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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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THE INTEGRATION OF THE
Humanities and Arts WITH
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
IN HIGHER EDUCATION
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Branches FROM THE Same Tree

David Skorton and Ashley Bear, Editors

Committee on Integrating Higher Education in the Arts, Humanities,
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Board on Higher Education and Workforce

Policy and Global Affairs

A Consensus Study Report of

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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (#11600619), the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts (#AH253080-16), the National Academy of Sciences Scientists and Engineers for the Future Fund, and the Teagle Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-47061-2
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-47061-7
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.17226/24988.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

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Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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COMMITTEE ON INTEGRATING HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE ARTS, HUMANITIES, SCIENCES, ENGINEERING, AND MEDICINE1

DAVID SKORTON [NAM] (Chair), Secretary, Smithsonian Institution

SUSAN ALBERTINE, Senior Scholar, Association of American Colleges & Universities

NORMAN AUGUSTINE (NAS/NAE), Retired Chairman and CEO, Lockheed Martin Corporation

LAURIE BAEFSKY, Executive Director, Arts Engine and the Alliance for the Arts in Research Universities (a2ru), University of Michigan

KRISTIN BOUDREAU, The Paris and Fletcher Distinguished Professor of Humanities, Department Head, Humanities and Arts, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

NORMAN BRADBURN, Senior Fellow, NORC, The Tiffany and Margaret Blake Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus, The University of Chicago

AL BUNSHAFT, Senior Vice President, Global Affairs and Workforce of the Future, Dassault Systèmes’ Americas

GAIL BURD, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, Distinguished Professor, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Arizona

EDWARD DERRICK, Independent Consultant

E. THOMAS EWING, Professor of History, Associate Dean, Graduate Studies, Research, and Diversity, The College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, Virginia Tech

J. BENJAMIN HURLBUT, Associate Professor of Biology and Society, The School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University

PAMELA L. JENNINGS, Professor and Head, Department of Art + Design, College of Design, North Carolina State University

YOUNGMOO KIM, Director, The Expressive and Creative Interaction Technologies (ExCITe) Center, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Drexel University

ROBERT MARTELLO, Associate Dean for Curriculum and Academic Programs, Professor of the History of Science and Technology, Olin College

GUNALAN NADARAJAN, Dean and Professor, The Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design, The University of Michigan

___________________

1 Paul Bevilaqua (NAE), Retired Manager, Advanced Development Programs, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, resigned from the committee in November 2017.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

THOMAS F. NELSON LAIRD, Associate Professor, Higher Education and Student Affairs Program, and Director, Center for Postsecondary Research, Indiana University Bloomington

LYNN PASQUERELLA, President, The Association of American Colleges & Universities

SUZANNA ROSE, Founding Associate Provost, Office to Advance Women, Equity, and Diversity, Professor of Psychology and Women’s and Gender Studies, Florida International University

BONNIE THORNTON DILL, Dean, College of Arts and Humanities and Professor of Women’s Studies, The University of Maryland

LAURA VOSEJPKA, Founding Dean, College of Sciences and Liberal Arts, Kettering University

LISA M. WONG, Co-Director, The Arts and Humanities Initiative, Assistant Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School

Study Staff

ASHLEY BEAR, Study Director

AUSTEN APPLEGATE, Senior Program Assistant

ADRIANA COUREMBIS, Financial Officer

ELIZABETH GARBEE, Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Graduate Fellow

KELLYANN JONES-JAMTGAARD, Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Graduate Fellow

JAY LABOV, Senior Advisor for Education and Communication

IRENE NGUN, Research Associate

THOMAS RUDIN, Director, Board on Higher Education and Workforce

J. D. TALASEK, Director of Cultural Programs

Consultants

STEVE OLSON, Writer

MATTHEW MAYHEW, William Ray and Marie Adamson Flesher Professor of Educational Administration, The Ohio State University

HANNAH STEWART-GAMBINO, Professor of Government & Law and International Affairs, Lafayette College

JENNIFER STROUD ROSSMANN, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Lafayette College

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

BOARD ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE

Members

RICHARD K. MILLER, Chair [NAE], President, Olin College of Engineering

LAWRENCE D. BOBO [NAS], W.E.B. Du Bois Professor of the Social Sciences, Department of Sociology, Harvard University

ANGELA BYARS-WINSTON, Professor of Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison

JAIME CURTIS-FISK, Scientist and STEM Education Advocate, Dow Chemical Company

APRILLE ERICSSON, Capture-Mission Manager, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

RICHARD FREEMAN, Herbert Ascherman Professor of Economics, Harvard University

PAUL J. LEBLANC, President, Southern New Hampshire University

SALLY F. MASON, President Emerita, University of Iowa

FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ, Chancellor, Los Angeles Community College District

SUBHASH SINGHAL [NAE], Battelle Fellow Emeritus, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

KUMBLE R. SUBBASWAMY, Chancellor, University of Massachusetts Amherst

SHELLEY WESTMAN, Senior Vice President, Alliances & Field Operations, Protegrity

MARY WOOLLEY [NAM], President and CEO, Research! America

Board Staff

AUSTEN APPLEGATE, Senior Program Assistant

ASHLEY BEAR, Program Officer

LIDA BENINSON, Program Officer

ALLISON BERGER, Senior Program Assistant

JAIME COLMAN, Senior Program Assistant (Until December, 2017)

MARIA LUND DAHLBERG, Program Officer

YASMEEN HUSSAIN, Associate Program Officer (Until July 2017)

LEIGH JACKSON, Senior Program Officer

FREDRICK LESTINA, Senior Program Assistant

BARBARA NATALIZIO, Program Officer

IRENE NGUN, Research Associate

LAYNE SCHERER, Program Officer

THOMAS RUDIN, Director

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Preface

American higher education has for generations been the envy of the world. Whether because of the enormous output of research, scholarship, and creative activity or the great diversity of offerings—running the gamut from community colleges to liberal arts colleges, research universities, conservatories, technical schools, and many other categories—American colleges and universities are widely admired and emulated across the globe.

In tracing the history of American higher education, we find much to be proud of, but we also see over the past few decades a growing tension between the broad and integrated education commonly referred to as liberal education and the increasing specialization in higher education as individual disciplines and administrative structures drive a fragmentation of curricula. This tension between broad, integrated education and specialized, disciplinary studies has heightened during periods of economic challenge, particularly since the Great Recession that began in 2008. Students and parents increasingly have focused their aspirations and plans on a vocationally driven approach, emphasizing fields where immediate post-graduation employment seems more certain and more remunerative.

Ironically, as this movement toward narrower, disciplinary education has progressed inexorably, many employers—even, and, in fact, especially in “high tech” areas—have emphasized that learning outcomes associated with integrated education, such as critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and abilities for lifelong learning, are more, not less, desirable. With the enormous strides in technology, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics, and communications, graduates will need such transferable and uniquely human skills to be able to adaptively and continuously

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

learn to work with, and alongside, new technologies. Further, each person entering the job market today will look forward not only to several jobs, but also several careers, during her working life. All of these factors have led to the expectation that current generations entering the workforce may, for the first time in recent American history, face a more uncertain future than their parents’ generation.

Faculty and administrators, who are concerned that an education focused on a single discipline will not best prepare graduates for the challenges and opportunities presented by work, life, and citizenship in the 21st century, are advocating for an approach to education that moves beyond the general education requirements found at almost all institutions, to an approach to higher education that intentionally integrates knowledge in the arts, humanities, physical and life sciences, social sciences, engineering, technology, mathematics, and the biomedical disciplines. In this approach, which we refer to in this report simply as “integration,” professors help students understand the connections among the disciplines and emphasize the point made by Einstein that all disciplines and forms of inquiry are “branches from the same tree.” Extending this metaphor, advocates of integration see all human knowledge as both fundamentally connected, a network of branches arising from a trunk made up of human curiosity, passion, and drive, but also generative, as new branches split off and grow from old branches, extending into new spaces or coming in contact with other branches in new ways.

Against this backdrop, the Board on Higher Education and Workforce (BHEW) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine conducted a study focused on better understanding the impact of an integrated educational approach on students. Specifically, the committee was charged with “examining the evidence behind the assertion that educational programs that mutually integrate learning experiences in the humanities and arts with science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine (STEMM) lead to improved educational and career outcomes for undergraduate and graduate students.” To be clear, our task was neither to reject the disciplines, which this committee sees as vital sources of expertise, creativity, and innovation, nor to argue that an integrative approach is superior to more established models of general education. Rather, our task was to examine what the existing evidence can tell us about the impact on students of a new, and in many ways old, integrative approach to higher education that many faculty believe will serve to effectively prepare students for work, life, and citizenship in the 21st century.

To accomplish this challenging study, the National Academies assembled a committee composed of leaders and scholars in higher education and industry with expertise in the arts, humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, engineering, and medicine—and the intersections among these disciplines—whose affiliations reflected the diversity of types of institu-

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

tions in American higher education. I have learned an enormous amount from these colleagues and, now, friends, and am indebted to them for their tireless efforts, knowledge, insights, and savvy. The study was also made possible by the superb professionals from the National Academies, and the leadership of the Study Director, Ashley Bear, and the Director of the BHEW, Tom Rudin, as well as the research efforts of Irene Ngun and Kellyann Jones-Jamtgaard, and the logistical expertise of Austen Applegate.

To inform our deliberations, we heard from experts from beyond the committee, held public sessions in three cities, commissioned literature reviews, and heard from faculty across the country who submitted responses to a “Dear Colleague” letter asking for evidence and input from the broader higher education community.

WHAT DID WE FIND?

Assessing student learning outcomes across the breadth of American higher education is a daunting task, confounded by the number and types of institutions, the broadly varying backgrounds of the students matriculating, and, importantly, the fact that curricular decisions are—appropriately—in the hands of local faculty members, not subject to any broad, national consensus except in the case of accreditation of specific disciplines. For these reasons, as well as the lack of agreement on the most effective ways to assess student learning outcomes, we found that large, controlled, randomized testing of the hypothesis that integrated education would lead to educational and employment benefits are rare and likely to remain so. Nonetheless, we found abundant narrative and anecdotal evidence, some evidence from research studies, and, very importantly, a broad, national groundswell of interest in developing approaches to integrated education. Though causal evidence on the impact of integration on students is limited, it is this committee’s consensus opinion that further effort be expeditiously exerted to develop and disseminate a variety of approaches to integrated education and that further research on the impact of such programs and courses on students be supported and conducted.

Ultimately, the decision will rest with the faculty of American higher education. We hope that our faculty colleagues will take the time to examine this report and will thereby join with us in further exploring the value and role of integrated education. We believe the future of our nation will be affected by our collective decisions.

David J. Skorton

Chair

Committee on Integrating Higher Education in the Arts, Humanities, Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Acknowledgments

The Committee on Integrating Higher Education in the Arts, Humanities, Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine would like to acknowledge and thank the many people who made this study possible. First, we would like to acknowledge the support of the standing National Academies Board on Higher Education and Workforce (BHEW), which offered oversight for the study. Secondly, we would like to acknowledge that this report was informed by the efforts of the many people who shared their data, insights, ideas, enthusiasm, and expertise with the committee. We would especially like to thank the following people (listed alphabetically) who presented at the committee’s meetings and information-gathering workshops:

William “Bro” Adams, National Endowment for the Humanities

Amy Banzaert, Department of Engineering, Wellesley College

Dan Brabander, Wellesley College

Fritz Breithaupt, Germanic Studies, Indiana University Bloomington

Loren B. Byrne, Roger Williams University

Rita Charon, Program in Narrative Medicine, Columbia University

Helen Drinan, Simmons College

Ethan Eagle, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Wayne State University

Pam Eddinger, Bunker Hill Community College

David Edwards, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University and Le Laboratoire

Bret Eynon, LaGuardia Community College

Ed Finn, School of Arts, Media + Engineering, Arizona State University

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Marie Adamson Flesher, The Ohio State University

Howard Gardner, Harvard Graduate School of Education

David Guston, Future of Innovation in Society, Arizona State University

Kevin Hamilton, College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Maria Hesse, Academic Partnerships, Arizona State University

Ed Hundert, Harvard Medical School

Joel Katz, Internal Medicine Residency Program, Harvard Medical School

JoAnn Kuchera-Morin, Media Arts & Technology and Music, University of California

Liz Lerman, Liz Lerman Dance Exchange and Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts, Arizona State University

Richard K. Miller, President and Professor, Olin College of Engineering

Michelle Morse, Partners In Health, EqualHealth, Brigham and Women’s Internal Medicine Residency

Dan Nathan-Roberts, Industrial and Systems Engineering, San José State University

Scott Page, Departments of Political Science and Economics at the University of Michigan

Lee Pelton, Emerson College

Peter Pesic, Science Institute, St. John’s College

Andrea Polli, Art and Ecology, University of New Mexico

Catherine Pride, Middlesex Community College

Bob Pura, Greenfield Community College

William Ray, The Ohio State University

Robert Root-Bernstein, Michigan State University

Joaquin Ruiz, College of Letters, Arts, and Science, University of Arizona

Ben Schmidt, Northeastern University

Vandana Singh, Framingham State University

Jim Spohrer, Cognitive OpenTech, IBM Research – Almaden

Raymond Tymas-Jones, University of Utah College of Fine Arts

Rick Vaz, Center for Project-Based Learning, Worcester Polytechnic Institute

David Weaver, Professor of Physics, Estrella Mountain Community College

Rosalind Williams, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Sha Xin Wei, School of Arts, Media and Engineering, Arizona State University

Emma Smith Zbarsky, Department of Applied Mathematics, Wentworth Institute of Technology

The committee would also like to thank students from Arizona State University, Cecilia Chou, Matt Contursi, Tess Doezema, and Anna Guerrero, for sharing their experience with the committee, as well as the

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

respondents to the committee’s “Dear Colleague” letter, for all their valuable input on integrative courses and programs.

Further, the committee would like thank the sponsors that made this study possible: the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Academy of Sciences Scientists and Engineers for the Future Fund, and the Teagle Foundation.

We would also like to express our sincere gratitude for the generosity of the hosts of the study’s two regional information gathering workshops: Le Laboratoire, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona.

The committee would like to acknowledge the work of the consultants who have contributed to the report: Dr. Matthew Mayhew, Dr. Hannah Stewart-Gambino, and Dr. Jennifer Stroud-Rossman and the report writer, Steve Olson.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF REVIEWERS

This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.

We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report: James Barber, College of William and Mary; May Berenbaum, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Rita Charon, Columbia University; Dianne Chong, Boeing Research and Technology (Retired); Michele Cuomo, Montgomery County Community College; Jerry Jacobs, University of Pennsylvania; Leah Jamieson, Purdue University; Christine Ortiz, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Robert Pura, Greenfield Community College; Robert Root-Bernstein, Michigan State University; Jack Schultz, University of Missouri; and James Spohrer, IBM.

Finally, we thank the staff of this project for their valuable leadership, input, and support. Specifically, we would like to thank Program Officer and Study Director, Ashley Bear; BHEW Director, Tom Rudin; Research Associate, Irene Ngun; Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Fellow, Kellyann Jones-Jamtgaard; Senior Program Assistant, Austen Applegate; Senior Advisor, Jay Labov; and the Director of the Cultural Programs for the National Academies, J. D. Talasek.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Maryellen Giger, University of Chicago, and Cora Marrett, University of Wisconsin-Madison. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
×

3 WHAT IS INTEGRATION?

The Disciplinary Context

The Disciplines Defined

Multidisciplinary, Interdisciplinary, and Transdisciplinary Integration

Integration in the Curriculum

Studies of Integrative Experiences Do Not Always Involve the Integration of the Humanities, Arts, and STEMM

What Is Integrative Learning?

4 THE CHALLENGES OF ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF INTEGRATION IN HIGHER EDUCATION ON STUDENTS

Evidence-based Decision Making in Real-World Contexts

The Challenges and Limitations of Research on Integration

The Path Ahead

5 UNDERSTANDING AND OVERCOMING THE BARRIERS TO INTEGRATION IN HIGHER EDUCATION

The Institutional Barriers to Integration in Higher Education

Overcoming the Barriers to Integration in Higher Education

Existing Practices Aimed at Overcoming Common Barriers to Integration

6 THE EFFECTS OF INTEGRATION ON STUDENTS AT THE UNDERGRADUATE LEVEL

The Committee’s Approach

Does the Direction of the Integration Matter?

Integration of the Arts and Humanities into the Academic Programs of Undergraduate Students Majoring in STEM

Exposure to the Arts Can Support Success in STEM Through the Development of Visio-Spatial Skills

Integration of STEM into the Academic Programs of Undergraduate Students Majoring in the Arts and Humanities

The Importance of Moving from Anecdote to Evaluation

Key Insights from a “Dear Colleague” Letter

The Impact of Integration on Groups Underrepresented in the Sciences and Engineering

Summary of the Evidence from Undergraduate and Programs and Courses

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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7-3 Integration of Art Making to Improve Clinical Observations

7-4 Medical Illustration

7-5 The Work of Artist-in-Residence, Deborah Aschheim

7-6 Walter Reed Bethesda Art Therapy at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence

FIGURES

2-1 Students’ college majors, whether in a STEM discipline or a non-STEM discipline (arts, humanities, and social sciences), do not necessarily predict their occupations

2-2 Surveys of Association of American Colleges and Universities member institutions demonstrate a growing commitment to common learning outcomes

2-3 The essential learning outcomes of the Association of American Colleges and Universities’ (AAC&U) Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) initiative

7-1 Data from the American Association of Medical Colleges showing the number of medical schools including topic in required courses and elective courses: medical humanities

TABLES

6-1 Learning Outcomes from In-Course Integrative Programs

6-2 Learning Outcomes from Within-Curriculum Integrative Programs

IMAGES FROM GALLERY OF ILLUMINATING AND INSPIRATIONAL INTEGRATIVE PRACTICES IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Kinetrope: Creating Cross-disciplinary Spaces to Promote Discoveries and Changed Perspectives

Citizen Science/Citizen Artist and Community Engagement

Performance as Platform for Building Bridges Between Disciplines

Imagining a Better Future Through Creative Writing

Cultural Display of the Integration of Art and Science

Creation of Solutions That Improve Lives and Create New Industry Models

Creating Research Facilities That Are Immersive and Transdisciplinary

Creating Robotic and Plant Life Interfaces

Page xxiv Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Page xiii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Page xvii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Page xviii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Page xxii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Page xxiii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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Page xxiv Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. The Integration of the Humanities and Arts with Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Higher Education: Branches from the Same Tree. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/24988.
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In the United States, broad study in an array of different disciplines —arts, humanities, science, mathematics, engineering— 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.

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