School of something FACULTY OF OTHER

Facilitating interdisciplinary encounters for

foundation year learners: a module case study

Dr. Zoë Enstone and Dr. Madeleine Newman

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Learn

ers

Subje

cts

Ob

jects

of

Stu

dy

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Learners

T

• A four year extended degree programme for learners from a

widening participation background.

• A preparatory year of study to be followed by

progression to a standard degree programme.

• Specialising in arts and humanities subjects.

• Development of skills in a supportive environment.

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

T

BA Arts and Humanities with Foundation Year:

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Arts and Humanities

Foundation Year

Lifelong Learning Centre

Level 0

A degree programme in

Faculty of Arts (Level 1,2,3)

A degree programme in

Faculty of Performance, Visual

Arts and Communications

(Level 1,2,3)

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Modernity and Post-Modernity Communications

Religion, Politics and Society

Image, Music and Text

The Renaissance

Semester 1 Semester 2

Discovery Module

Integrating interdisciplinary skills for foundation level learners

• Nature of leaners:

• Mixed subject interests

• ‘Non-traditional’ learners (Warren, 2002) - widening

participation and adult students

• Confidence

• Integrated skills provision

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

T

• Defining interdisciplinarity at foundation level:

• ‘interdisciplinarity is neither a subject matter nor a body of

content. It is a process of achieving an integrative

synthesis, a process that usually begins with a problem,

question, topic, or issue.’ (Klein, 1990, p.188).

• ‘any form of dialogue or interaction between two or more

disciplines.’ (Moran, 2002, p.16).

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Becoming an ‘interdisciplinary’ critical thinker

• ‘an interdisciplinary studies classroom that has taken into

account the needs and attributes of adult learners is the

ideal environment for these special students’ (Schindler,

2002, p. 233).

• ‘since interdisciplinarians are often put in new situations,

they must also know how to learn’ (Klein, 1990, p.183).

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Subjects

T

‘Modernity’, ‘Modernism’,

‘Post-Modernity’,

‘Postmodernism’, ‘Pseudo-

Modernism’, ‘Global

Modernism’, ‘Modernisms’,

‘High Modernity’, ‘Liquid

Modernity’, ‘Post-Post

Modernism’, ‘Altermodern’ …

‘…we find ourselves tumbling down the postmodern rabbit hole.....’

(Heartney, 2001, p.7).

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Jeff Koons, Balloon Dog, Series from 1994 onwards.

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85651604

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

1900 1950 2000

1850

MODERNITY

2016

POST MODERNITY

MODERNISM POSTMODERNISM

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Thematic

investigations

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Subject specific

case studies

‘The contemporary understanding of modernity is influenced by a number of other

conceptions ranging from philosophy to sociology and aesthetics’. (Macey 2001, p.259)

Interdisciplinary

strands of

understanding

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Module Case Study: ‘Modernity and Post-Modernity’ – Semester 1

Links to ‘Religion, Politics and

Society’ – Semester 1

Links to ‘Communications’ –

Semester 2

Critical awareness of

key terms and

definitions.

‘Issues’ explored via a

range of perspectives –

historical, theoretical,

aesthetic, literary,

sociological…

Case studies include:

• Art

• Literature

• Film

• Theatre

• Music

• Architecture

• Social History

Focus on critical

engagement with

gender, race and class.

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Objects of Study

T Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Experiencing the Modern City

Setting/landscape

Class/culture

Legacy of the war

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Focus on making connections, discussion and debate – applying

interdisciplinary conceptual awareness to real life examples

• Field Trips:

• Leeds Art Gallery

• M&S Archive

• Henry Moore Institute

• ‘Learning can occur through a range of different encounters, and

arguably the most important is a real encounter in a real space with real

things.’ (Hooper-Greenhill, 2007, p.36.)

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

"Leeds (20), September 2009" by Ardfern - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons -

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• Focus on disciplines, concepts and approaches via:

• Encounters

• Dialogues

• Connections

• Critical issues

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

‘…to those trying to find their way in the labyrinthine land of a humanities without

boundaries. Such a land can only unify through travel, through learning foreign

languages, through encounters with others.’ (Bal, 2002, p.8)

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This is facilitated by the integration of skills, content and criticality,

with an emphasis on ‘being interdisciplinary’.

Lifelong Learning Centre Arts and Humanities Foundation Year

Interdisciplinary

enquiry

Cultural capital

Critical thinking

Independent

learning

Integrated skills

development

Foundation Learner’s Transition from Level 0 – Level 1:

Sources:

Bal, M. 2002. Travelling concepts in the humanities: a rough guide. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Bloxham, S. 2004. Embedding skills and employability in higher education: an institutional curriculum framework approach. HEA

Academy. Available from: https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/resource/embedding-skills-and-employability-higher-education-institutional-

curriculum-framework

Dart, J. 2006. Developing a learning environment conducive to active learning and participation: group presentations and formative

assessment at level one. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport and Tourism Education, 5(1), pp.58-65.

Durkin, K and Main, A. 2002. Discipline-Based Study Skills Support for First-Year Undergraduate Students. Active Learning in Higher

Education, 3(1), pp. 24-39.

Heartney, E. 2001. Postmodernism. London: Tate Publishing.

Hooper-Greenhill, E. 2007. Museums and Education: Purpose, Pedagogy, Performance. Abingdon: Oxon.

Hoskins, S. R. and Newstead, S. E. 2009. Encouraging student motivation. In: Fry, H., et al. eds. A Handbook for Teaching and

Learning in Higher Education. 3rd Ed. London: Routledge, pp. 27-39.

Klein, J.T. 1990. Interdisciplinarity: history, theory and practice. Detroit, Wayne State University Press.

Macey, D. 2001. The Penguin Dictionary of Critical Theory. London: Penguin Books.

Mitchell, W.J.T. 1995. Interdisciplinarity and visual culture. Art Bulletin, 77(4), pp.540-543.

Moran, J. 2002. Interdisciplinarity. London and New York: Routledge.

Richardson, J.T.E. 1994. Mature students in higher education: I. A literature survey on approaches to studying. Studies in Higher

Education, 19(3), pp.309-25.

Schindler, R.A. 2002. Interdisciplinarity and the Adult/Lifelong Learning Connection: Lessons from the Classroom. In: Haynes, C. ed.

Innovations in Interdisciplinary Teaching. Westport, Conn.: American Council on Education/Oryx Press.

Toynton, R. 2005. Degrees of disciplinarity in equipping mature students in higher education for engagement and success in lifelong

learning. Active Learning in Higher Education, 6(2), pp.106-117.

Warren, D. 2002. Curriculum design in a context of widening participation in higher education. Arts & Humanities in Higher Education,

1(1), pp.85-99.