Integrated Systems Pedagogy: Not Adding But Integrating Systems Thinking into the Educational Curriculum
Authors: Ogland, P. and Evans, G.
Journal: Systemist
Volume: 46
Issue: 2
Publisher: United Kingdom Systems Society
Abstract:In a world characterised by impending climate crisis, social conflict and technology run wild, the need for teaching Critical Systems Thinking (CST) has never been greater. However, due to the impact of politics on education and research, and how universities and institutions of higher education are often run, incentives like the Research Excellence Framework (REF) make it necessary for most researchers to focus on domains where they can demonstrate excellence, typically meaning fragmented and reductionistic research in highly specialised fields. As a response to this challenge, Integrated Systems Pedagogy (ISP) has been developed as a constructivist methodology for teaching CST by reframing curriculums in ways that are expected to stimulate systems understanding with implications on how to think and act. The difference between ISP and traditional systems pedagogy is exemplified by how we have been teaching quality management by use of ISP as opposed to how it is frequently taught at business schools. The example illustrates our message that systems thinking is not something that should be taught in addition to everything else but rather as an underlying philosophy of knowledge and learning that should be integrated in all sorts of topics at all levels of education.
Source: Manual