Patricia LORENZ
Ridge View Residential College
plorenz@nus.edu.sg
Lorenz, P. (2023). Taking students out of their comfort zone through experiential learning: A case study from RVC1001 [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/taking-students-out-of-their-comfort-zone-through-experiential-learning-a-case-study-from-rvc1001/
KEYWORDS
Outdoor learning, experiential learning, community interviews
CATEGORY
Paper Presentation
ABSTRACT
This paper presentation in the sub-theme of “Communities and Education” examines the benefits of taking students outside their comfort zone in their interactions with people from different backgrounds and their culture in order to facilitate deep learning. While Little India lies at the heart of Singapore, many Singaporean students have never visited the area or engaged with the people who gather there. Singapore is home to more than a million Work Permit Holders, of which nearly half work in the construction industry and a majority of these originate from Bangladesh and India. Yet, most Singaporeans have rather sporadic or even no contact with members of these communities, and know little or nothing of their respective cultures.
RVC1001 “The Rocky Road to SDGs” is a newly created course in the Cultures and Connections pillar of the NUS General Education (GE) Programme that focuses on the social pillar of sustainability and explores how culture might be a hindrance to achieving the UN Sustainability
Development Goals (SDGs). With a focus on experiential learning, students are taken on two field trips to Little India and the Bangla Market. During the first field trip, students are tasked to observe and document physical signs of culture in the area. The second field trip engages students in extensive community interviews with migrant workers in Little India and the Bangla Market. Such engagements challenge students to go beyond their personal comfort zone and to engage with people from very different cultural backgrounds and walks of life. Through the course and the field trips, students are tasked to examine their own cultural norms, values, and perceptions, while discovering the culture and values of others.
Such experiential learning experiences can be extremely daunting to students, especially when they have to engage strangers in interviews. Yet, these authentic first-hand experiences cannot be replicated in conventional classroom settings and were therefore deemed an important component of the course. As such, several techniques were developed to facilitate meaningful outdoor learning without overpowering the students. Firstly, the students worked in teams of three to five (depending on class size) and were required to work in their teams at all times during the field trips. Having fixed teams throughout the semester fosters a sense of belonging and provides a feeling of security during the field trips. Secondly, the first field trip took students to Little India and the Bangla Market to explore the area and its visible aspects of culture during class time. For this field trip, each group was provided with a map and a route they were instructed to walk. This first field trip therefore provided an initial point of contact and familiarised students with the area. The second field trip then built on these experiences and added the engagement with members of the community on a Sunday afternoon. As such, the learning experiences were scaffolded and built on each other. Thirdly, both field trips are embedded in the overall course schedule in such a manner that students were discussing relevant SDGs, such as SDG8 “Fair Work and Economic Growth”, prior to the outdoor learning sessions. Lastly, both field trips are the subject of a reflective photo essay which illustrates the students’ personal learning journeys. In combination, these measures assure that students can be taken out of their comfort zones and be engaged in experiential learning that provides valuable additions to classroom learning.