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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.
College
Placement Fine Arts
Library
Mathematics Science Spanish
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