Abstract
This article argues that communication should occupy a central role in future university education, particularly as universities confront complex social and global problems that exceed the boundaries of single disciplines. It critiques academic specialization and the department-based structure of higher education for encouraging disciplinary isolation, fragmented knowledge, and limited institutional capacity for interdisciplinary problem solving. Drawing on literature about interdisciplinarity, group communication, health teams, network analysis, and university reform, the article identifies communication across disciplinary cultures as a primary challenge for innovation. It proposes “interdisciplinary communication” as a future area of study within speech communication and describes a research agenda for identifying faculty members who may be prepared to participate in interdisciplinary work. The article also envisions a university interaction center that would support cross-disciplinary dialogue, debate, research, and instruction around major world problems. Communication is presented as the process through which disciplinary knowledge can be connected, institutional rigidity challenged, and new forms of university education developed.
Recommended Citation
Deethardt, John F.
(1985)
"Communication at the Center of Future University Education: Implications for Innovation,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 51, Article 16.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol51/iss1/16
