Future Learning Design Podcast

Interdisciplinary Learning - A Conversation with Ed Fidoe

Feb 5, 2021

Ed Fidoe, co-founder of the London Interdisciplinary School, discusses interdisciplinary learning and LIS's approach to education. They explore the value of diverse skills, unlocking collective intelligence, the concept of a polymath, and the challenges of achieving interdisciplinary learning.

23:58

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Episode guests

Ed Fidoe

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Quick takeaways

The London Interdisciplinary School (LIS) offers a fully interdisciplinary undergraduate degree, focusing on studying complex problems rather than specific subjects, to provide students with a BASc in Interdisciplinary Problems and Methods.

LIS emphasizes interdisciplinary methods and encourages students to develop a toolkit of skills, including quantitative and qualitative analysis, data analysis, and visual representation of data, to equip them with a diverse skillset highly valued by employers.

Deep dives

The London Interdisciplinary School (LIS) and the Need for Interdisciplinary Thinking

The London Interdisciplinary School (LIS) offers a fully interdisciplinary undergraduate degree that focuses on studying complex problems rather than specific subjects. The goal is to equip students with a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in interdisciplinary problems and methods. The school organizes its courses around complex problems rather than disciplines, recognizing that the challenges in the world today do not respect disciplinary boundaries. Students explore these problems through different disciplinary lenses to develop a broader perspective. Additionally, LIS emphasizes interdisciplinary methods, such as quantitative and qualitative analysis, data analysis, and ethnographic research, to provide students with a diverse set of skills that are in high demand by employers.

Introduction

2min

The Importance of Interdisciplinary Learning in the Education Space

8min

Unlocking Collective Intelligence and the Role of Interdisciplinary Thinking

3min

Exploring the Concept of a Polymath

2min

Challenges and Barriers to Interdisciplinary Learning in Education

10min

Ed Fidoe is co-founder and President of the London Interdisciplinary School. LIS will provide a fully interdisciplinary undergraduate degree, with students studying complex problems rather than specific subjects. Students will graduate with a BASc in Interdisciplinary Problems and Methods. LIS also runs professional/leadership programmes.

In 2012, with Peter Hyman and Oli de Botton, Ed co-founded School 21, an innovative 4 – 18 school in Stratford, East London, designed for children from all starting points and backgrounds (achieved Outstanding Ofsted in 2014).

Ed has advised leaders at Cambridge University, the London School of Economics along with some of the UK’s most exciting schools that are exploring new ways of teaching students. He has also worked with organisations specialised in working directly with disadvantaged students such as ARK Schools and Teach First.

Ed was also the co-founder of EDSPACE, a co-working space for innovative education companies. Prior to founding School 21, Ed worked at McKinsey & Co and ran a theatre production company.

Social Links

LinkedIn: @Edward-Fidoe; @LIS

Twitter: @weareLIS