Development of Interdisciplinary Problem-Solving Strategies through Games and Computer Simulations

Setting The Stage

City Tech students usually understand the requirements of their major, especially in technical fields like computer systems technology. However, they do not understand and often question why general education courses, including science and English, are relevant to their education. Consequently, students do not bridge and transfer what they learn in the course of their major and in the general education courses. We will present two cases studies with the common thread on how computer simulations and games can be used to bridge knowledge from different disciplines. In the first case, “An Interdisciplinary Understanding of the Heart,” we will illustrate how researchers from different disciplines collaborate to advance our understanding of the physiology of normal and diseased hearts. Computer simulations provide a link between our understanding of biological systems at different scale levels and different disciplines, making it possible to create a systemic (non-reductionist) representation of the heart. This example could be used to link courses in mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and computer systems. Later, in the second case, “Development of Problem-Solving Skills by Creating Video Game Narratives,” we will present a case study on how courses in Computer Systems and English could be linked using games and computer simulations, so students understand better how different disciplines connect to each other. Games and computer simulations not only will help students develop interdisciplinary strategies to problem solving but will also provide a mechanism to bridge the abstract (theory) to the concrete (hands-on exercises).