{"id":238,"date":"2012-06-03T07:02:09","date_gmt":"2012-06-03T11:02:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.montclair.edu\/crdirector\/?p=238"},"modified":"2019-05-22T09:46:28","modified_gmt":"2019-05-22T13:46:28","slug":"crc-field-report-promoting-interdisciplinary-teaching-ventures-3rd-annual-teaching-learning-showcase-research-academy-for-university-learning-montclair-state-university-may-2-2012-b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/2012\/06\/03\/crc-field-report-promoting-interdisciplinary-teaching-ventures-3rd-annual-teaching-learning-showcase-research-academy-for-university-learning-montclair-state-university-may-2-2012-b\/","title":{"rendered":"CRC Field Report – Promoting Interdisciplinary Teaching Ventures – 3rd Annual Teaching & Learning Showcase – Research Academy for University Learning – Montclair State University – May 2, 2012 – by Neil Baldwin"},"content":{"rendered":"

As our\u00a0followers around the globe already know, The Creative Research Center<\/strong><\/em> <\/a>is resolutely virtual. That said, we still have not\u00a0quite [to our satisfaction]\u00a0met the\u00a0challenge of serving as\u00a0the rapporteur<\/em> for this generous, iconoclastic conference<\/a>, unable to clone ourselves so that we could be in more than one\u00a0session at a time.\u00a0 What follows is an anecdotal account of one transcendent day in the life, with a link to all\u00a0<\/em>the concurrent sessions beyond those we were able to visit, as\u00a0a\u00a0tribute to\u00a0the pioneering pedagogues who presented last month at University Hall.<\/p>\n

A\u00a0quick note on the concept of interdisciplinarity<\/strong> and its supposed expansion in the past few years.\u00a0The\u00a0term has certainly become more widely-known and used —\u00a0but\u00a0is the practice<\/em> really\u00a0as pervasive in higher education? The mind, in and of itself, is already<\/em> an interdisciplinary cognitive landscape; perhaps\u00a0academia needs to catch up with its own human nature.<\/p>\n

Cigdem Talgar, Acting Director of RAUL, set the tone in her\u00a0Welcoming Remarks<\/strong><\/em> when she spoke of “best practices,” another key term\u00a0worth re-evaluating, because\u00a0as interdisciplinarity becomes integrated into our work of teaching,\u00a0albeit\u00a0incrementally, the wider the reach will be of best practices\u00a0when they\u00a0morph from codified lists to internalized modes of behavior conditioned by\u00a0every unique classroom situation.<\/p>\n

In her session on A Collaborative Approach to Online Course Design<\/em><\/strong>, Kristin Curry alluded humbly to the “adjustment issues”\u00a0experienced as she put together her first course for the launch of\u00a0the University’s\u00a0nascent online program in Arts Management<\/a>. It is one thing to know your subject, as all scholarly and professional\u00a0content-providers want to do;\u00a0it is\u00a0another\u00a0to cross the digital Rubicon and become comfortable with the newest methods of delivery.<\/p>\n

Kirk McDermid spoke animatedly of his new tactic\u00a0Using Semantic MediaWiki<\/a> to Power Constructive Learning and Collaboration Among Students<\/strong><\/em>.\u00a0 So doing, he has tapped into the\u00a0paradigm-shift away from the\u00a0distanced lecturer engaged in one-way\u00a0delegation of\u00a0information to\u00a0masses of students, and toward assembling\u00a0course content along with<\/em> these\u00a0students<\/a>, hoping to empower them, through the Facebook-fuelled propensity to “like”,\u00a0to learn more effectively, enthusiastically and permanently.<\/p>\n

In How I Picture It: Teaching Mythology with Visual Aids<\/strong><\/em>, Joanna Madloch\u00a0<\/a>jumped in with bravado, invoking the\u00a0dictum of Roland Barthes <\/a>that “myth is a type of speech,” followed\u00a0by John Berger’s noted “reading images” and\u00a0“theatricalization of reality,”\u00a0topped off by Jean Baudrillard’s <\/a>subversive “simulacrum.”\u00a0 Her dense semiology was refreshing, penetrating and\u00a0inspiring, especially to those of us who\u00a0love theory but shy away from imposing it upon undergraduates. Au contraire!<\/em><\/p>\n

Down the hall, Ting Ho and Christine Magee <\/a>spoke of Adjusting to Teaching Online<\/a><\/strong><\/em>\u00a0as requiring clear “rules of engagement” established through\u00a0presenting real-life curricular analogies\u00a0to our students. How many times has the classroom resounded with\u00a0pleas to make\u00a0topics more “relatable.”\u00a0 In past generations, we ourselves as students often spoke of being “relevant.”\u00a0 If we cannot\u00a0figure out ways to harness technology to our advantage — and\u00a0stop the tail from wagging the dog — we shall never make progress as teachers.<\/p>\n

Innovative Experiential Education and Community Engagement<\/strong><\/em> was the focus for Lenore Molee’s presentation.\u00a0What could be more quintessentially interdisciplinary from an environmental standpoint than taking students out of their comfort zones and into the institutions of our society\u00a0that need them most — in this case,\u00a0public schools?\u00a0Montclair State\u00a0is\u00a0already an acknowledged leader\u00a0in this area;\u00a0every time\u00a0this University reaches\u00a0beyond\u00a0ivy-covered walls it is a plus-sign\u00a0toward a\u00a0socially-integrated society.<\/p>\n

David Lee Keiser <\/a>ruminated eloquently in advocating for Mindful Teaching for Excellence and<\/strong><\/em> [what he called “the sweet taste of”] Equanimity<\/strong><\/em>. His two collaborators in this enterprise were The Self\u00a0and Silence; his muted hiatus from the hurlyburly of the conference day was a treasure.\u00a0 The Tree of Contemplative Practices<\/a>, its roots and branches extending into\u00a0realms of the spirit, stood as\u00a0the\u00a0perfect symbol for the ideals of education — and\u00a0a reminder of the imperative need to stop, breathe, and ponder why we do what we do in the classroom, and how we can do it better.<\/p>\n

Introducing the day’s Keynote Speaker — Rhonda Roland Shearer<\/strong>, founder [with her late husband, Stephen Jay Gould] and director of the Art Science Research Laboratory<\/strong><\/em> <\/a>in NYC — Provost Willard Gingerich\u00a0<\/a>praised the core mission of the University Research Academy<\/a>, referencing its\u00a0“deep DNA of instruction and learning.”\u00a0\u00a0This apt metaphor brought to mind the spiral spatial structure\u00a0of the molecule and\u00a0an idealized\u00a0three-dimensional\u00a0image of interdisciplinarity\u00a0combining\u00a0elemental substances\u00a0and extended through space in multiple directions\u00a0with variety and persistence.<\/p>\n

Committed to the creation of an\u00a0intellectual environment\u00a0advocating\u00a0interdisciplinary study encompassing\u00a0research, collections and publishing, Ms. Shearer explained that ASRL<\/a><\/strong><\/em> provides a unique setting wherein art historians, scientists, artists, designers, and programmers work side by side,\u00a0encouraged to contribute ideas, participate in a dynamic environment, and challenge the “outdated but still prominent structures of practices” in the arts, sciences, and humanities.\u00a0The ambitious goal of ASRL<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0is to promote and facilitate\u00a0fast, thorough, and efficient global exchange of knowledge in fields ranging from art and science and journalism ethics to the cyberBOOK+ system<\/a>, all aiming to\u00a0build a network of people sharing knowledge and research methodologies for mutual understanding of cultures and histories.<\/p>\n

Ms. Shearer’s\u00a0leading\u00a0assertion was well-received by the conference audience: By\u00a0virtue of its infinitely-permeable structure, she insisted,\u00a0the internet gives greater facility to doing interdisciplinarity.\u00a0Such techno-intellectual free-association, when\u00a0working properly,\u00a0feeds upon itself, giving rise, [again, hopefully],\u00a0to\u00a0a healthy dissipation of distinctions.\u00a0 To some in Academe, this accelerated process\u00a0will appear as a threat;\u00a0to others, it is an invitation to cast\u00a0more widely: “Disciplines<\/a> are conventions,”\u00a0Ms. Shearer\u00a0said, and so it naturally follows\u00a0that late-adapters\u00a0will resist peremptory invasions of their boundaries.<\/p>\n

“Disciplines are mental constructions that become difficult to change,”\u00a0Ms. Shearer\u00a0continued; and then, in another\u00a0unerring\u00a0metaphor of the day,\u00a0 she reminded us that “a square\u00a0bowl creates square water…\u00a0thus, we need to think about ways to disaggregate and reformulate our vested areas of interest — to defeat categories.\u00a0”\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ms. Shearer’s own imaginative\u00a0artwork <\/a>and the brave trajectory of her multifaceted research over several decades demonstrate her\u00a0commitment of thought and feeling to these encouragements.<\/p>\n

[The question\u00a0leaped to mind: Do we<\/em> at Montclair State have the courage of our<\/em> convictions; and, if so, what\u00a0intellectual and pragmatic actions will be necessary to help further\u00a0institutionalize interdisciplinarity<\/a>?]<\/p>\n

Milton Fuentes<\/a>, in his afternoon session, provided one viable answer: Motivational Interviewing <\/a>to Improve Academic Performance<\/strong><\/em>. Our inherently conservative — or,\u00a0let’s say, intellectually hesitant — first-generation college students here at Montclair State often need to be jump-started into\u00a0inquisitiveness and\u00a0then\u00a0require continued guidance to stick to their forward motion.\u00a0 Inspiring motivation can lead to a commitment to change in a young life heretofore victimized by educational stasis.\u00a0 Motivation demands other-directedness and collaboration on the part of the teacher, i.e., “You and I can do this together,” s\/he says\u00a0to the student.<\/p>\n

Bryan Murdock and\u00a0Christine Lemesianou — seasoned veterans of service-learning — invited their audience to Envision the Possibilities<\/strong><\/em> [through]\u00a0Innovations in Service-Learning and Community Engagement<\/strong><\/em>, sounding a theme that had resonated throughout the day. Their campaign in close collaboration with\u00a0Soyoung Lee <\/a>and Deborah Ragin <\/a>and the students and staff of the\u00a0Rosa Parks School in Orange NJ <\/a>was an inspirational tribute to the effectiveness of learning outside conventional parameters. This reminder that the world is the best classroom of all\u00a0was underscored by Elizabeth McPherson’s session on Embodying Folk Dances from Around the World<\/strong><\/em>, where everyone was on their feet and thoroughly enjoying themselves.<\/p>\n

What was my\u00a0so-called takeaway from this densely-packed day of exploration into Digital Learning, Pedagogies of Engagement, Creativity, Promoting Teaching & Learning, Active Learning In & Out of the Classroom, and Contemplative Pedagogy?<\/p>\n

As I write these words, I am\u00a0more resolved\u00a0that\u00a0representative\u00a0enactments of interdisciplinarity\u00a0require the kinds of\u00a0collaboration that I witnessed throughout the conference. \u00a0However, we must keep in mind that the\u00a0May 2nd RAUL symposium\u00a0was a series of demonstrations by colleagues who were already like-minded; hence the term “Showcase.”<\/p>\n

Let’s take the\u00a0clarity of the conference content as a mandate to transcend preaching to the choir — and\u00a0go out and find the unconverted.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As our\u00a0followers around the globe already know, The Creative Research Center is resolutely virtual. That said, we still have not\u00a0quite [to our satisfaction]\u00a0met the\u00a0challenge of serving as\u00a0the rapporteur for this generous, iconoclastic conference, unable to clone ourselves so that we could be in more than one\u00a0session at a time.\u00a0 What follows is an anecdotal account […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":862,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-238","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-director-s-essay"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=238"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1109,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238\/revisions\/1109"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=238"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=238"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/creative-research-center\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=238"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}