Experiential learning: why work experience will be a graduation requirement at Purdue Calumet.

• Author: Cohen, Howard
• Position: VIEWPOINT

Colleges and universities are grappling with how best to deliver an education that maximizes academic quality while preparing students for careers and life in a fast-paced, ever-changing 21st century work world.

Textbooks, classroom and laboratory learning, state-of-the-art technology and resources, as well as capable instruction by knowledgeable faculty members in both face-to-face and online environments will continue to play a fundamental role in shaping an effective education. But emerging fast with a huge upside is a component that integrates the aforementioned learning strategies with learning that takes place in a work-related setting: experiential learning.

Experiential learning is not new to higher education. As long as anyone can remember, students at campuses across our nation have participated in internships, cooperative education, study abroad, practicums, applied research with faculty, special projects, student teaching, clinical nursing experiences, and even volunteerism and related forms of community service learning. What unifies and distinguishes these learning contexts is the close relationship between the student's work responsibilities and the academic knowledge he or she brings to bear on those activities.

If we were to ask students who have had those types of experiences, we likely would discover that the vast majority of them would agree they were worthwhile, maybe even eye-opening and, in some instances, life-transforming.

At the very least, such experiences represent learning that occurs in a real-world context. Such a context provides the student with a sense of how university studies relate to the work environment. Additionally, these experiences provide businesses and community agencies a good sense of the capabilities of our future graduates.

In a very real and practical sense, experiential learning is creative, improved learning. Arguably, it is a giant step in the evolution of 21st century education--particularly the education of regional, first-generation commuting students.

That is...