The “Death” of Disciplines: Development of a Team-Taught Course to Provide an Interdisciplinary Perspective for First-Year Students

Abstract

Although interdisciplinary efforts in teaching and research are promoted as a possible antidote to increasing disciplinary separatism in colleges and universities, evaluations of interdisciplinary efforts in the classroom, particularly those spanning the traditional science-humanities divide, are not frequently documented. This article describes the development, execution, and assessment of a unique effort in interdisciplinary teaching in which four doctoral candidates from widely varying home disciplines collaborated to create and teach a “truly interdisciplinary” course for first-year students centered on the pervasiveness of humankind's quest for immortality. Assessment of the course indicates several desirable student outcomes, including the development of a more mature world view and appreciation for different epistemologies, which recommend the continuation of this and similar interdisciplinary efforts. While students at times found the enormous number of disciplines potentially related to the central topic overwhelming, at the conclusion of the course, they largely identified the exposure to new perspectives as an exciting and worthwhile academic experience. Similar interdisciplinary efforts in the classroom are encouraged, though ample course development time is recommended to maximize success.