Chapter overview

The chapter argues that designing interdisciplinary higher education is best done by working from an integrationist vision. But there is more specificity to the design of interdisciplinary higher-education courses and curricula than just integration. The chapter engages with how to constructively align interdisciplinarity in education and provides an overview of the content and technicalities of interdisciplinary intended learning outcomes (ILOs), interdisciplinary learning activities (ILAs) and assessment. ‘Boundary crossing’ as an educational phenomenon that the interdisciplinary learning process both caters for, and constructs, forms an essential part of the discussion.

Elsbeth Spelt, Pieternel Luning, Tiny van Boekel and Martin Mulder (Extract 2.1.1) were among the first scholars to develop a research base for constructively aligned interdisciplinary higher education. The focus on student perception of this alignment makes their empirically informed theoretical work directly actionable. Iryna Ashby and Marisa Exter (Extract 2.1.2) reflect on various options for constructive alignment using – implicitly – the snowflake model of interdisciplinary teaching. (For the model, see the Introduction to this volume.) Jeannie Brown Leonard (Extract 2.2.1); Elsbeth Spelt, Harm Biemans, Hilde Tobi, Pieternel Luning and Martin Mulder (Extract 2.2.2); and Jessica Oudenampsen, Enny Das, Nicole Blijlevens and Marjolein van de Pol (Extract 2.2.3), each base their work on a concept referred to in this volume as ‘disciplined interdisciplinarity’ for the study and formulation of interdisciplinary ILOs. According to the research of Karen Fortuin, Judith Gulikers, Nynke Post Uiterweer, Carla Oonk and Cassandra Tho (Extract 2.3.1), a special role is reserved for boundary crossing – a fundamental process for high-quality education in general and particularly valuable in interdisciplinary higher education.