In the United States, broad study in an array of different disciplines â€"arts, humanities, science, mathematics, engineeringâ€" as well as an in-depth study within a special area of interest, have been defining characteristics of a higher education. But over time, in-depth study in a major discipline has come to dominate the curricula at many institutions. This evolution of the curriculum has been driven, in part, by increasing specialization in the academic disciplines. There is little doubt that disciplinary specialization has helped produce many of the achievement of the past century. Researchers in all academic disciplines have been able to delve more deeply into their areas of expertise, grappling with ever more specialized and fundamental problems. Yet today, many leaders, scholars, parents, and students are asking whether higher education has moved too far from its integrative tradition towards an approach heavily rooted in disciplinary "silos". These "silos" represent what many see as an artificial separation of academic disciplines. This study reflects a growing concern that the approach to higher education that favors disciplinary specialization is poorly calibrated to the challenges and opportunities of our time. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education examines the evidence behind the assertion that educational programs that mutually integrate learning experiences in the humanities and arts with science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) lead to improved educational and career outcomes for undergraduate and graduate students. It explores evidence regarding the value of integrating more STEMM curricula and labs into the academic programs of students majoring in the humanities and arts and evidence regarding the value of integrating curricula and experiences in the arts and humanities into college and university STEMM education programs.

STEM Integration in K-12 Education examines current efforts to connect the STEM disciplines in K-12 education. This report identifies and characterizes existing approaches to integrated STEM education, both in formal and after- and out-of-school settings. The report reviews the evidence for the impact of integrated approaches on various student outcomes, and it proposes a set of priority research questions to advance the understanding of integrated STEM education. STEM Integration in K-12 Education proposes a framework to provide a common perspective and vocabulary for researchers, practitioners, and others to identify, discuss, and investigate specific integrated STEM initiatives within the K-12 education system of the United States. STEM Integration in K-12 Education makes recommendations for designers of integrated STEM experiences, assessment developers, and researchers to design and document effective integrated STEM education. This report will help to further their work and improve the chances that some forms of integrated STEM education will make a positive difference in student learning and interest and other valued outcomes.

The mission of the National Academy for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (NAIRTL) is to ensure that all higher education students are exposed to cutting edge research in their classrooms, and that students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels are actively engaged in relevant and authentic research in their chosen discipline. To this end, NAIRTL has initiated a wide range of events and activities aimed at enhancing student learning and that support stronger links between research and teaching. This report focuses on the impact of just one of these creative interventions, namely the NAIRTL grants initiative. The objective of the grants initiative is to provide financial support to research proposals that endeavour to enhance student learning through developing innovative and creative approaches to teaching and assessment. More than forty per cent of the National Academy's total budget to date has been invested in the grants initiative, funding 161 projects that involve 420 researchers in seventeen higher education institutions in Ireland. This report focuses on the impact of the projects that were funded in the period 2007-2010. The report is divided into three parts. The first part provides a brief introduction to the National Academy, giving an overview of a selection of its main initiatives i.e. the awards programme for excellence in teaching, professional development activities in academic practice, and development of publications and resources. Part two of this report presents the findings of an evaluation of the impact of the grants initiative. Part three of this report presents fifteen case studies of projects that were funded through the NAIRTL grants initiative. Appended are: (1) NAIRTL Publications; (2) Table of Outputs; and (3) List of Projects Funded 2007-2011. (Contains 23 footnotes.).

A pressing challenge in the modern health care system is the gap between education and clinical practice. Emerging technologies have the potential to bridge this gap by creating the kind of team-based learning environments and clinical approaches that are increasingly necessary in the modern health care system both in the United States and around the world. To explore these technologies and their potential for improving education and practice, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine hosted a workshop in November 2017. Participants explored effective use of technologies as tools for bridging identified gaps within and between health professions education and practice in order to optimize learning, performance and access in high-, middle-, and low-income areas while ensuring the well-being of the formal and informal health workforce. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

This publication contains the papers presented at the 5th Annual Conference of National Academy for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (NAIRTL) and the 9th Galway Symposium. Presenters from across Ireland and overseas share their perspectives. The theme of engagement touches on the very heart of what a "higher" education should be about. It is about engaging the mind, struggling to understand new concepts and perspectives, experimenting with new ideas and developing skills, about critically engaging with the world and societal structures, about laying the foundations upon which to build a better future, about nurturing individual creativity and collective responsibility and hopefully also about having some fun along the way.

Current teaching, learning and assessment practices can lead students to believe that courses within a programme are self-sufficient and separate. Integrative Learning explores this issue, and considers how intentional learning helps students become integrative thinkers who can see connections in seemingly disparate information, and draw on a wide range of knowledge to make decisions. Written by international contributors who engaged reflectively with their teaching and their students’ learning, the book seeks to develop a shared language of integrative learning, encouraging students to adapt skills learned in one situation to problems encountered in another, and make autonomous connections across courses, between experiences, and throughout their lives. More informed teachers can help students develop the necessary attributes for intentional learning, which include having a sense of purpose, fitting fragmentary information into a ‘learning framework’, understanding something of their own learning processes, asking probing questions, reflecting on their own choices, and knowing when to ask for help. Integrative Learning draws on international research and vast studies to provide the reader with the resources to ensure access to a unified learning experience. The book discusses conceptual and technical tools necessary for facilitating integrative learning across a range of disciplines as well as providing learning pedagogies and considers integrative learning in the context of the relevance of higher education in the complexity and uncertainty of the 21st century. It will appeal to academics and researchers in the field of higher education, as well as those generating higher education curriculums.