Using Form + Theme + Context (FTC) to Enhance Student Engagement in Critical Thinking Across Disciplines

Faculty will learn to use Form+Theme+Context (FTC)™ as an interdisciplinaryapproach that rebalances and integrates learning content for deeper studentengagement in critical thinking for diverse forms of literacy. As a visual organizerthat balances formal, thematic, and contextual considerations of any discipline,the FTC Palette can be used to decode and encode any learning content, rangingfrom a work of art, piece of writing, product design, or even a cultural institutionsuch as a museum. Faculty will be engaged in an interactive FTC demonstration tointerpret a famous work of art, collectively making discoveries informed by directvisual experience. Immediately following the FTC demonstration, faculty (groupedby different fields/colleges) will collaboratively utilize a generic FTC Palette as acreative tool for specifically helping their students make stronger interdisciplinaryconnections while advancing critical thinking skills within their home branch oflearning.