An interdisciplinary or a multidisciplinary approach at the university level. challenges for teaching coordination

Abstract

INTRODUCTION. In this paper we address two challenging aspects for the European Higher Education Area. These areas have boosted significant educational changes in terms of teaching coordination and interdisciplinarity within University. METHODOLOGY. We present a teaching innovation experience which focuses on the coordination of the teaching practice based on the principles of interdisciplinarity and cross-curricular integration, particularly in various courses included in the Double Bachelor Degree of Social Work and Social Education implemented at Pablo de Olavide University. This proposal demands teachers’ coordination and planning to organize the concepts, attitudes and skills that learners should acquire from the cross-curricular competences existing in various courses. The aim is thus to achieve a proper professional intervention. RESULTS. Among the main results, we point out that coordination was fostered among teachers of various subject areas and disciplines. A working culture was created in the teaching teams, where both the reflection on the professional practice and the development of certain professional competences among students were essential. We present the evaluation of this experience from the learners’ perception, where it is evident how difficult it is to break the existing “barriers” between different areas of knowledge, which is necessary to move beyond multidisciplinarity to interdisciplinarity. DISCUSSION. It is likely that experiences like the one proposed in this paper are difficult to accomplish due to the lack of culture of coordination among university teachers. However, if we want to improve our university teaching practice, we must take the risk and become entrepreneurs in innovation. In addition, we find constant institutional obstacles which slow down teachers’ motivation and deprive them of strategies and spaces needed to make progress towards coordination and interdisciplinarity within the University.