Designing and Implementing Interdisciplinary Education : A Teaching Competence Framework for K-12 Teachers

Interdisciplinary education is the future trend in global K-12 curriculum reform, and all K-12 subject teachers should be prepared to meet the challenges it presents. This book aims to explore the competence structure that K-12 teachers need to effectively design and implement interdisciplinary education from a general perspective of subject integration.

Drawing on relevant theories from interdisciplinary education and teacher competence research, the book clarifies the fundamental connotations of teachers’ interdisciplinary teaching competence and identifies the key elements of this competence from an international perspective. It also examines the transformation pathways for teachers from subject-specific teaching to interdisciplinary teaching based on China’s national curriculum framework. On this basis, the book constructs a framework for K-12 teachers’ interdisciplinary teaching competence and applies it to the cultivation of interdisciplinary teaching staff, guiding the design of assessment tools, improvement strategies, and training programs for enhancing interdisciplinary teaching competence.

The book will encourage teachers from different disciplines to participate in the design and implementation of interdisciplinary teaching, thereby promoting the sustainable development of interdisciplinary education. Global educators and researchers interested in interdisciplinary education, competence framework development, teacher professional development, and Chinese education will find valuable insights in this book.

Zehui Zhan (PhD) is an outstanding professor in South China Normal University. Her research interests include STEAM education, interdisciplinary education, teacher education, smart education, and learning science. She is the Youth Pearl River Scholar, Hong Kong Scholar, and PI of the smart educational equipment industry–university–research cooperation base, associate director of the artificial intelligence and smart education key lab, associate director of the Guangdong Educational Evaluation Big Data Engineering Technology Research Center, and associate director of the STEAM Education Alliance for Primary and Secondary Schools in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Her doctoral dissertation has been nominated as the national 100 excellent doctoral dissertations in China. She has published more than 120 papers in the field and received other honors such as the annual award of youth excellent universities teacher from the Fok Yingdong Education Foundation and the Ministry of Education in China, the title of best teacher at South China Normal University, and the first prize in the national education software competition.

Siyuan Lyu is a doctoral student at South China Normal University, with research interests in STEAM education, interdisciplinary education, and teacher education.

Shijing Niu is a graduate student at South China Normal University, focusing on STEAM education, interdisciplinary education, and smart education.

Kai Tu is a graduate student at South China Normal University, focusing on STEAM education and interdisciplinary education.

Qingna Lai is a graduate student at South China Normal University, focusing on STEAM education and interdisciplinary education.