Multidisciplinary and Interdisciplinary Approaches in Higher Education

Abstract

Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary education, research, and collaboration constitute essential dimensions in responding to contemporary societal demands and professional expectations within higher education. Explicitly defined as articulated in policy documents of many institutions of higher education and government agencies, local and global developments in scientific teaching and curricula development, relevant social circumstances, workforce changes, and documenting the role of these collaborative approaches in achieving wide-ranging institutional objectives and fruitful contributions to society justify the relevance and importance of the issues being addressed. Multidisciplinary education and collaboration has focused on three semi-structured thematic areas where these practices are applied, representing policy discourse, teaching–learning–curriculum structures, and relevant scholarly debates. Investigating these topics has prompted the exploration of five questions defining the practicum: global, international, and local dimensions of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches in higher education; historical trajectory, arrangements, and changes influencing the adoption of cross-disciplinary policies and curricula in higher education across countries; pedagogical models, corresponding practices, and international examples characterizing the implementation of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary teaching in higher education; forms of research collaboration that transcend conventional disciplinary boundaries; and major barriers obstructing the adoption and continuation of multidisciplinarity and interdisciplinarity across higher education institutions. (Martin Davies & Devlin, 2010)