Exploring Interdisciplinarity

Whatknow’s comment on Wesch’s YouTube movie,
A Vision of Students Today, which I posted on Back to School, got me thinking about the Communication Culture and Technology Program’s orientation, which takes place tomorrow.

I had been pondering the situation, wondering what is the right chord to strike? 

I had been pondering the situation, wondering what is the right chord to strike? How might I best introduce the Program; characterize its unique, and very special aspects; as well as set the new students on the right path? Whatknow’s comment on my Blog gave me a great idea!

In his comments, Whatknow identified himself with many of the students in Wesch’s film. He comes to class, much as they do, together with all of his digital artifacts. These allow him to multitask and draw on resources from a wide array of sources–all the while class is in progress. But Whatknow’s purpose is not to undermine authority, nor to question and/or diminish the content provided by the professor. To the contrary, his aim is to enhance his learning, by bringing multiple and diverse information sources to bear, and allowing them to converse–in real time–with one another. Isn’t that what learning is all about?

When reading Whatknow’s comments, the process that came to mind was that of JAZZ IMPROVIZATION. Pursuing the metaphor, I found that organizational theorist Karl E. Weick has actually used the metaphor of Jazz to analyze organizational improvisation and change. As Weich characterizes the similarities, both jazz and organizational adaptation require a rigorous and common grounding in skills, routines and structures, which then allows participants the wide-ranging freedom to build around them, develop themes and variations of their own, and then to rejoin one another in a greatly enhanced, and far more innovative, output. As the musician Ken Peplowski describes this process:
 

We name the key, count off the tempo and start the song and it’s the first time that we’ve ever played together. But the reason we can do this is that we have a common vocabulary, and we listen and react to one another.

Like Jazz players, who discover their ideas and new approaches in the very process of playing their music and getting constant feedback from others, students in the CCT Program try out different venues, build on them in creative ways, and then encounter the curriculum and research that is right for them. The underlying CCT structure, which allows students this flexibility, is a commitment to interdisciplinarity, a sound theoretical grounding in multiple disciplines, strong methodological skills, a modular curricula, a knowledgeable and creative faculty, helpful mentoring, and a collaborative and interactive student body. As is the case in any jazz group, The CCT Program, taken in its entirety, comprises an adaptive, on-going, interdisciplinary, community of practice, with each member doing his or her own thing–in delightful harmony with others.

Thank you Whatknow for your comments on my Blog. When it comes to orientation, it is always good to step back and reorient yourself.

On Technorati: education, Interdisciplinarity, jazz, organizational change