Interdisciplinary collaboration is increasingly being recognised as a critical component of research that aims to address the most significant challenges of our time. Research and teaching teams in contemporary universities no longer consist of academics working in silos. Today, teams often consist of industry partners, professionals working in the field, and the direct consumers who stand to benefit from research. Embedded within the construct of interdisciplinary collaboration is not only an acknowledgement of the value of others’ knowledge and skill, but an attempt to actively bring together different perspectives to enhance research and teaching. This can be challenging when institutions do not have systems or an organisational culture in place to support and encourage such practices. One way for academics to acknowledge the value of others’ knowledge basis is to incorporate elements of interdisciplinary collaboration into learning and teaching activities. Interprofessional education (IPE) has been described as a model of practice that occurs when professionals from two or more disciplines come together intentionally to learn from and with each other, share skills and resources, and identify new and innovative ways to improve citizen outcomes. In the university classroom, gentle academics could help students learn effective collaboration skills by developing curricula and learning experiences derived from the IPE model. For example, academics could highlight the value of collaboration, model effective collaboration, include learning materials that represent diverse perspectives, and create learning activities that help students develop skills that facilitate effective collaboration. The aim of this chapter is to explore how the Gentle Academic approach and the incorporation of interprofessional education can improve workplace culture in academia and enhance interdisciplinary collaboration.
Principle 2: Acknowledge the Intrinsic Value of Others’ Knowledge Bases, Even If They Do Not Seem Important to You from Your Institutional Context
Erika Marie Pace;
2026
Abstract
Interdisciplinary collaboration is increasingly being recognised as a critical component of research that aims to address the most significant challenges of our time. Research and teaching teams in contemporary universities no longer consist of academics working in silos. Today, teams often consist of industry partners, professionals working in the field, and the direct consumers who stand to benefit from research. Embedded within the construct of interdisciplinary collaboration is not only an acknowledgement of the value of others’ knowledge and skill, but an attempt to actively bring together different perspectives to enhance research and teaching. This can be challenging when institutions do not have systems or an organisational culture in place to support and encourage such practices. One way for academics to acknowledge the value of others’ knowledge basis is to incorporate elements of interdisciplinary collaboration into learning and teaching activities. Interprofessional education (IPE) has been described as a model of practice that occurs when professionals from two or more disciplines come together intentionally to learn from and with each other, share skills and resources, and identify new and innovative ways to improve citizen outcomes. In the university classroom, gentle academics could help students learn effective collaboration skills by developing curricula and learning experiences derived from the IPE model. For example, academics could highlight the value of collaboration, model effective collaboration, include learning materials that represent diverse perspectives, and create learning activities that help students develop skills that facilitate effective collaboration. The aim of this chapter is to explore how the Gentle Academic approach and the incorporation of interprofessional education can improve workplace culture in academia and enhance interdisciplinary collaboration.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
