Relationships between the School Subjects in the Secondary Science Education in the USSR: Roles of the Interdisciplinary Ties in the Teaching and Upbringing of Pupils

Abstract

After the investigation process using written reports and papers, the researcher was able to find out the various roles played by the interdisciplinary ties ( межлредметные связи) in the task of teaching and up bringing of pupils in the secondary science educaion in the USSR. The roles of the interdisciplinary ties are shown as follows: 1. To promote the capability of pupils to understand and acquire the contents of the subject matter being studied. 2. To promote fixing and intensifying the knowledge acquired by pupils in the other subject areas. 3. To promote systematization and integration of knowledge from different subject areas. 4. To activate the thinking processes and to promote the development of the thinking abilities of pupils. 5. To promote understanding about the unity of nature and the development of the view about life and the world of pupils. It could be deduced from these roles that the interdisciplinary ties assure the improvement of the teaching and upbringing of pupils in the new compulsory education for a period of ten years. On the other hand, these roles seem to depict the shortcomings of the 'subject-system' (предметная система) as used in the USSR. The interdisciplinary ties were introduced in order to reflect the current status of science and society through science education under this system. In other words, the interdisciplinary ties could assure the improvement of the teaching and upbringing of pupils in the science education under both conditions of the ten-year compulsory education and the 'subject-system' in the USSR.