Integr-ACTION

A fascinating approach to curriculum design is that of an integrated curriculum which gives students, in my opinion, a more-rounded education – as subject divisions are blurred and connected to one another. One of the aspects of integrated curriculum which really stood out to me was place-based education.  Interweaving Curriculum and Classroom Assessment states that “Place-based education is an approach that honours the local community as the primary source of learning” (Drake, Kolohon, & Reid 122).  I read this quote from the book aloud to my roommate who then shared with me that in grade 11, her school studied world religions while looking at different places of worship. The religion teacher took them to a Hindu temple, Buddhist temple, Jewish synagogue, Catholic Church, and an Islamic mosque so that they could actually witness and observe the way different religions share a different cultural experience.  She also shared with me that they went to Pacific mall and China Town to observe Asian culture and heritage. This is extremely intriguing for me. Even to relate to myself, I remember travelling with my grade 11 law class to an Ontario criminal court so that we could see criminal trials while studying that unit. I believe this to be a super effective way for teachers to connect the curriculum to place-based learning. It not only keeps the students engaged but it is a very neat way of connecting curriculum with community, while providing students the opportunity to get lost within the curriculum and discover what/where their passions of learning lie.

è I know it is a long clip, but place-based learning is depicted in this link where David Sobel discusses the progress of place-based education, as well as, how it works:  

I would also like to discuss how an integrated curriculum can turn an assignment meant for English into one that can be seen through the lens of a different subject – if slightly adapted. For example, on page 136 of the text: Interweaving Curriculum and Classroom Assessment, there is an assignment called “Town Hall Meeting”. Now although it does not suggest this particularly in the book, I find that this can be adapted to fit a drama curriculum. I have a huge interest in dramatic arts, as it is my minor, and I remember one character was in the role of the mayor. He/she would walk in and propose the reason for the meeting (one girl drowned due to lack of proper fencing around river), and then would ask questions and open the floor to the audience – who would then engage in discussion and take on different roles. To provide an example, someone in the audience might be the mayor’s wife; someone might be the mother/father of the girl who drowned, etc. This activity worked great in terms of engagement with the subject. In this way, I like to look at integrated curriculums, personally, by using the term integr-ACTION (which I came up with) because the students get to experience contexts of subjects in different ways while applying themselves physically and mentally.

è This is a group of university students that attempted a town hall meeting. It is a good example of this improvised activity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LokFrLD4KZ4

Integrating the curriculum is an important tactic for school boards because it shows how subjects can be grouped together collaboratively, and be somewhat intertwined, but still hold significant meaning independently. Integration of curriculum does not just stop there, though. Susan Drake discovers three academic sub-categories: multidisciplinary, intradisciplinary, and transdisciplinary. The authors explain that in “Multidisciplinary integration…the procedures of the disciplines are dominant” (Burns & Drake 15). These disciplines are typically designed around a main/common theme that is possessed by each subject category across the curriculum.  The authors then explain that: “Intradisciplinary approaches offer an excellent fit for standards when educators approach them through a backward design process” (Burns & Drake 15). An intradisciplinary curriculum is when teachers compile sub-categories under one large subject division. Lastly, Burns and Drake state that: “Teachers might organize transdisciplinary curriculum around a real-world context” (15).  Transdisciplinary curriculum is a curriculum organized around student questions and concerns. Project-based learning is a fairly common example of this type of curriculum.                                        

Here is an article highlighting the strive for change of integration in a reform school's curriculum in Vietnam: http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/education/113101/curriculum-changes-take-time.html

Burns, Rebecca C., and Susan M. Drake., Meeting standards through integrated curriculum. Alexandria, Va.: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2004. Print.

Drake, Susan M., Wendy Kolohon, and Joanne L. Reid. Interweaving curriculum and classroom assessment: engaging the 21st century learner. Don Mills: Oxford University Press, 2014. Print.