Tag: experiential learning

Bridging Vocational Theory and Practice through Teaching Environmental Stewardship

The author reflects on designing an impactful course for students that emphasized experiential learning and environmental stewardship. By integrating a campus transportation campaign and aligning with Pope Francis’s encyclical, Laudato Si’, the course transformed student engagement, encouraging them to connect academic work with community service and cultivate their skills, thereby fostering a sense of agency and hope.

shallow focus photo of train
Photo by Trace Hudson on Pexels.com

In my first year as a full-time faculty member, I designed a course that aligned with its stated objectives even as its ultimate outcomes extended beyond my control. I embedded a campus transportation campaign into the course, uncertain whether it would succeed. In hindsight, it was an ambitious undertaking—one that reinforced the challenges and rewards of experiential learning. Such an endeavor is not for the faint of heart, but its impact was transformative, particularly in the ways it shaped my students’ understanding of vocation and their engagement with the common good. Through their participation in the campaign, students began to see their academic work as more than an isolated exercise; it became a way to contribute to a larger community, address real needs, and effect tangible change.

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Experiential Learning is the New College

At Friends University, pre-health students engage in professional shadowing to gain real-world experience and clarify their vocations and career paths. These activities have shown to be instrumental, helping students assess their interests and capabilities in various healthcare professions. Reflections from these experiences often reveal significant insights into their vocational choices.

Prince Agbedanu

As pre-health students wrestle with doubts about the paths they’ve chosen or struggle to find their place within the healthcare sector, vocational exploration is more crucial now than it ever has been. In our pre-health programs at Friends University, students want to engage in activities that give them real-life experience to help them navigate these challenges. These students want to know that their learning is useful and applies to their careers—to see with greater clarity their professional futures as they begin their training for it. In short, they want experiential learning.

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