The University’s Experiential Learning Initiative cites as one of its hallmarks, “Some student autonomy in defining and pursuing their own questions and methods of inquiry…” What does that mean?
My Signature Course, “Really Bad Bugs–12 Diseases That Changed the World,” includes the requirement that students read the chapter on the disease for that week (e.g., bubonic plague) and then write a first-person narrative, with the objective that they internalize and personalize the rich history. When I first started the course, the assignment was for everyone to write from the perspective of the physician (as illustrated) because I found that to be the most interesting element of the history. Needless to say, after two to three weeks, papers became stilted and unimaginative as students sought to write to what they thought I wanted to hear. Class discussions and peer reviews were also stifled.
Now students chose their own personal perspective. Perhaps they are the physician. Perhaps they are the priest admonishing the congregation for their sins that brought on the plague. Perhaps they are the king’s soldiers trying to control who leaves or comes into the city, or they are pulling the cart taking bodies to the mass graves. Perhaps they are the rat! Or the flea!
Students quickly embraced this opportunity to find their own perspective for their story, and the creativity blossomed, class discussions became more vibrant, and peer reviews were virtually guaranteed to provide each student a different perspective than their own. The objective of the assignment didn’t change; the approach did. All I had to do was “let go” and have the students find their own path.
Written By: Patrick Davis, Ph.D.