TRANSDISCIPLI

NARY
APPROACH
EDMOND C. APORA
MAYA NHS
YYou've got to
go below the
surface ...
 to uncover the
really “big ideas.”
The report to UNESCO of the International
Commission on Education for the 21st Century,
chaired by Jacques Delors, strongly emphasizes four
pillars of a new kind of education:
learning to know
learning to do
learning to live together with
learning to be
 It is an approach to curriculum integration
which dissolves the boundaries between the
Transdisciplinar conventional disciplines and organizes
y Approach teaching and learning around the construction
of meaning in the context of real-world
problems or themes.
 teaching the approach is the best practice
Learning objectives require learners to find answers to questions not only and questions they
might have about the content.
Links concepts and skills through a real-world context
Prepares students to solve real world problems
Allows students to authentically create and build their own ideas
Promotes depth of understanding as well as adaptability to skills needed to succeed in our
changing world (Greenwich Public Schools)
Students develop life skills as they apply
interdisciplinary and disciplinary skills in a
real-life context.
 2 routes that lead to
transdisciplinary
integration
3.1 Project-Based Learning

students tackle a local problem or this is

problem-based learning or place-based
learning.
Planning project-based curriculum
involves three steps:
1. Teachers and students select a topic of study
based on student interests, curriculum
standards, and local resources.
2. The teacher finds out what the students already
know and helps them generate questions to explore.
The teacher also provides resources for students and
opportunities to work in the field.
3. Students share their work with others in a
culminating activity. Students display the results of
their exploration and review and evaluate the
project.
Project-based programs show that students go far beyond
the minimum effort, make connections among different
subject areas to answer open-ended questions, retain what
they have learned, apply learning to real-life problems, have
fewer discipline problems.
3.2 Negotiating the Curriculum
 student questions form basis for curriculum
students develop their own curriculum, teaching
methods and assessment around areas of interest to
them
 TRANSDISCIPLINARY

DISCIPLINARY INTERDISCIPLINARY
ROLES OF TEACHERS
co-planner
co-learner
generalist/specialist
STARTING POINTS
- student questions and concerns
- real-life context
DEGREE OF INTEGRATION
paradigm shift
Assessment Scheme
interdisciplinary skills/concepts stressed
TRANSDISCIPLINARY SKILLS
1. Observing
2. Patterning
3. Abstracting
4. Embodied Thinking
5. Modeling
6. Play
7. Synthesizing
SUGGESTED CLASSROOM
ACTIVITIES
1. News Analysis
SUGGESTED CLASSROOM
ACTIVITIES
1. News Analysis
2. Historical Pen Pals
SUGGESTED CLASSROOM
ACTIVITIES
1. News Analysis
2. Historical Pen Pals
3. Math Gym
SUGGESTED CLASSROOM
ACTIVITIES
1. News Analysis
2. Historical Pen Pals
3. Math Gym
4. World Traveller
◦ landmarks and their historical significance
◦ popular food, dishes and the predominant cuisine
◦ languages or dialects spoken in the area
◦ cultural events that take place in the area
5. Field Study
6. Weather
PROVOCATION