NIE352 Interdisciplinary Problem-Solving Tutor-Marked Assignment 1, 2026, Singapore

NIE352 Tutor-Marked Assignment

This assignment is worth 40% of the final mark for NIE352 Interdisciplinary ProblemSolving for Impact.

This is an individual assignment.

You are required to submit your assignment on the Canvas course site.

Note to Students:

You are to include the following particulars in your submission: Course Code, Title of the GBA, SUSS PI No., Your Name, and Submission Date.

Assignment Objectives

This course breaks down interdisciplinary problem-solving into four stages of assessment: (1) formulating a problem; (2) gathering evidence; (3) analysing evidence; and (4) construct and evaluate an interdisciplinary solution.

The final product of this assignment is a reflection journal reflecting on ALL stages of the problem-solving process. A reflection journal is a medium for recording events and personal reflections during the problem-solving process.

This assignment allows students to reflect on assumptions and perspectives of different disciplines or professional expertise as they engage with interdisciplinary problem-solving. In the reflection journal, students should discuss the societal, disciplinary, and ethical implications of formulating a problem, gathering evidence in the field, and constructing a solution.  

Assignment Brief

A reflection journal is a medium that allows students to document and reflect on episodes during the problem-solving process. Reflection or reflective thinking, according to John Dewey (1933: 3), involves “turning a subject over in the mind and giving it serious and consecutive consideration”. Reflective thinking thus enables us to rise above the impulsive and the routine in order to be “deliberate and intentional” with what we choose to observe, document, and analyse (Dewey, 1933: 17). The reflection journal works to mediate these moments of deliberation and intentionality. Through reflection, students will glean a deeper understanding of interdisciplinary problem-solving—its process, stakes, and difficulties.

This assignment comprises FOUR reflection journal entries, each reflecting on one stage of the interdisciplinary problem-solving process Each entry should focus on ONE episode in each stage that is significant to you and your experience of interdisciplinary problemsolving. An episode consists of an event or a sequence of events that, when taken together, can be considered complete in itself. The significance of an episode can be measured by event(s) that caused a change in you. Memory is crucial in recording episodes. Therefore, it is recommended to write the entry as soon as the experience of a significant episode occurs (Posner, 2009).

Below is a list of non-exhaustive questions that can help you sieve out significant episodes during each stage of the problem-solving process:

• Were there assumptions and perspectives of different disciplines that surprised you at any stage of the problem-solving process?
• Did any disciplinary biases crop up at any stage of the problem-solving process?
• Were there societal or ethical implications of the problem that troubled or surprised you?
• Were there societal or ethical implications of the solution that troubled or surprised you?
• Were there alternative ways of framing the problem?
• Were there alternative solutions to the problem?

The four journal entries will be accompanied by TWO photographs, ONE sketch, and ONE AI-generated image pertaining to the episode in question. Each entry will feature one of the above images with annotations that describe, explain, emphasise, elaborate, and/or comment on the content of the image in relation to the experience of interdisciplinary problem-solving.

Each entry should have the following components:

1. Heading

• Stage of problem-solving process
• Date and time of experience

2. Description and elaboration of episode – Where did the episode occur?

• Who is involved?
• What happened?
• What made the episode stand out to you?

3. Analysis of the episode

• What feelings or thoughts arose during the episode? Why do you think these thoughts or feelings arose?
• What questions were prompted by the episode? Do you have answers to these questions?
• What have you learnt about interdisciplinary problem-solving from this episode?

4. Annotated photograph, sketch, or AI-generated image – What do you see in the image?

• What stands out to you in the image?
• Why do these features stand out to you?
• How do these features relate to interdisciplinary problem-solving?

Consultations

Instructors are available for consultations (up to 10 minutes per student). Consultations are optional and not compulsory. Please email your instructors to arrange for a mutually agreeable date and time for consultations. This can be conducted in person or over zoom meetings.   

Reference

Dewey, John. (1933) How We Think: A Restatement of the Relation of Reflective Thinking to the Educative Process. Boston: D.C. Heath. 

Posner, George. (2009) Field Experience: A Guide to Reflective Teaching. 7^th Edition. Pearson.