As educators, we face the task of facilitating meaningful learning experiences that nurture students’ development of contemporary skills to ensure that they are fundamentally prepared to succeed (Allen & White, 2021). Drake and Reid (2018) provided a clear rationale for making curriculum meaningful through the exploration of real-world issues and concerns, transcending disciplinary boundaries to connect various subjects while enhancing twenty-first century learning.
Curriculum integration is an effective approach to construct an understanding of content across the curriculum, forming coherent learning units with opportunities for pupils to transfer and apply their knowledge and skills authentically in multiple learning areas (McPhail, 2018). Integrating learning, enables children to view issues in subject areas from new and varied perspectives, as delivery focuses on developing concept knowledge, critical thinking, and reflection on the connections between their own explorations and the wider world (Allen & White, 2021). Furthermore, it substantially supports students’ learning, with an overwhelmingly positive effect on self-esteem, motivation, engagement, and persistence (Drake & Reid, 2018). Creative adaption of cross-curriculum topics facilitates authentic real-world connections, guaranteeing that learning shifts from surface level to deep learning, delving into topics that are of real interest, meaning, and purpose (Quinn et al., 2019). The benefits of curriculum integration extend beyond the classroom, as students collaborate with community members to initiate a deeper understanding of learning topics, enhancing the promotion of intercultural connections and social responsibility and cohesion (Coffey, 2021). For instance, establishing a partnership with local Indigenous Elders will develop students’ cultural awareness in an authentic learning environment. This intrinsically motivating approach unleashes children’s potential, transcending the disciplines to ensure they are equipped with the global competencies necessary to navigate and thrive in this ever-changing twenty-first century (Drake & Reid, 2018).
To effectively design an integrated curriculum, Drake and Reid (2018) propose the practical idea of approaching planning from a backward design perspective. As an effective curriculum designer, I will adopt the Know, Do, and Be (KDB) Framework, to successfully create an authentic teaching sequence that is integrally motivating and relevant to my class. This framework is seen as an ‘umbrella’ of desired outcomes for a learning experience, including the specific content knowledge, skills and processes, and attitudes, values and behaviours, unified across integrated disciplines (Drake et al., 2014). Aligning my planning with KDB will ensure I create an integrated curriculum that comprehensively fosters my students’ development and capabilities to become successful members of twenty-first century society (Drake & Reid, 2018).
References
Allen, J., & White, S. (2021). Learning to teach in a new era (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Arts-Based Compassion Skills Training [ABCST] Group. (2020). Compassion art cards [Artwork]. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.568561/full#F1
Coffey, A. (2021). Effective pedagogy for student learning. In J. Allen & S. White, Learning to teach in a new era (2nd ed., pp. 84–91). Cambridge University Press.
Drake, S. M., & Reid, J. (2018). Integrated curriculum as an effective way to teach 21st century capabilities. Asia Pacific Journal of Educational Research, 1(1), 31–50. https://doi.org/10.30777/APJER.2018.1.1.03
Drake, S. M., Reid, J. L., & Kolohon, W. (2014). Interweaving curriculum and classroom assessment: Engaging the 21st century learner. Oxford University Press.
Ludtke, J. (2021). Visualisation of interdisciplinary approach to integrated art [Watercolour painting]. https://www.beloit.edu/live/news/2751-alumni-integrating-art-and-education-at-beloit-and
McPhail, G. (2018). Curriculum integration in the senior secondary school: A case study in a national assessment context. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 50(1), 56–76. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220272.2017.1386234
Quinn, J., McEachen, J., Fullan, M., Gardner, M., & Drummy, M. (2019). Dive into deep learning: Tools for engagement (1st ed.). Sage Publications.
