When interdisciplinarity meets creativity: exploring interdisciplinary creative teaching in the 21st century

Interdisciplinarity and creativity, notwithstanding their unique characteristics, serve as methods and principles for fostering connections among diverse and complementary individuals, disciplines, ideas, concepts, processes, and methodologies. This art of forging connections involves the articulation of often dissimilar elements in a manner that is both unrestrained (lacking rigid constraints) and structured (abiding by the principles of logical coherence and academic rigor while adapting to the given context). Neither interdisciplinarity nor creativity emerge spontaneously from an individual’s genius or an abstract collective intellect. Instead, these are fields of study, both theoretical and empirical, that can be applied in teaching practices aimed at elucidating the complexity of subjects of inquiry and cultivating the skills necessary for comprehension, analysis, and resolution. In today’s context, both interdisciplinarity and creativity are increasingly indispensable abilities for addressing the intricate challenges of the 21st century. This chapter seeks to elucidate the concepts of interdisciplinarity (along with its closely related notion of transdisciplinarity) and creativity by delineating their unique attributes and areas of convergence. More specifically, it endeavors to scrutinize the essence of creative interdisciplinary teaching (and the teaching of interdisciplinarity) that equips students with cross-disciplinary skills. Drawing upon the experience of conducting interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary teaching in the field of children’s rights studies over many years, this chapter offers exemplars, lines of inquiry, and recommendations for the development of creative interdisciplinary teaching.