Abstract:

Experiential or experience-based learning has been widely discussed and researched in the past decades. By the definition proposed by Beard and Wilson [1], experiential learning means conceptualizing “active engagement between the inner world of the person and the outer world of the environment”. Proponents of this concept stress the naturalness of learning from experiences: it is the most fundamental and intuitive form of learning, a characteristic of not only our species but of all living nature, starting from unicellular organisms [1]. In fact, according to Boud, Cohen and Walker [2], learning can occur exclusively through the engagement of experiences. However, experience does not automatically equal learning; instead this connection must be actively crafted through reflection [2]. In the context of formal education, it is the teacher who can and should create a stimulus that evokes this process of reflecting and helps the students to tap into their experiences [3].

For the past four years, we have integrated experiential learning into our undergraduate course ‘Introduction to Linguistics’ (3 ECTS) by making the students write their linguistic autobiography as the coursework (see also [4], [5]). Through scaffolding, process writing and combination of assistant and peer feedback, we guide the students to reflect on the language-related experiences they have subconsciously accumulated throughout their lives and connect them to the theory they learn in lectures and course reading materials. We argue that this type of retrospective learning, i.e. finding “new meanings hidden in old experiences” [1] helps the students both to understand the linguistic concepts better and to acquire the objective and analytic mindset needed not only for their future academic work but for any kind of social engagement. As the course feedback shows, the majority of our student body of 200-250 first year undergraduates acknowledges and values these skills acquired in this course.

References:
[1] C. Beard, J.P. Wilson, Experiential Learning. A handbook for education, training and coaching. Kogan Page, 2013.
[2] D. Boud, R. Cohen, D. Walker, Using Experience for Learning. The Society for Research into Higher Education. The Society for Research into Higher Education, Open University Press, 1993.
[3] D. Boud, R. Keogh, D. Walker, “Chapter 1 - Promoting Reflection in Learning: a Model,” in Reflection: Turning Experience into Learning (D. Boud, R. Keogh and D. Walker, eds.), pp. 18-41, New York: Routledge, 1985.
[4] I. Tragel, L.-M. Komissarov, “Combining subject-specific and subject-independent competencies in teaching Linguistics,” 8th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'22), 8: 8th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'22). Ed. Josep Domenech. Valencia: Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València, 1377−1384, 2022. DOI: 10.4995/HEAd22.2022.14490.
[5] I. Tragel, N. K. Teiva, L.-M. Komissarov, “Linguistic autobiography as an example of developing disciplinary literacy and academic writing,” 15th annual International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation (ICERI2022), 2022 (to appear) doi: 10.21125/iceri.2022

Keywords:

Experiential learning, linguistics, process writing, peer feedback, autobiography.