By Sufia Langevin — Associate Editor

As a small liberal education school, Bishop’s prides itself on providing exceptional opportunities to its students, extending learning beyond the classroom. The focus of experiential learning is in the name: experience. While most learning in university takes place in the classroom, reading textbooks and listening to lectures, experiential learning allows students to experience, in practice, the theories they learn about in their classes. 

This practical element helps to ground the theories and situate the learning within real-world contexts. It helps to bridge the divide between students and the workforce they enter when they graduate. Rather than memorize facts and relay them on an exam, students are put in situations that require them to build skills and confidence, and will support them much more in their careers. In addition to looking great on a CV, this allows students to tackle the learning curve associated with applying their knowledge while they still have access to the support of university. 

Experiential learning will look different depending on what program the student is in. In the School of Education, students are required to perform a certain number of practicum hours, working in the classroom supported by the Practice Teaching Office, their professors, and their associate teacher whose classroom they visit. A practicum offers insight into the experience of teaching without the burdens of being a first-year teacher, preparing students far more than any lecture ever could. In the Williams School of Business, students undergo co-operative placements, where they apply the knowledge they have learned. 

While experiential learning is mandatory for students in these programs, many are voluntary for students. For example, in the politics department, students may take a Model UN practicum course wherein they undergo Model United Nations simulations and travel to New York as the BU National Model United Nations Delegation. This opportunity offers simulated experiences of diplomacy, rather than real-world application, but nonetheless grants students the chance to extend learning beyond the classroom. In the sciences, students often use lab work to apply their knowledge, and can go beyond with summer internships. Students in chemistry may learn about brewing science with Bishop’s Arches, and students in Physics and Astronomy may work in the observatory on campus. 

Not all experiential learning opportunities are restricted by degree programs. Many are open to the whole of the student body, such as the one hosted by the English department this coming spring called Shakesperience, where students spend six days at the Stratford festival, watching plays, attending workshops such as stage fighting, and learning behind-the-scenes information. Similarly, the classics department has invited students of all disciplines to apply for a field course in Greece where students participate in archaeological digs by documenting artefacts, washing pottery, and visiting other nearby archaeological sites, with no prior experience necessary. These opportunities are especially important because they encourage students to exit their comfort zones and experience more of the world while learning new skills and perspectives. 

There are supports in place for students to reap the benefits of experiential learning and offset the financial burden they can present. For example, the Olney Family Fellowship supports students participating in Rocky Mountain Adaptive, a program that seeks to make recreational activities more accessible to people of all ability levels. As well, the Pathy Foundation Fellowship offers students support in developing a project of their choosing that creates a positive impact in their communities. 

Experiential learning helps students take an active role in their education and career development, and the availability of such opportunities is one of the aspects that makes a Bishop’s University education valuable.