Unpacking misconceptions about transdisciplinary learning
The strongest PYP inquiries are built on disciplinary expertise
One of the strengths of the PYP is that it challenges us to rethink some of our most deeply held assumptions about curriculum. Yet one misconception continues to surface in workshops, planning meetings and conversations with colleagues: if learning is transdisciplinary, where do subjects fit?
It's an understandable question. After all, many education systems organise curriculum around separate subjects, each with its own timetable, standards and assessments. The PYP appears to turn that model upside down, leading some educators to wonder whether subject learning has become secondary.
In reality, the opposite is true.
As a PYP workshop leader and consultant, I've often been asked questions such as:
"How do the subjects fit?"
"Should everything be integrated?"
These questions reveal an assumption that subject learning and transdisciplinary learning sit at opposite ends of a continuum. They don't; in fact, the opposite is true. The richer the disciplinary understanding, the more powerful the transdisciplinary learning becomes. Although many educators interpret transdisciplinary as moving beyond subjects, the truth is that "transdisciplinary cannot happen without disciplinary". This phrase, from Principles into Practice (available through the IB Programme Resource Centre), changes how we think about curriculum so that subjects are the tools, not the destination. For example, PYP learners don't study science simply to know science; they use scientific thinking to understand complex issues. They don't learn mathematics simply to complete calculations; instead, they use mathematics to interpret, analyse and solve authentic problems. The same is true for languages, arts, social studies and PSPE because each subject offers a unique way of knowing. Every subject represents a different way of making sense of the world. Scientists ask questions, gather evidence and test explanations. Historians evaluate sources and consider multiple perspectives. Mathematicians identify patterns, justify their reasoning and model relationships. Artists communicate ideas that cannot always be expressed in words.
Transdisciplinary learning isn't about blurring the disciplines until they disappear. It's about bringing together these different ways of knowing so that students can make sense of an increasingly complex world. These disciplinary ways of thinking are what students bring to a unit of inquiry. Without them, inquiry risks becoming little more than discussion or activity. With them, students are equipped to investigate issues with depth, rigour and purpose.
A PYP curriculum starts from a different place than a traditional one. When teachers plan in a traditional way they ask questions such as "what maths do I need to teach?", possibly based on a state or national curriculum. PYP teachers, however, ask a different question, "What mathematical understanding will students need to understand this central idea?" This is a profound shift because with this question the subjects are seen as resources that help build a bigger understanding.
Imagine a unit exploring access to clean water. Rather than asking, "What mathematics should I teach?", the teacher says, "What mathematical thinking will help students understand this issue?" Students might analyse data, interpret graphs, calculate water consumption or compare statistics from different countries. Mathematics is not added to the inquiry as an afterthought: it becomes an essential tool for understanding the issue itself. The same thinking applies across every subject. Language enables students to communicate ideas. Science helps explain natural systems and cycles. The arts offer opportunities to express perspectives. Each discipline enriches the inquiry in its own way.
How the transdisciplinary themes provide coherence in the curriculum
Rather than six disconnected subjects competing for curriculum time, learners revisit enduring human questions through the six transdisciplinary themes. The themes give coherence to the curriculum, and the subjects provide depth. It's also important to consider the concepts, which create bridges between the themes and the subjects. In this day and age, knowledge can become obsolete and "facts" can change; however, it is the concepts that endure. Concepts such as change, systems, relationships and perspective enable students to transfer learning between subjects, and this is where genuine transdisciplinary understanding emerges.
Inquiry and explicit teaching
At this point it's worth addressing a misconception: the PYP does not do away with explicit teaching. Sometimes there is a place for direct instruction and deliberate practice. The question isn't whether we teach directly; it's why we're teaching it. There are times when students need a specific understanding in order to move their inquiries forward, and so the role of the teacher changes: they become designers, observers, connectors and decision-makers.
Inquiry is sometimes portrayed as students simply following their own questions wherever they lead. However, effective inquiry is much more intentional than that. Skilled teachers know when to step back and when to step in. They notice misconceptions, introduce new knowledge at the right moment and provide explicit instruction when students need it. Far from reducing the importance of teaching, inquiry demands sophisticated professional judgement.
Transdisciplinary learning is a collaborative endeavour
One of the most exciting aspects of the PYP is that transdisciplinary learning is rarely the work of one teacher alone. Classroom teachers, specialist teachers and the wider learning community can all contribute different expertise. When a music teacher explores patterns alongside mathematics, or a PE teacher investigates movement through a unit on human systems, students begin to see that knowledge is interconnected rather than compartmentalised. This requires teachers to think beyond the boundaries of their own subject. Specialists remain experts in their disciplines, but they also become partners in helping students develop broader understandings.
A final thought
Perhaps the most significant shift in the PYP is not organisational but philosophical. Subjects no longer exist as isolated destinations in the curriculum. Instead, they become lenses through which students explore complex ideas and authentic challenges. This doesn't diminish the disciplines; it elevates them. Science matters because it helps learners understand our world. Mathematics matters because it helps them interpret it. Language matters because it allows them to question, communicate and advocate. Every subject contributes something unique to the inquiry.
When we stop asking how inquiry fits around the subjects and begin asking how the subjects deepen inquiry, we move closer to the true intention of a transdisciplinary curriculum.
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About the author
Maggie Hos-McGrane is a PYP consultant, school visitor, workshop leader and field representative, as well as a lead educator for the IB. Previous roles include Director of Educational Technology at the American School of Bombay in India, PYP, MYP and DP teacher, and PYP coordinator in various schools in Europe and Asia. In recent years, Maggie has worked with the PYP Curriculum Managers on projects such as the learning progressions pilot and the subject continuums. Maggie serves as IBSCA's PYP Community Lead supporting member schools.
Want to know more about transdisciplinary learning?
If you'd like to learn how to integrate transdisciplinary learning into your PYP community, consider joining us for our upcoming IB authorised workshop, Connecting subjects to create a coherent PYP curriculum. This virtual workshop, led by Maggie, will be held from 9 - 11 October 2026. The workshop is open to PYP educators and coordinators interested in enhancing curriculum design and gaining an enhanced understanding of new subject guidance.