Transdisciplinarity

Over the last six months of school I have been thinking a lot about what our current education system looks like, the advantages of this system, and where it is falling short. I truly believe that our current system of education is failing a large proportion of students. In order to diminish these shortcomings, there are many innovative teachers who work to make their lessons engaging and inclusive for all learners and we have learned about how this can be possible. I have also learned about how we can become well rounded teachers by incorporating multiple disciplines into our practice. As I have pondered these revolutionary ways of thinking about education I have reflected upon my own education.

As an elementary and secondary student I did not question the education system. I believed the teachers knew what was best for me to learn, and I learned it. I was one of the few students who found the education system successful and fulfilling. Eventually I ended up here in university where I am working towards becoming a hardworking and inspiring teacher. When I first decided to become a teacher, my perception of education was very different than what it is today. My understanding of education has expanded. My perspective on what a teacher’s job description is has been transformed. What I thought a teacher was, as a seventeen year old high school student, has been reworked countless times. So what do I believe a teacher is now?

I believe teachers need to become transdisciplinary thinkers who work to create pathways of learning for their students that lead to higher order thinking skills such as critical thinking and problem solving. In a Ted Talk, Sir Ken Robinson says this: 

“We make very poor use of our talents. Very many people go through their whole lives having no real sense of what their talents may be or if they have any to speak of.”

You can watch his full talk here:

He goes on to speak about how the education system is failing students who do not excel in traditional courses like math or english because there are no opportunities for them to display their strengths in these classes. This is where transdisciplinarity comes in. If teachers would fuse together multiple subjects and create something new that would play upon the strengths of all students, we would see a very different trend. We would see “artsy” students excel in english. We would see “musical” students excel in math. We would be able to engage all students in one lesson. 

A special education teacher named Chris Ulmer has started a blog on Facebook where he documents the daily life of his classroom. His aim is to erase stigmas regarding children with special needs by showing the world who they are and what they are like. He posts regular videos about his teaching style and his conversations with his students. In one lesson he incorporated an innovative activity into the lesson on becoming gentlemen/gentlewomen in their everyday lives by turning it into a game. The students were consistently prompted to keep their eyes on Mr. Chris as he moved around the classroom while teaching the lesson. Mr. Chris has tapped into his students’ strengths and weaknesses and knows exactly how to incorporate activities into lessons in order to maximize engagement. His Facebook blog can be found here.

I am excited for what else I will learn as the semester goes on and believe I have truly found something valuable in this course that will continue on with me into my future.