Open AccessOpening the Web of Learning: Students, Professors, and Community Partners Co-Creating Real-Life Learning Experiences
Author(s) -
Guy Nasmyth,
Catherine Etmanski,
Sabine Lehr
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of community engagement and scholarship
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2837-8075
pISSN - 1944-1207
DOI - 10.54656/qjko5955
Subject(s) - experiential learning , general partnership , service learning , learning community , sociology , pedagogy , perspective (graphical) , frame (networking) , the arts , public relations , psychology , political science , engineering , computer science , telecommunications , artificial intelligence , law
This article documents an example of a successful learning partnership for an activity called the Leadership Challenge (LC), an experiential learning design used by Royal Roads University (RRU) in its Master of Arts in Leadership Program. The LC is based on a co-learning model in which professors create the conditions for students’ learning; community-based organizations bring an authentic challenge as a scenario for learning to the students; and organizations, professors, and students all learn from one another throughout the process. We believe this experience is an example of how genuine partnerships between universities and community organizations can be created in which community partners are squarely placed in the center of the academic experience, rather than being treated as peripheral. Written from the perspective of representatives from both the university and the community service organization, this article also documents the limitations of this activity based on the short time frame allowed.