User:JREverest/sandbox/Approaches to Knowledge/Seminar group 2/Disciplinary categories

Origins of Discipline and Disciplinary Categories

Mariam Webster defines “discipline” as “a field of study”. Although the word’s Latin root ‘discipulus’ suggests a meaning related to education (pupil), the first known usage of the words revolved around the notions of control, punishment, the way one should behave etc.

As knowledge production progressed, academic disciplines theorized the way we produce and gain knowledge because of the criterions that separated one discipline from the other, . These determinant factors may be generalized briefly as the area of study, methods of research and understanding, elements and principles, terminology and language.

The first example of knowledge categorization in history was depended on the needs of society and how the skills and activities of each individual would serve to the common living, such as construction, feeding, weapon making. Accordingly. knowledge, like values and tradition, were passed on verbally from one generation to the next.

New discoveries and technological advances lead to the progress of specialization, and knowledge started to become more orderly structured, thus more achievable. The concrete system of learning, and the separation of different subjects begun with the institutionalization of education, which created the basis of school learning. The earliest subjects are known to date back to Ancient Greek, primarily with the teachings of Socrates at his rhetorical school, Plato at the Academy and Aristotle at Lyceum. However, the idea was not necessarily specialization, but rather to accumulate knowledge, so the classification of subjects existed in a broader perspective than what we consider as the modern day academic disciplines.

Although there is no general agreement to determine the classification of modern academic disciplines, the main categorization is commonly known as Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Formal Sciences and Applied Sciences. As these disciplines have been improved and gained depth, subcategories have emerged. These subcategories flexed the boundaries of each discipline because they happen to coincide with one another, introducing the notion interdisciplinarity. Even “disciplinary categories” itself branched out from its traditional meaning that is associated with academia and started to be used in the categorization of different areas.

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Libraries

Libraries use a classification system where library resources are organised in a way which facilitates finding materials. They are most typically organised in a hierarchical tree structure, but other classification systems exist as well. These classification systems should not be confused with the ISBN number system.

According to the Britannica (Britannica.com) definition, library classification is a "system of arrangement adopted by a library to enable patrons to find its materials quickly and easily. While cataloging provides information on the physical and topical nature of the book (or other item), classification, through assignment of a call number (consisting of class designation and author representation), locates the item in its library setting and, ideally, in the realm of knowledge".

These systems can be categorised as: 1.Universal schemes 2.Specific classification schemes 3.National schemes "In terms of functionality, classification systems are often described as: 1. enumerative: subject headings are listed alphabetically, with numbers assigned to each heading in alphabetical order. 2. hierarchical: subjects are divided hierarchically, from most general to most specific. 3. faceted or analytico-synthetic: subjects are divided into mutually exclusive orthogonal facets." (wikipedia.org - 'Library classifications'

In the UK, libraries use a national scheme (UKSLC) which categorises books into the following categories: Adult Non-Fiction, Adult Fiction, Early Years, Children's and Teenage Non-Fiction, Children's and Teenage Fiction. Some books may be put into multiple categories, but generally won't be in more than three. They are categorised in the following hierarchy: Age (not applicable for Adult categories); Subject or Genre or Booktype; Audience; Treatment.

Classifying materials in a set way will influence the way we think about them and the definitions we give them. This especially occurs if they are classified in a predominantly natural or fundamental way (the method of classifying books by subject). Two other main classification types are accidental classification (chronological or geographic) and artificial (alphabet, linguistic base, form, size, or numerical order) [source: britannica.com], which understandably don't affect the perception of a given text.

Sources: wikipedia, Book Industry Communication (bic.org.uk), britannica.com

Governments

Countries are governed by governments. Governments decide upon the policies that will be implemented in different fields of society. For every different field, there are ministries : "the body of ministers responsible for the administration of a country or state; the members of such a body regarded collectively". Within every ministry, there are people that possess specific knowledge of the fiels of that ministry. However, at each ministry, people from different disciplinary backgrounds e.g. lawyers, policy makers, psychologists, communication experts are needed to be able to implement policy effectively.

Each ministry, also known as a governmental department, has its own field. In the UK, 25 ministries decide upon the country's policy. These numbers differ per country. Take Hungary and the Netherlands as examples: ten and twelve ministries decide upon the government's policy there.

Not only the number but also the types of ministries can change if in a different country. For example in the UK these are the branches:

Prime Minister's Office; Attorney General's Office; Cabinet Office; Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy; Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport; Department for Education; Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs; Department for Exiting the European Union; Department for International Development; Department for International Trade; Department for Transport; Department for Work & Pensions; Department of Health & Social Care; Foreign & Commonwealth Office; HM Treasury; Home Office; Ministry of Defence; Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government; Ministry of Justice; Northern Ireland Office; Office of the Advocate General for Scotland; Office of the Leader of the House of Commons; Office of the Leader of the House of Lords; Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland; Office of the Secretary of State for Wales Swyddfa Ysgrifennydd Gwladol Cymru; UK Export Finance

Whereas in Hungary these are:

Agrárminisztérium = Ministry of Agriculture; Belügyminisztérium = Ministry of the Interior; Emberi Erőforrások Minisztériuma = Ministry of Human Resources; Honvédelmi Minisztérium = Ministry of Defence; Igazságügyi Minisztérium = Ministry of Justice; Innovációs és Technológiai Minisztérium = Ministry of Innovation and Technology; Külgazdasági és Külügyminisztérium = Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade; Miniszterelnöki Kabinetiroda = Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister; Miniszterelnökség = Prime Minister’s Office; Pénzügyminisztérium = Ministry of Finance

Issues within ministries might emerge when it becomes clear that the issues they have to solve go beyond the scope of their own ministry and might require the expertise of other ministries as well. Interdisciplinary issues therefore require proper communication between ministries. The involvement of non-ministerial institutions can also prove to be of useful help in addressing and solving issues that cover several disciplines.

(WikiBooks won't let me add citations/links. Sources: OED; UK Government website; Dutch Government website).

The Internet

Although we tend to see the internet as breaking categorical boundaries, our research showed the contrary. When investigating different search engines we found that all of them (upon initial search) present you with clear categories. For Google, Bing and Ecosia the main categories are images, maps, videos etc. However Yahoo's categories mail, news, sports, finance, celebrity, style, movies) and DuckDuckGo's categories (web, images, videos, news, meanings, stock, definitions) proved to be more disciplinary, specific and less broad. Furthermore, upon searching, DuckDuckGo actually provides you with further suggestions it believes are related to your initial topic in very clear disciplinary categories, e.g. definitions, meanings, mathematics, products etc.

What happens after the initial search on an internet browser is what ultimately differentiates the way in which users can access information on the internet from how they would do so in a physical library.

In a physical library, upon arriving at the bookshelf related to your discipline and the specific book or article you might be looking for, there is no obvious next step to take other than to get reading. The disciplines into which the available resources are organised are usually broad categories, meaning that to delve deeper into a topic you will have to do a fair bit more work than when navigating the internet.

Upon beginning a browser search, users can embark upon a 'navigational schema'. This is essentially the unexpected journey one might take after their initial search due to the results and suggestions made by a web browser based on related themes, ideas, topics, suggestions, thanks to the very organisation and labelling taking place within its information system. This allows the world wide web to make greater links between information than the traditional library. This type of information system structure massively facilitates research breadth and ultimately allows for a far greater level of interactivity and personalisation of information retrieval.

Schools

English National Curriculum

In England, schools that are controlled by the Local Authority have to teach the national curriculum from age 5 to 16. It was first introduced in 1988, under the Thatcher government, as part of the 'Education Reform Act', and has been amended since then, but follows the same structure . This includes Maths, English, Sciences, PE, Computing, RE and Sex and Relationship Education. This does not apply to schools that are not controlled by the Local Authority e.g. Academies, but they must still offer a "a broad and balanced curriculum that covers English, maths, sciences and RE." In 2008, a review of the system proposed that primary education should follow less strict disciplinary boundaries, instead of 10 subjects, pupils should instead be required to study 6 'areas of learning'. However, this was scrapped when the Labour lost governmental control in 2010.

French National Curriculum

In France, schools are controlled by the Ministère de l'Éducation National which therefore defines the school curricula and their content. The Ministry's control over the curriculum leads to regular changes, often linked to a change of government. The last modifications took place in 2002, 2007, 2008, and 2015-2016.

The feeling of living in a discipline-based system is much stronger in high school than in primary school. Indeed, in primary school, students have only one teacher, which marks the gap between the different disciplines less clearly. Over the years, disciplines are split into different subdivisions. For example, students are gradually becoming aware that the "French" subject consists of the subdivisions "spelling", "conjugation" and "grammar".

In the French mentality, scientific disciplines are considered more difficult. The "S" stream of the general upper secondary, dedicated to science, is therefore considered as the stream of excellence. Indeed, after a year in S, students can choose to change their path and study in the economic or humanities stream, but the opposite is impossible.

Mexican National Curriculum

In Mexico, schools are controlled by the Secretaría de Educación Pública, Sep and have a set curriculum for ages 5-6 for preschool. According to the SEP 2011 Study Program Guide there are six disciplines enforced in Mexican preschool, educación preescolar: Language and Communication, Mathematical thinking, Exploration and Knowledge of the World, Physical and Health Development, Development of Social and Personal Competences, Artistic Expression and Appreciation.

Primary School or primaria comprises grades 1-6, which includes students 6 to 12 years of school. It includes Spanish, Mathematics, Natural Sciences, History, Geography, Art, and Physical Education. Middle School to Junior High is Secundaria, comprises grades 7-9th, with students aged 12 to 15. They follow the same curriculum as primary school and exercises "strong emphasis on vocational, commercial and artistic training" (Classbase). High School, preparatoria Comprises grades 10-12th with students aged 15 to 18. The curriculum remains similar to the one of the past years, however they become more specialized on the final year. Foreign Language studies become compulsory to obtain the Baccalaureate degree.

Chinese National Curriculum

In China's primary education, the curriculum is divided into Chinese, Mathematics, Science and English (which is introduced in year 3). In secondary education, Science is split into Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Also, Social Science subjects, Politics, History and Geography, are introduced. Chinese, Mathematics and English are compulsory.

Jobs

The world of employment today is heavily ruled by knowledge grouped into disciplines. This may in part stem from the link between the disciplining of knowledge at the university level to the employment level. For example, many jobs require a certain a degree in order for a candidate to qualify. This forces a limited disciplinary set of knowledge that a person would come to a job with. However, this system of continual disciplinary categorization can be limiting when we face the real world problems of today. Due to the inter-connectivity and globalization of our modern world, the issues we face are complex, and multi-sectoral.

Typically, organizations are usually not well set up for engaging in collaboration. There are many different strategies to implementing collaboration, all of which include disadvantages and advantages. One strategy is called collective impact , which includes five conditions key to successful collaboration. These consist of: a common agenda, shared measurement systems, mutually reinforcing activities, continuous communication and backbone support organizations (Kania). Collaborative programs include a diverse group of stakeholders who should be engaging in activities that reflect their individual skill sets but through a collaborative framework, “each stakeholder’s efforts must fit into an overarching plan if their combined efforts are to succeed” (Kania). Creating a common agenda is vital when facilitating collaboration, so that all parties have a similar understanding of the problem and agreement on the best way and actions to solving it. Since violence against women is such a complex problem, it could be understood in multiple ways. A basic shared understanding or definition of the problem is critical so that there are no miscommunications about the goal of the project. Any differences in comprehension of the problem or the goal of the project must be resolved so that effective collaboration can be achieved and real change can be made.