The Real World is Interdisciplinary: Exploring Students’ Perspectives and Experiences with Interdisciplinary Mathematics Education

Abstract

Learning mathematics in a silo presents it as a complex discipline that is detached from the real world and therefore difficult to understand. As such, there is now a growing interest in interdisciplinary mathematics education (IdME). Yet, first-hand accounts of students’ perspectives and experiences about IdME are lacking. Thus, this study explored Grade 8 students’ perspectives on, and experiences with an IdME project in their mathematics course. An exploratory case study methodology was used to collect qualitative data in the form of student self-reflections and interviews. Findings suggest that students’ experiences with IdME provided them with new perspectives about mathematics, improvement in understanding of complex mathematics concepts, and recognition that an interdisciplinary team of teachers further transformed their mathematics learning experiences. Despite the mostly positive feedback, some students found IdME challenging as it contradicted their preconceived notions of mathematics only existing in a silo and previous traditional forms of mathematics learning. Future research is needed to further examine the ways that IdME can be used to transform mathematics instruction, leading to better performance and achievement in mathematics.