ABSTRACT
Interdisciplinary science teaching attracts considerable attention. Th e authors of science education reform documents emphasize the need to connect science across disciplines (i.e., biology, earth and space science, and physical science) and to other fi elds such as mathematics, history, and language arts (American Association for the Advancement of Science [AAAS], 1994). We might imagine that it would be most effi cient to rely on a single lesson to cover more than a
single subject. Aft er all when a week of instruction is scheduled so that a fi xed number of minutes is designated for reading or math, science is oft en squeezed out. Integrating lessons would allow a teacher to include more science in a crowded schedule. All of this might lead us to accept interdisciplinary units as a healthy approach to teaching science. Within this chapter we will examine the promises and problems of teaching science in an interdisciplinary fashion. With this knowledge, you can decide for yourself how much interdisciplinary teaching you are willing to undertake.
