A study on interdisciplinary teaching practices: Primary and secondary education curricula

Abstract

This study addresses the views of teachers about the benefits of interdisciplinary teaching practices in primary and secondary school education curricula, the level of the use of interdisciplinary approach and the place of interdisciplinary approach in the curriculum. The study seeks to examine the views of teachers about the interdisciplinary approach and their level of use of this approach in primary and secondary education curricula. To this end, the explanatory mixed design was employed in the study. A descriptive scanning model was employed for the quantitative dimension of the study. In the quantitative dimension, the phenomenological method was used. The Interdisciplinary Teaching Approach Questionnaire was utilized to gather quantitative data, and qualitative data were gathered through a semi-structured interview form. The sample of the research is composed of 413 classroom and branch teachers working in official primary and secondary schools in the central districts of Denizli. Consequentially, it can be argued that teachers have positive views on the interdisciplinary approach. Further, the teachers found the interdisciplinary approach relatively useful, however, they did not effectively implement it in in-class activities as this approach was not sufficiently incorporated into the curriculum. Teachers' views on the interdisciplinary approach differed by the variables of professional seniority and teaching level, whereas the gender variable was not found to be a significant predictor.