Research has shown that the traditional approach of acquiring information solely through classroom instruction does not foster a deep understanding and practical knowledge of a particular topic or skill. This is especially important in higher education, where students are preparing to enter their future careers and lives, where they will need to be knowledgeable and skilled in order to succeed. It is imperative that they develop a comprehensive understanding and intrinsic knowledge from their studies to become well-equipped professionals in their field.
To ensure that college students become truly knowledgeable, a new approach to higher education must be taken to convert the information provided in the classroom into applicable skills and knowledge in the real world. One method for reducing this knowledge gap between the application and the classroom is through applied learning, specifically through experiential and service learning. Both of these approaches require students to learn through hands-on experiences where they can apply the information they receive in class and turn it into direct and tangible experiences that instill knowledge.
At Arizona State University, which hosts 100,000+ students, the majority of student instruction is conducted in the classroom without any opportunities for real-world application. This can lead to students feeling disconnected from their education, questioning the value of their education, and being unprepared for the challenges of the real world and their future careers. Additionally, students are often not provided insight or incentive to address how their future careers will impact the lives of others, providing them with no understanding of how their actions will influence the public good. This contradicts the ASU Charter which states that the university, and therefore its students, has a “fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves."
Through the implementation of service and experiential learning, Arizona State University can better serve its communities, create future leaders through leadership experience, and demonstrate responsibility within its students. Students can gain practical skills and knowledge, learn how to work effectively with others, and develop critical thinking skills and knowledge capacities that are essential for success in their chosen fields.
In institutions of higher education, learning is critical for developing well-rounded students who are prepared to tackle the issues they will face in their future careers and lives. Generally speaking, there is public value for experiential and service learning opportunities for college students. Already, it is considered important that college students engage in some form of experiential or service learning, whether it be internships, student leadership roles, volunteer hours for scholarships, research, travel, or other opportunities. These are all highly valued experiences that most college students are expected to engage with at least one of, but said experiences are still often considered an "addition" to one's education, and only temporary, instead of the experiential learning experiences being consistently intertwined with the formal educational experience.
In the current job market, critical thinking and learning skills are in high demand, which can only truly be developed through in-depth learning. In order to prepare students for their future careers, to be competitive in the job market, and therefore, "to make GenZ ready for the global markets, it is essential to transform the way learning is conducted" (12). This transformation can emerge through the integration of experiential and service learning opportunities as a main component of learning in higher education.
Experiential Learning
Experiential learning is recognized as a valuable teaching approach that emphasizes hands-on, practical learning experiences, particularly in higher education. Research has shown that experiential learning can not only improve student engagement, as many students find hands-on learning experiences to be more entertaining and worthwhile (12), but additionally, key learning outcomes ranging from critical thinking skills to advanced learning capacities. For example, one study found that performative pedagogy, a theory based in experiential learning, can enhance students' critical thinking skills, creativity, and self-awareness through hands-on creative projects and practices meant to accentuate learning occurring in the classroom (13). These are necessary skills for innovative thinking in the fast-paced working and living environments of the present day.
Similarly, a review of the literature by David Kolb (1984) highlights the importance of experiential learning as a means of developing both cognitive and affective learning outcomes. In 1984, David Kolb published Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, in which he argues that the learning cycle consists of four stages: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation (1). Each stage is an important part of the learning process and the experiential stage transforms abstract concepts into concrete knowledge.
Experiential learning, therefore, is the process of using abstract learning in a real-world environment in order to develop a full understanding of a concept or practice. This is important for students because it solidifies ideas presented in the classroom setting and offers an opportunity to build passion about the subject matter.
Service Learning
One of the most common forms of experiential learning in higher education is service learning, which involves students in community-based projects that apply their academic knowledge to real-world situations. Service learning is a type of experiential learning in which the student or students do community service to enter the stage of active experimentation. This type of learning impacts both the student and their communities, as students recognize how the information and skills they learn in the classroom can be applied to real-world problem-solving opportunities.
ASU currently offers opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to do internships, research, work-integrated learning, capstone projects, practicums, fieldwork, and study abroad programs (2). ASU has also implemented Changemaker Central and GivePulse to connect students to volunteer opportunities to support their communities (3).
In 2022, Forage ranked the top 50 colleges in the US for experiential learning with standards including student engagement, faculty involvement, and early participation (4). None of the top 10 institutions had universal requirements for experiential learning for undergraduate students. What was common among all 10 of these top-rating institutions was a recommendation or encouragement for all students to participate in experiential learning, as well as offering webpages for internship, research, and capstone opportunities. There were instances of required experiential learning for degree completion, especially in medical and STEM fields, but completing an experience was not a requisite for graduation for all students in every major.
Two colleges our group found that require a form of experiential learning are Guilford College in North Carolina and Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. Guilford College writes "no matter what you choose to study, you will" integrate classroom learning with the real world through hands-on learning (5). They offer a variety of programs and opportunities for students to be able to apply their formal education through experience in the community or industry before graduation. Lafayette College also incorporates experiential and service learning into their curriculum for all students, writing that "student groups and programs make community engagement a main focus of their work" (6). Both of these colleges offer a workable example of how institutions of higher education can embrace and mandate experiential learning into the universal curriculum. Although these are small colleges, their curricular models can (and should) be applied to larger R1 universities in the US and abroad. By following these models, every student graduating from any college will be better prepared for their career and feel more satisfied and confident with their formal education.
Although our group designed our website without a formal point of reference, many universities offer similar resource pages. Queen's College, for example, has an experiential learning online resource similar to ours to help student find an opportunity (7). Their website is much smaller than our own, though, and focuses primarily on internal resources. The website at QC is also targeted for students who are adding experiential learning on top of their required classes as an extracurricular. The aim of our website design, on the other hand, is to ease the experience of finding the right learning opportunity for each student when our call to action (detailed below) is met.
Stakeholders are one of the most important parts of a university organization because they benefit from and make the university. The opinions of stakeholders are important not only to make their lives better, but also to make this university more popular and stronger. Similarly, we can learn from the experiences of these stakeholders about our future goals and mission. What changes do we need to make to make the university more perfect? Stakeholders are bound to university institutions and their opinions are important to university institutions.
The primary groups and individuals we have identified as stakeholders with interest in service and experiential learning at ASU are:
Students and faculty
One of the major goals of this project is to allow students to take their education into their own hands and establish meaningful connections to their career or life paths, rather than the “just in case” learning model of current institutions
Local nonprofits and communities
Emerging Leaders (The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean’s Council)
The following are our experiences from interviewing stakeholders at ASU:
Ali: For my shadowing project, I conversed and interviewed Julia Colbert; director of Project Cities, involved with ASU. After interviewing her, I have learned more about her projects that she is involved in and who she has worked with, including partners involved in the city of Glendale, city of Peoria, city of Phoenix, and etc. I also learned more about her opinion on service/experiential learning and what she thinks in her opinion needs to be done/changed to make experiential/service learning more efficient for students, communities, faculty, staff, and more. Also, hearing from someone who has had more experience and time at ASU, I heard more about what she experienced over time with ASU and her honest opinion about it.
Samantha: I interviewed Kristin Lockwood, an instructor at the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation. She teaches undergraduate and graduate nursing students and helps lead them through their rotations and clinical experiences. Lockwood also works with a team of staff and faculty to coordinate community events for her students to participate in. Here, students are able to interact with diverse communities and individuals to learn through experiences and service. Some examples of these events include screening and educational programs, where students assist and teach groups of people about health and healthcare in an accessible and approachable format. Lockwood says that “hands-on learning is essential” for students to apply classroom knowledge to real-world situations.
Lizzie: For my shadowing activity, I interviewed Dr. Anne Katherine Jones, the Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education at ASU. Dr. Jones works with the provost's office, deans, faculty units, and staff to facilitate the development and execution of undergraduate education. While ASU tends to focus on in-classroom learning at the moment, Dr. Jones shared that there is strong value to student learning through experience and applying the information gained in the classroom to the real world. Dr. Jones shared that "there is more to the college experience than classes," and students should take advantage of the additional learning opportunities that surround them at the university, though some may not be aware that they exist.
Jiabao: For my shadowing project, I interviewed Professor William Gray of the School of Business and Teddy Moya of the Student Success Institute. Professor William believes that a high-quality university should provide students with the opportunity to continue learning after completing their studies, so that they can adapt to the future to enter the ever-changing world. Professor Teddy believes that a complete university should provide students with something that is beneficial to students and helps them in all areas of life. These two points are very suitable for our Level-up learning plan, because we want students in college to provide more experience for their future by applying what they have learned to adapt to life after college.
Nicolas: For my shadowing project, I spoke with Rae Macias, the Program Coordinator at ASU’s Project Humanities. This group works well because it is multi-faceted and allows for people of different backgrounds to collaborate on various projects, including service work and educational events, that actually work towards affecting change at ASU. It’s not a very hierarchical system and with leadership being both students and faculty, it takes cues from the changes it wants to see within its own structure. Additionally, the group is already very closely tied to the university, and although they intend to work together with and serve a broader community, they are primarily based around ASU already.
Budgeting is a crucial aspect of promoting experiential and service learning opportunities. It allows organizations to plan, allocate, and utilize their resources effectively in order to achieve their goals. Without the use of proper budgeting, these opportunities may not be fully realized or may not even happen at all. Here are some of the reasons as to why budgeting is crucial to promoting/constructing service/experiential learning:
Budgeting is important when constructing or promoting experiential and service learning opportunities because it helps to ensure financial sustainability. By allocating a portion of the organization's budget towards these initiatives, they can continue to offer them year after year, and hopefully, with guarantee. This provides students with consistent access to valuable learning experiences that can enhance their academic and personal growth along with helping students put in their trust and guidance into these learning opportunities.
Budgeting helps enable organizations to prioritize the most important and impactful activities. Through careful planning and analysis, an organization can identify which experiential and service learning opportunities will have the greatest impact on student learning outcomes. They can then allocate funds accordingly, ensuring that resources are being used in the most effective way possible.
Budgeting also helps organizations to manage costs associated with these initiatives. Experiential and service learning opportunities often involve additional expenses such as transportation, materials, and equipment. By budgeting for these costs ahead of time, an organization can avoid unexpected expenses or over-spending on certain activities, which can then affect their progress with limited resources.
Budgeting can also ensure accountability/responsibility by providing a clear record of how funds were utilized. This transparency builds trust among stakeholders such as students, parents, faculty members, and donors who want to see their investment put towards meaningful initiatives. A well-managed budget demonstrates responsible stewardship of resources.
In order to feel more connected and advance their education, students at ASU should have access to opportunities to learn through real-world application in the forms of experiential and service learning. Universities must foster relationships with external organizations and require every student, no matter their discipline, to have an experiential opportunity. This addition will allow institutions of higher education to create well-rounded students who are better-equipped for their futures.
Our solution for the future university, therefore, is to require an experiential or service learning unit in all majors to graduate. This has already been implemented for some baccalaureate degrees at ASU and other institutions, but it is necessary to implement it for every student on every campus to get the most out of their education experience. Once this is in place, students will likely need help finding an opportunity that is the right fit for their individual wants and needs. Our project provides an easy-to-use online resource for ASU students, faculty, and staff that lists multiple community and professional organizations and institutions that offer learning opportunities for students. We include all ASU campuses and as many majors as possible. This will serve as a starting point for faculty, staff, administration, and students to begin fostering these necessary relationships to help students meet their new requirements. Our goal is to help students find the right opportunity for their future and promote engagement in experiential learning beyond the "typical" settings such as internships, labs, and study abroad programs.
Experiential and service learning will also help ASU meet their charter. A key part of the charter is "assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves" (8). Service learning, especially, will lend itself to improving ASU's relationships with local communities and will its students to implement this clause of the charter.
The constraint of one semester means that this website is a prototype for the ideal interface. Ideally, Level-Up Learning will be incorporated by ASU into their website system for students to have easy access. As this happens, our team would want to work on designing an interface that enhances the user experience. This might include creating a quiz when a user clicks "Press to Start" to determine their interests and narrow down the opportunities immediately displayed. Another possible feature may be re-thinking the organization of opportunities as the lists grow and become more inclusive to all interests, such as separating by college, majors, or interests. Finally, we would want to insert searchable keywords to our lists of internal and external opportunities. These changes may make take away some stress and feel less overwhelming than the exhaustive list format the website currently has.
Another future goal would be creating and supporting an Experiential Learning Fund (ELF), which would allow experiential, especially service learning, to be accessible to more students who may not be able to add this type of knowledge generation on top of their pre-existing school and professional work. ASU's Department of English Internship Support Fund, University College Experiential Learning Grant, and CISA ocial Sciences Experiential Learning and Community Engagement are examples of this type of fund that could inspire the ELF, but would need to be scaled and marketed effectively to meet the demands of the new design requirements proposed by our team (9, 10, 11).
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Donovan, & Hood, A. (2021). Experiential Learning in the Large Classroom Using Performative Pedagogy. Journal of Management Education, 45(3), 344–359. https://doi.org/10.1177/1052562920965625