Moving Beyond the Traditional Classroom:
Engaging Students Through Experience!

Fifth Annual Conference on Teaching and Learning
University of Windsor, Windsor, ON
May 19-20, 2011

Experiential learning – a broad term that encompasses service learning, community-based learning, situated learning, and many other active learning strategies – has long been recognized as a powerful way to engage students, deepen understanding, and help create the conditions that enable students to transfer what they have learned to new contexts.

This year’s joint conference between the University of Windsor and Oakland University will showcase a broad range of experiential learning initiatives at the post-secondary level. Some initiatives bring students out into their communities to apply disciplinary knowledge to real-world situations, help their fellow citizens, and prepare for the challenges they may face after graduation. Some bring the real-world into the classroom instead, simulating a variety of situations so that students can develop their abilities in a safe approximation of living conditions. Others connect students with professionals so they can learn from each other. Practice informs theory and theory informs practice as students learn to make connections and bring ideas to life. The possibilities of experiential learning are myriad.

Conference themes under the broad rubric of experiential learning include the following:

• Service learning
• Community-based learning
• Situated learning
• Place-based pedagogy
• Research-informed teaching, Inquiry, and problem-based learning
• Internships and work placements
• Co-operative education
• University-community partnerships
• Clinics and placements
• Practica
• Simulations
• Role-playing
• Authentic assessment
• Performance and portfolio-based assessment