The Rise and Fall of a Required Interdisciplinary Course: Lessons Learned

In order to meet the South Dakota Board of Regents requirements for an upper level writing course with global perspective for all graduates, the administration at the University of South Dakota established an interdisciplinary course to be taken by all majors. Two faculty members from different disciplines were assigned to teach each section with support from an English Ph.D. student. The institution built an active learning classroom for 18 teams of 6 students taught simultaneously in each section. However, after only four semesters, the administration canceled the course. In this article, we offer an analysis of this situation and suggest lessons learned, both positive and negative, during the development, implementation, and redesign of this interdisciplinary course.