Interdisciplinary strategies for teaching natural sciences in higher education [Estrategias interdisciplinarias para la enseñanza de las ciencias naturales en la educación superior]

Authors

  • Fausto David Rumiguano-Delgado Unidad Educativa Municipal Cotocollao, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
  • Jazmin Gabriela Cuenca-Chinkim Unidad Educativa Comunitaria Intercultural Bilingüe Padre Alfredo Germani, Sucúa, Morona Santiago, Ecuador
  • Luis Alberto Pinos-Vargas Unidad Educativa Municipal Oswaldo Lombeyda, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador
  • Rossana Paola Benavides-Velasco Unidad Educativa Mejía, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.62574/rmpi.v5iEducativa.459

Keywords:

interdisciplinary teaching, natural sciences, higher education

Abstract

The aim was to design interdisciplinary strategies for teaching natural sciences in higher education. A feasible project was employed, structured in three methodological phases: diagnosis of needs through a documentary review of seventeen sources published between 2007 and 2025; design of strategies based on identified theoretical frameworks; and conceptual validation through triangulation of pedagogical, disciplinary and practical perspectives. The results generated six strategies organised into three complementary dimensions: curricular, including integrated thematic modules and interdepartmental collaborative projects; methodological, comprising learning based on environmental problems and integrated laboratories; and technological, incorporating augmented reality for the visualisation of complex phenomena and collaborative digital platforms. It was concluded that effective implementation required the translation of abstract principles into concrete pedagogical procedures, systematic teacher professional development, institutional policies that legitimised interdepartmental collaboration, and the use of technologies as means subordinate to fundamental pedagogical objectives oriented towards a holistic understanding of complex natural phenomena.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Almeida-Shapán, R. E., & Yánez-Monge, A. B. (2025). Impacto de la integración de la tecnología en la enseñanza de las ciencias naturales [Impact of the integration of technology in the teaching of natural sciences]. Revista Multidisciplinaria Perspectivas Investigativas, 5(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.62574/rmpi.v5i1.280

Araya-Crisóstomo, S., Monzón-Godoy, V. H., & Infante-Malachias, M. E. (2019). Interdisciplinariedad en palabras del profesor de biología: de la comprensión teórica a la práctica educativa [Interdisciplinarity in the words of biology teachers: From theoretical understanding to educational practice]. Revista Mexicana de Investigación Educativa, 24(81), 403-429.

Carvajal-Suárez, F. A., & Moreno-Flores, J. L. (2023). Dimensión ambiental y el desarrollo sostenible en el currículo de la educación superior [Environmental dimension and sustainable development in the higher education curriculum]. Revista Multidisciplinaria Perspectivas Investigativas, 3(4), 29–36. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8428458

Colorado-Ordoñez, P., & Gutiérrez-Gamboa, L. A. (2016). Estrategias didácticas para la enseñanza de las ciencias naturales en la educación superior [Didactic strategies for teaching natural sciences in higher education]. Revista Logos Ciencia & Tecnología, 8(1), 148-158. https://doi.org/10.22335/rlct.v8i1.363

Cooper, M. M., & Stowe, R. L. (2018). Chemistry education research—From personal empiricism to evidence, theory, and informed practice [Investigación en educación química: Del empirismo personal a la evidencia, teoría y práctica informada]. Chemical Reviews, 118(12), 6053-6087. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00020

Guaña-Narváez, C. L., Barahona-Ibarra, A. E., Pozo-Zapata, R. F., & Oña-Guilcaso, N. J. (2024). El uso de realidad aumentada en la didáctica de las ciencias naturales [The use of augmented reality in natural science education]. Revista Multidisciplinaria Perspectivas Investigativas, 4(especial), 32–38. https://doi.org/10.62574/rmpi.v4iespecial.238

Klaassen, R. G. (2018). Interdisciplinary education: a case study. European Journal of Engineering Education, 43(6), 842–859. https://doi.org/10.1080/03043797.2018.1442417

Lara-Andino, A. R., León-Vinueza, A. G., Flores-Quistial, J. T., & Untuña-Soria, V. P. (2023). Las estrategias didácticas en la enseñanza de las ciencias naturales en pro de ODS [Didactic strategies in natural sciences teaching in favor of SDGs]. Tesla Revista Científica, 3(2), e244. https://doi.org/10.55204/trc.v3i2.e244

Mayes, R., & Rittschof, K. (2021). Development of interdisciplinary STEM impact measures of student attitudes and reasoning. Frontiers in Education, 6, 631684. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2021.631684

Méndez-Leyva, A., & Pérez-Ganfong, C. (2010). La interdisciplinariedad en la enseñanza de las ciencias naturales en las carreras de ingeniería [Interdisciplinarity in natural sciences teaching in engineering programs]. Didáctica y Educación, 1(1), 49–64.

Méndez-Pupo, A. R. (2007). La interdisciplinariedad en las ciencias naturales: ¡¿el problema es el método?! [Interdisciplinarity in natural sciences: Is the method the problem?!]. Luz, 6(4), 1-9.

Regalado-González, L. E., & Ortiz-Aguilar, W. (2024). Estrategias metodológicas para lograr la interdisciplinariedad en las áreas de conocimiento fundamentales en sexto grado de Educación General Básica [Methodological strategies to achieve interdisciplinarity in fundamental knowledge areas in sixth grade of General Basic Education]. Sinergia Académica, 7(Especial 7), 319-338. https://doi.org/10.51736/7hsqq391

Roehrig, G. H., Dare, E. A., Ellis, J. A., et al. (2021). Beyond the basics: A detailed conceptual framework of integrated STEM [Más allá de lo básico: Un marco conceptual detallado de STEM integrado]. Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Science Education Research, 3, 11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43031-021-00041-y

Tripp, B., & Shortlidge, E. E. (2019). A framework to guide undergraduate education in interdisciplinary science [Un marco para guiar la educación de pregrado en ciencia interdisciplinaria]. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 18(2), ar26. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.18-11-0226

Wang, H. H., Charoenmuang, M., Knobloch, N. A., et al. (2020). Defining interdisciplinary collaboration based on high school teachers' beliefs and practices of STEM integration using a complex designed system. International Journal of STEM Education, 7, 3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-019-0201-4

Weinberg, A. E., & McMeeking, L. B. S. (2017). Toward meaningful interdisciplinary education: High school teachers' views of mathematics and science integration. School Science and Mathematics, 117(5), 204-213. https://doi.org/10.1111/ssm.12224

Wu, X., Yang, Y., Zhou, X., et al. (2024). A meta-analysis of interdisciplinary teaching abilities among elementary and secondary school STEM teachers [Un metaanálisis de las habilidades de enseñanza interdisciplinaria entre los profesores STEM de escuelas primarias y secundarias]. International Journal of STEM Education, 11, 38. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-024-00500-8

Published

2025-11-22

How to Cite

Rumiguano-Delgado, F. D. ., Cuenca-Chinkim , J. G. ., Pinos-Vargas , L. A. ., & Benavides-Velasco, R. P. . (2025). Interdisciplinary strategies for teaching natural sciences in higher education [Estrategias interdisciplinarias para la enseñanza de las ciencias naturales en la educación superior]. Multidisciplinary Journal Investigative Perspectives/Revista Multidisciplinaria Perspectivas Investigativas, 5(Educativa), 172–183. https://doi.org/10.62574/rmpi.v5iEducativa.459