Future Studies of Higher Education
M. Hoseini Moghadam; M. Hamidi
Abstract
With the growing complexity of current and future world issues, the interconnectedness and, interdependence of thematic areas has become one of the shared norms and practices today. This also has led to the development of interdisciplinary studies in scientific and technological institutions and has ...
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With the growing complexity of current and future world issues, the interconnectedness and, interdependence of thematic areas has become one of the shared norms and practices today. This also has led to the development of interdisciplinary studies in scientific and technological institutions and has become one of the universal trends of policy-making in science, technology and, innovation domains. Climate change, environmental pollution, the steady increase in longevity and aging of societies, global poverty, international financial crises, global diseases, terrorism, addiction and injustice are some of the topics whose foresight is beyond the power of individual and requires thinking, dialogue and cooperation in different specialized fields. The main question is: Which future scenarios can lead to the development of interdisciplinary studies in Iran’s medical universities? Documentary studies, expert panels and brainstorming are some of the methods applied in this research. The findings include: first, interdisciplinary knowledge is identified in response to complex social issues rooted in the present and the future; second, the development of interdisciplinarity in medical sciences requires a process of simultaneous top-down and bottom-up development; third, building a preferable future for the development of interdisciplinary knowledge in Iran's medical sciences involves attention to the facts that shape the subject at different levels from objective to subjective, and, therefore, a range of short-term to long-term approaches, plans and actions to build objectivity and related mindsets.
Philosophy of Educations
P. Najarian
Abstract
Complexity theory is a new theory originally introduced in natural sciences; however, recently it has been widely used in social sciences, and has been of great interest to educators in the last two decades. Since complexity theory is yet fairly unknown in the majority of fields of science in Iran, especially ...
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Complexity theory is a new theory originally introduced in natural sciences; however, recently it has been widely used in social sciences, and has been of great interest to educators in the last two decades. Since complexity theory is yet fairly unknown in the majority of fields of science in Iran, especially in education and curriculum development, it is necessary to describe its concepts and implications. The objective of this paper is to determine how the complexity theory and its implications can provide solutions for the current curriculum problems. This work presents a basic research approach, in which two philosophical research methods of “conceptual analysis: conceptual structure assessment” and “deductive method: practical syllogism” have been used. The results of this paper show that the application of philosophical features of the complexity theory can enable us to improve the current curriculums. Some of the implications of the complexity theory are: paying particular attention to the complex aspects of learners and their interactions with the universe; developing general mental abilities, applying trans-disciplinary approaches and problem-based curriculums, promoting contextualized knowledge and selecting educational resources and materials related to ecological problems; replacing distributed, participatory and negotiating knowledge with controlled-based and hierarchy-based one; promoting lifetime learning and distance learning, emphasizing learning through feedback, connection and network interaction by applying the new complex network-based technologies, and being prepared for continuous changes in unpredictable situations.
