Interdisciplinary conversations in STEM education: can faculty understand each other better than their students do?

Abstract

Rate of change concepts from calculus are presented and applied rather differently in college mathematics, physics, biology, and chemistry classes. This is not simply a matter of pedagogical style but reflects real cultural differences between these disciplines. We describe the efforts of our interdisciplinary collaboration to understand and reconcile these differences as we designed and discussed instructional videos for students. We summarize our conversations about terminology, notation, functions, rates, units, and sign conventions across the disciplines. We present some strategies that enabled us to communicate effectively, resolve confusions, and reach shared understandings. Our work has implications for others involved in collaborative interdisciplinary projects and for STEM educators. In theory, there’s no difference between theory and practice. But in practice, there is. – Benjamin Brewster. Also attributed to Yogi Berra.