A roadmap for forming successful interdisciplinary education research collaborations: a reflective approach

Abstract

Current literature about interdisciplinary education research is focused on three points: conceptual definitions of interdisciplinarity, the need for interdisciplinary research to tackle the advent of problem-based research and the positive curriculum outcomes to be gained from interdisciplinary research. While this research is important, it does not always include an account of the often complex and politicised interactions that might affect the outcomes of interdisciplinary research groups. This paper provides one possible ‘roadmap’ for successful interdisciplinary collaboration. It is based on a reflective case study of the authors’ own formation of an interdisciplinary research group and the practical resolutions to both the theoretical and the practical issues involved in achieving interdisciplinarity in education research.