Capturing A Rich Narrative: Experiential Learning Opportunities

If assessment provides a way of telling our story, then tracking experiential learning opportunities is probably one of the most exciting parts of the narrative.

By “experiential learning,” I am not referring to a good or even great experience, like taking students to an art museum or engaging them in a community service activity for one afternoon.  I am talking about those hands-on experiences that occur over a period of time and enhance deeper learning.  As many of the departmental assessment reports document, these high impact experiences are integral to a Utica College education.

In a number of academic departments, these types of experiences result in student presentations at regional or national conferences.

• Last October, 3 students attended the Seaway Section of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) meeting at the University of Toronto Mississauga.   This spring, 1 student will present at the MAA Seaway Section meeting at St. John Fisher. 

• From 2017 through 2018, 5 chemistry students presented their research at the American Chemical Society’s national conferences, and one presented at the CSTEP Statewide Conference. 

• 15 students have been included as co-authors on presentations made at regional and national psychology conferences from 2017-2019. Two students have also been included as co-authors with a faculty member in a prestigious professional journal publication.

• In the geoscience program, students engage in field trips during lab periods and on weekends. They also participate in internships, independent research, and may opt for a 4 to 6 week field camp experience to study the geologic features of a particular region.  In 2017, 2 undergraduates presented posters at a professional conference, and 1 student’s research was published in Northeastern Geographer. 

Experiential learning isn’t realized solely in conducting research and giving presentations, however.  Students are writing for the Tangerine.  They are performing on stage in musicals and dramatic productions.  They are studying abroad.  They are completing internships.  And sometimes experiential learning happens right in the classroom or during residencies, as in the case of the Financial Crime Management program.  In this program, graduate students get hands-on experiences using computing software and financial analysis tools and applying them to real-world criminal cases in economic crime.

Experiential learning exposes students to new opportunities and often takes them outside their comfort zones.  In MGT/PRL 345, students spend spring break in New York City, where their instructor has arranged for them to visit with UC alumni and other top communications professionals at agencies such as G & S Business Communications, the Wall Street Journal, Glamour, NBC News, the New York Power Authority, and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.  Student reflections indicate that this experience is a transformative one, especially for those who come from small, rural towns where opportunities are limited and who have never visited a large city.  One student wrote, “In college, it’s hard to figure out where you firmly belong or it’s difficult to see yourself in five years.  But when you visit an [organization] and you feel like you could belong there, it’s an empowering feeling.”

Now if these aren’t impressive outcomes, I don’t know what are.  

Formative Assessment

Formative assessment refers to the approaches instructors use in their classrooms to determine what students are understanding or not understanding.  It is and has always been integral to effective teaching. Christopher R. Gareis from William and Mary’s School of Education notes, “What we now call the ‘Socratic method’ essentially amounts to using questions to assess understanding, to guide learning, and ultimately, to foster critical thinking” (Gareis).  Socrates’ persistent questions represent one method of formative assessment.

Methods of formative assessment are diverse.  They include having students summarize what they learned on a 3 x 5 index card before leaving class; asking them to build or create something that shows they are able to apply what they learned; requesting them to provide feedback or respond to a question using a clicker or Twitter voting; urging students to complete a self-assessment of their work, using the same rubric or matrix that the instructor does.  The important aspect of formative assessment is that it is a way to guide instruction and provide feedback to students.  Whether it is graded or not is the prerogative of the individual instructor. 

Utica College’s physics department offers an excellent example of how formative assessment engages students, stimulates curiosity, and promotes a sense of community.  Since 2011, the department has offered a 1-credit seminar where students and faculty read a book relevant to the discipline and engage in online discussions and face-to-face conversations, the latter facilitated by students.  Faculty participate less as “experts” and more as members of a learning community, exploring themes and new ideas in collaboration with the enrolled undergraduates.  These ongoing discussions and the attendant questions and responses represent formative assessment at its finest.  In a recently published article, “A Multilevel Seminar for Physics Majors:  A Good Deal for Everyone,” the physics faculty describe how this approach to student learning has enhanced student engagement in the learning experience and resulted in student growth. 

In the MBA program, new students are required to complete a one-page essay where they analyze their reasons for pursuing an MBA degree.  Each essay is scored using the AAC & U Value Rubric for Critical Thinking.  The scored rubric is intended to provide students with feedback on their critical thinking and writing skills. It also introduces them to the expectations of graduate-level work and familiarizes them with the criteria that will be used to assess their work.  This formative assessment serves another important purpose as well:  it is used to refer students to services and resources that might be used to support them in their graduate coursework.

A faculty member in Wellness and Adventure Education brings experiential learning into his traditional classroom by using “real-world” projects and simulations.  After students engage in a group activity, they reflect on their performance, providing each other with feedback and insights.  Students reflect further in writing on the experience and what they learned both from the experience and their peers’ feedback. 

These kinds of formative assessments provide texture to the assessment narrative. So let’s hear from you.  What are you doing in your classroom or in your program to guide instruction and give students feedback on their learning?    

Works Cited

Gareis, Christopher R. "The Forgotten Art of Formative Assessment." February/March 2006. William and Mary School of Education. 23 January 2019.

L.S. Dake, J. Ribaudo, and L.H. Day. "A Multiplevel Seminar for Physics Majors: A Good Deal for Everyone." The Physics Teacher. December 2018: 630-632.