Emergent Interdisciplinary Art Curriculum: A Constructivist Approach

Abstract

This presentation reviews emergent studio occasions that suggest how creative, interdisciplinary projects and knowledge from biometrics, nanotechnology, and geography can be integrated into basic design, art education, and art studio projects. In the United States, students from a variety of disciplines take basic design studio courses to fulfill Fine Arts general education requirements. These students often see unique connections between their home disciplines and visual art. By attending to students' perceptions of interdisciplinary relations, art educators can create relevant curriculum for broader populations and by doing so enrich the visual art curriculum. Using this approach, interdisciplinary visual art education can be integrated earlier in students' academic programs. A constructivist strategy for developing this new curriculum is to take note of the connections the students perceive. In education, 21st century academic silos have replaced C. P. Snow's Two Cultures. Academic structures (silos) divide and isolate experience and knowledge to construct and define academic epistemology within a discipline. The academic structures are intended to replicate the disciplines. However, students who are not yet experts in a particular academic area sometimes perceive exciting new areas for exploration.