Looking Both Ways - Reflection and Debriefing as Capacity Building in Experiential Learning

Abstract

While having Experiential Learning Activities (ELAs) in the classroom is crucial to engage students in critical thinking, capacity building for instructors through the process of reflection and debriefing on these activities appears to be equally important, particularly in achieving high-order learning objectives. Over the past two years, the Undergraduate Experiential Learning Project at the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution has developed eight ELAs and tested their efficacy in various institutions including community colleges. This session will discuss research findings from the project to demonstrate the importance of reflection and debriefing as forms of capacity building for instructors and as key factors in student learning. Topics will include how debriefing and reflection differ, how to develop effective questions and guide student and faculty reflection and debriefings, and how ongoing reflection can facilitate integration of learning generated through ELAs into the rest of the classroom experience. Classroom trust, the importance of creating a safe learning environment, and the ethics of experiential learning will also be discussed. The session will feature an interactive discussion of the goals of experiential learning based on the experiences of participants and will close with modeling some of the reflective techniques being used in the ELAs.