Integrated Courses (Part 1)

Steven Snow
Gallaudet Alumni

Interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary courses have become common practice with many colleges and universities across the nation. Courses are traditionally taught alone as a discipline, separate from the other, for instance, as a history course, an English course, or a mathematics course. However, with integrated courses being multi- or interdisciplinary, the focus is on a central topic with two or three faculty from, say the History, English, or Sociology Departments, teaming up to teach the course. Faculty members can voluntarily design and offer integrated courses as long as they meet the appropriate five competencies. With a multi- or interdisciplinary approach and because a specific topic is explored in detail and from the perspectives of different disciplines such as business, communication studies, and psychology, it hones critical thinking skills. Each integrated course will be 4 or 6 credits and will address some or all of the five competencies.

Introductory course
GSR 150:            Introduction to Integrated Learning

Integrated courses
GSR 210/211:  Comparing Multicultural Perspectives 
GSR 220/221   Methods of Multiple Disciplines           
GSR 230/231:  Scientific & Quantitative Reasoning in Context 
GSR 240/241:  Ethical Decisions and Actions  

One of the integrated courses you must take from among the four topical categories is a service learning course. Service learning courses are required at numerous institutions of higher learning across the nation. Service learning courses emphasize applying learned content and skills to solve real-life, real world dilemmas. For example, students could volunteer to help restore the Chesapeake Bay by understanding the delicate estuary and its ecological significance for the metropolitan DC area including Maryland and Virginia. They could volunteer by planting trees or transplanting oyster shells into the Bay.