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Humanities |
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 Midland's humanities department
integrates the study of literature and history into a cohesive class. While 9th
and 12th graders take a separate English class, sophomores take World Studies,
and juniors take American Studies.
Why Interdisciplinary Classes?
In his work on curriculum design, author Michael Apple
writes that “more realistic” education “prepare[s] students with the political
and conceptual tools necessary to deal with the dense reality they must face.”
This course in World Studies aims to introduce students to this reality: that
the world is dense with multitudes of people, cultures, religions, political
systems, and socioeconomic conditions that, directly or indirectly, impact
their own lives. Technologies and commerce have brought people closer together,
demanding greater understanding and knowledge of our global neighbors. To this
end, this course strives to break free of traditional modes of teaching and
learning, by asserting that teaching is not a one-way street, but rather a
dialogue between two actively engaged and interested parties: the teacher and
student. Marion Brady asserts that “our best minds tell us that all knowledge
is related, yet our curriculum is fragmented and the fragments are moving
farther apart.” Therefore, World Studies adopts a team-teaching model that aims
to integrate subjects that have previously been taught separately; that is, we
want to bring these fragments together. Furthermore, by incorporating the
thinking of curriculum designer Grant Wiggins, students will approach World
Studies and American Studies by studying themes, in which units of content
develop from generative questions, concepts, issues, and current and historical
problems.
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