Uses of Integrated Chemistry and Cross-Disciplinary Science Courses in Science Education Research

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Uses of integrated chemistry and cross-disciplinary science courses in science education research
USES OF INTEGRATED CHEMISTRY AND CROSS-DISCIPLINARY SCIENCE
COURSES IN SCIENCE EDUCATION RESEARCH.
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Uses of integrated chemistry and cross-disciplinary science courses in science education research
Abstract
This study aims at focusing on the uses of integrated chemistry and cross-disciplinary science
courses that are in science education research. It seeks to address the concepts that are taught in
chemistry lessons from which tutors or researchers focus on when teaching from the interface of
another discipline and the challenges that students encounter when studying these concepts. Uses
or objectives of cross-disciplinary science courses will also be given close focus in this study. It
is important to keep in mind that, since chemistry and biology courses’ have been integrated into
each other than Physics to Biology or Physics to Chemistry, the disciplines and sub-disciplines
born from the relationship between Biology and Chemistry will be prioritized in this review.
This review is essentially based on teaching and learning of integrated sciences among tutors or
researchers and science undergraduate students.

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Uses of integrated chemistry and cross-disciplinary science courses in science education research
Introduction
According to the Oxford dictionary, to integrate is to form something in wholesome from
combining two things together. Traditionally, science was made up of Chemistry, Biology and
Physics. Integrated chemistry is therefore a discipline that combines either Biology and
Chemistry or Physics and Chemistry together to form a whole discipline. (Abdella, Walczak,
Kandl, & Schwinefus, 2011).
Cross-disciplinary courses in science education research are the activities that usually involve
two or more science academic disciplines. (National Research Council. 2012). As much as, the
traditional sciences are the most recognized which usually fall in the field of biological and
physical sciences, other disciplines like philosophy, sociology, law ...etc. are sciences too which
fall in the field of humanities and social sciences.
Integrated sciences and cross disciplinary science courses have been a major focus of many
institutions all over the world. Biochemistry is a discipline born from the integration of
chemistry and biology that seeks to incorporate a broad spectrum of experts from both
disciplines in investigating and studying chemical interactions in living organisms and
microorganisms. On the other hand, undergraduate institutions that tutor Neuroscience
incorporate philosophy, computer science, chemistry and several other disciplines in training
their students for a Neuroscience degree. Therefore, it is essential to recognize that chemistry has
become inter-disciplined in lab experiments and teaching which has also led to the introduction
of such disciplines as chemical biology. Biological chemistry is another sub-discipline that has
emerged from chemistry. (Orgill, & Cooper, 2015).

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Uses of integrated chemistry and cross-disciplinary science courses in science education research
It is important to note that integration of science has been faster between chemistry and biology
than between biology and physics. (Dreyfus, Geller, Gouvea, Sawtelle, Turpen, & Redish, 2013).
For instance, in the development of science integrated courses in The University of Maryland,
there have been few to none courses focused on Biology by Physics as compared to Biology and
Chemistry. (Redish, & Cooke, 2013).
Medicine is born from biology and recently, tutors from Medicine and Chemistry departments in
various STEM institutions have developed courses to incorporate chemistry at the undergraduate
studies level of Medicine. However, the concepts taught are those that are geared in helping the
student with the noble task of applying certain topics taught in chemistry in medicine.
From the above build up, we can ask ourselves, is it really essential to teach a humanity
undergraduate student abstract chemistry concepts who probably has no prior chemistry
knowledge? Or in the discipline of biochemistry, which is an integration of chemistry and
biology, are there any challenges that undergraduate students studying biochemistry face? And
what measures are institutions and biochemists experts taking in order to disseminate the course
material effectively?
Literature review
Objectives of learning cross-disciplinary/inter-disciplinary science education. There are
certain set goals and objectives that are set by curriculum experts of various science disciplines
when developing the various courses to be studied by undergraduate students in the institutions
of learning. Failure to have learning objectives of a particular developed course, then it would
not be important to study that course.