The “core curriculum” can be a subject of intense debate, with numerous areas staking claim to what students should be exposed to during their academic journey. Beyond disciplinary requirements animating the core, there are critical issues whose exploration resides beyond the purview of any particular area; addressing them requires grounding in many (or even all) of the extant disciplines. Such is the case with a “wicked problem” like climate change, which is inherently multidisciplinary in its causes and impacts alike. In 2017 we launched a novel core curriculum pilot focusing on climate change across disciplines. The model grounds critical concerns about climate within spheres of science, philosophy, theology, history, and the humanities, providing students with an opportunity to "curate their core" around an overarching issue while completing required coursework. The model goes beyond "course tagging" to modularize semesters into quarters, with students moving between disciplines halfway through each term to maintain an interdisciplinary structure. Further, each term has multiple "integrative experiences" in which students (and faculty) across the entire cohort come together around a shared problem, project, or exercise. Five years in, we note an array of transformations. First, growing salience of the issues suggests that climate change is becoming a core “field” unto itself. Second, administrative structures can be adaptive when engaged as thought partners early in the design process. Third, faculty members are often willing to expand their courses to remain in the core and be cutting-edge simultaneously. Fourth, students are the most important factor in any such model's success, with many returning as "fellows" to help shape the trajectory. We have cultivated this initiative across in-person, virtual, and hybrid platforms necessitated by real-time events, and are happy to have the opportunity to share takeaways and plans for the future.

Only accessible to Georgetown faculty, staff, and students. Please use your NetID to login. All rights reserved. Please contact digitalscholarship@georgetown.edu to obtain information about the use of this video and digital objects.  

Higher Education

Video