In the ongoing debate over the value of different academic disciplines, it is essential to recognise that they are not mutually exclusive but rather complementary – and there is real value in their integration.
In higher education we often bemoan a school system that requires early specialisation, but with a few exceptions we then replicate this even more stringently at university level.
Of course, many disciplines are required by PSRBs to follow a strict curriculum, but in most cases, this is about content, not pedagogy.
And in those areas where the curriculum can be freely set by a course team, there is a disciplinary conservatism that often leads to insistence that the entirety of an undergraduate course must be devoted to that field of study (even if specialist perspectives are covered).
As educators, we believe that fostering an interconnected pedagogy can support truly imaginative learning and, consequently, better prepare graduates for a complex and unpredictable future (for instance, what in heaven’s name are we to do about AI?).
