Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography

Benson, Thomas. "Five Arguments Against Interdisciplinary Studies." Issues In Integrative Studies (1982): 38-48. Web.  

A professor critiques the interdisciplinary studies movement, mostly arguing that interdisciplinary courses lack the depth that courses in the traditional disciplines do.

Boulding, Kenneth E. "The Future of General Systems." Interdisciplinary Teaching. Ed. Alvin M. White. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1981. 27-34. Print.

This essay describes the origin of the General Systems approach (basically a term for interdisciplinary studies at the highest level of academia), and argues for its importance.

Churchman, C. West. "Gown and Town: Planning Our Lives." Interdisciplinary Teaching. Ed. Alvin M. White. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1981. 41-49. Print.

This essay discusses education and learning from a social systems perspective. Discusses creating the ideal university for the individual, discusses theory of knowledge and how it relates to interdisciplinary learning.

Laster, Madlon T. Teach the Way the Brain Learns: Curriculum Themes Build Neuron Networks. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Education, 2009. Print.

A (former) teacher's perspective on interdisciplinary learning in primary education, somewhat narrative style. Includes allusion to and citation of brain research, most extensively suggestions for implementing interdisciplinary learning in different contexts.

Mathison, Sandra, and Melissa Freeman. The Logic of Interdisciplinary Study. Rep. Albany: National Center on English Learning and Achievement, 1997. Web.

This article describes in some detail the philosophy behind and various approaches to interdisciplinary study.

Newell, William H. "The Case for Interdisciplinary Studies: Response to Professor Benson's Five Arguments." (n.d.): n. pag. Miami University Ohio. Web.

A professor responds to another’s arguments against interdisciplinary studies by pointing out the limited scope of the critique, broadening the definition of interdisciplinary studies to include the ideal approaches  as well as the most visible prior attempts.

Ross, Ralph. "The Nature of the Transdisciplinary: An Elementary Statement." Interdisciplinary Teaching. Ed. Alvin White. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1981. 19-25. Print.

This essay reflects on the nature of education, broadly (both primary and implied secondary), discusses limitations of specific disciplines and teaching approaches therein as an argument for interdisciplinary (or transdisciplinary) studies. Especially emphasizes the importance of the humanities.

Vickers, Geoffrey. "Two Buckets, One Well." Interdisciplinary Teaching. Ed. Alvin M. White. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1981. 11-18. Print.

This essay discusses interdisciplinary education from a philosophical perspective, primarily interdisciplinary learning in higher education. As philosophical texts tend to do, it attempts to define the purpose of education itself and its historical basis, then out of that understanding creates an argument for interdisciplinary learning.