditional one faculty semesters
T-test indicates that this is significant
Finally, items for faculty successItems for successPlanning (key, but time-
consuming)Managing interpersonal relationsAttending every lectureUsing every idea from either
facultyEstablishing common grading
standardsProviding support for studentsEnsuring dean and administration
support
Strategies for Success in Interdisciplinary Team Teaching
Thanks for coming
Dr. Michael FurickSchool of BusinessGeorgia Gwinnett College
Dr. Jennie StearnsSchool of Liberal Arts (English)Georgia Gwinnett College