Introduction

The concept of integrating curriculum is nothing new. Its been around, in fact, since the 1800s and was advocated by such wellknown educational theorists as John Dewey and Meredith Smith (Beane 2, 5). It has gained recent attention, however and more and more educators think that it is the best way to teach. With many different and sometimes conflicting definitions and ideas about integrated curriculum, it can be hard to know how to approach it, or even what it is. We hope the following can help you find your way through the sometimes confusing concept of integrated curriculum. It provides information on what integrated curriculum is, why it is effective, existing examples, and how to begin a program in your own school or classroom.

 Definition

Integrated curriculum is a way to teach students that attempts to break down barriers between subjects and make learning more meaningful to students. The idea is to teach around themes, or "organizing centers" that students can identify with, such as "The Environment," "Life in School," or more traditional areas like "Myths and Legends." (Beane 13 - 14). Major concepts are culled from these broad themes, and activities are planned that teach or inform of these concepts. For example, in a unit entitled "the Environment," students might learn about the concept of conservation through starting their own recycling program, conduct a campaign for environmental awareness, or a survey of which local businesses advocate conservation (Beane 1).

 Through this example, one can see how integrated curriculum

requires accessing knowledge from all of the traditional subjects without labeling them as such. In addition, integrated curriculum adds problem-solving, real-world application and social consciousness to the learning process, making it a more comprehensive way of educating and of learning. One can also see from the example that integrated curriculum goes beyond merely "overlapping" the different existing subjects. That is, students do not merely read about Earth Day in English or calculate pollution levels in Math. Rather they learn in a way that avoids labeling knowledge and, more importantly, draws upon their own life experiences and backgrounds. This makes learning real for the students and gives them some stake in the learning process.

 Why Integrated Curriculum is Effective

Integrated curriculum is an effective way to teach and learn because it corresponds with the way our brain works physiologically. Rather than separating knowledge into discrete partitions, the brain creates a complex web of information that recognizes patterns. Moreover, learning within a known context or experience helps the brain remember information more effectively (Caine 5). In fact, the physical structure of the brain changes as a result of experience, and it grows and develops more in an interactive environment (Caine 27-28). Integrating curriculum is a way to capitalize on these existing features of the human brain and work with, rather than counter to its natural function.

Besides being compatible with brain function, there are other reasons integrated curriculum makes sense. First, it teaches concepts that help students approach any situation or problem, rather than facts which have limited application. When you think about how knowledge has grown, but classroom time has not, you can see how this way of approaching education is more beneficial to the student in the long run. We cant teach every fact, so its better to teach how to think about facts (Brandt 24). Finally, there is no particular rationale for the way things are done currently. The current system is, in fact, somewhat counter productive, as it does not encourage teacher-teacher communication or resource-sharing. With integrated curriculum, however, these kinds of communications are an indispensable part of the process. They ensure that information is not repeated, and that teachers help each other teacher, rather than working at odds with each other (Brandt 26).

 Examples of Integrated Curriculum

Many different kinds of education institutions have tried an integrated approach and found success. Hightstown High School in New Jersey, The Colorado School of Mines, Horton School in San Diego, and The Guggenheim Elementary School in Chicago are just a few examples. Connections, an experimental small school that helped develop this Online Classroom, experienced the highest standardized test scores in its five years the year it taught using integrated curriculum. Even Archeworks, the institution that created Connect 4 Education, uses an integrated approach. Archeworks is an alternative school of design that uses design to address social needs or problems. This Web site was created by the collaboration of a web designer, art historian, city building inspector, chemist, accountant, and graphic designer. The team was presented with a problem, facilitate fifth grade education, and attempted to address using a design application.

 How to Teaching an Integrated Curriculum The challenge of teaching an integrated curriculum is structuring properly so as to teach the desired skill set. The problems formulated for the students to solve must reference their specific life experiences, be engaging without frivolous, and must challenge the student intellectually. As integrated curriculum receives more attention, however, there are an increasing amount of teaching aides designed to help the teacher integrate curriculum in an effective manner. Though it may require more work initially, in the end it is no more work intensive than the more traditional teaching method and is more rewarding for both the teacher and the student. Teacher should be warned, however - integrated curriculum is not the panacea for all educational problems. In the words of Jere Brophy and Janet Alleman, "Just because an activity crosses subject-matter lines does not make it worthwhile; it must also help accomplish educational goals." (66). The integrated curriculum approach should be viewed as a tool that can help educate students and engage them in the learning process. It is not an end in and of itself. Following are some tips to help get you started teaching integrated curriculum. For more specific help, or for more information about teaching aides, contact the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) [www.ascd.org]. Long a respected association with the field of education, the ASCD offers more information about integrated curriculum, as well as how to teach it.

 Things to Remember (Brandt 26):

Start small: you dont have to have a comprehensive program to

start integrating curriculum. Start with activities like teaching demographics and statistics during a unit on immigration in late 19th century America, or reading The Diary of Anne Frank while studying World War II. Communicate: Talk to other teachers who might be interested, or just to find out what they are teaching and when. Time: Scheduling can be one of the most important factors for starting an integrated curriculum program. Large blocks of time used by teams of teachers work the best.

 The following is a well-researched model for starting an integrated curriculum model within a school (Jacobs 27-28). Phase I: Conducting Action Research (6 months - 1 year) Conduct internal research to find out what each teacher teaches and when. This is to avoid teaching information more than once, and to identify areas that could be integrated. One way to do this is to plot what is taught in each subject

month-by-month. Conduct external research to Find Out More about integrated curriculum. A good place to start is the October 1991 issue of Educational Leadership (vol. 49, no. 2). This magazine, a publication of the ASCD, provides a good overview of integrated curriculum including definitions, how to teach it, examples, models, and resources. It also lists publications for further reading on the subject. Other areas of research could be on team building, scheduling alternatives, different approaches to evaluation and assessment, and "writing across content areas." *This phase could be accomplished through a Teacher Study Group as described in the Professional Development portion of this Web site.

 Phase II: Develop a Proposal

(2 - 4 months in the 1st year) Assess areas that could overlap subjects. Maybe start by updating existing units with increased collaboration between teachers. Create a proposal that outlines "how to evaluate, budget, timeline, teachers responsibilities", etc. After proposal is evaluated and critiqued by the board, LSC, etc, try it out in class.

 Phase III: Implement and Monitor the Pilot

(2nd year) Evaluate the program: see how well the team of teacher is functioning, how time schedules work (enough?, too much?), what resources materials work/dont work. Record data/findings so that the program can be adjusted accordingly. Conduct regular team meetings to discuss progress.

 Phase IV: Adopt Program

(3rd year) Make the program a permanent part of the curriculum "Planning Wheels" can help you design a curriculum that is integrated around a subject area. They can help organize information so that specific educational goals are met. The following is just one example (Palmer 57-60):

 http://www.archeworks.org/projects/tcsp/ic_guide_p6

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