MODEL FOR FIELD-BASED LEARNING
This model of field-based education asks students to take their personal knowledge, to observe the physical patterns of a city, its streets, buildings, skyline, people, artistic works; and to connect the new knowledge to the old. Active learning results from seeing and analyzing the city as a text. The following outline reflects a type of ethnography.
I Concrete Experience
*Awareness of precise words, tones, gestures, actions of those around
*Openness to new worlds and old
*Observance of clues, patterns, rhythms, details, constructs
*Examination of primary sources (text, people, events)
II. Reflective Observation
*Meaning underlying event
*Involvement in interaction (does your presence affect the event)
*Connection to other life experiences
*Reaction to incident
III. Analysis: Abstract Conceptualization
*Interpretation of event
*Isolation of significant details and process of drawing conclusions
*Write about critical incident
IV. Active Experimentation and Application
*Test of hypothesis
*Return to field
1. What experiences and knowledge do you bring?
Have you had direct experiences pertinent to this area?
Have you acquired relevant information, insights, principles, concepts?
Have you had opportunities to apply or experiment with pertinent concepts and
principles?
2. What vicarious experiences have you had through pictures, print, websites,
simulations, artistic productions, etc.?
3. What tools or procedures for observation and reflection will be most appropriate:
photographs, CDs, written descriptions, diaries, logs, free association, small
group discussions, individual or group presentations, films?
4. What are the best ways to generate abstract concepts, principles, and a general
understanding for you? Textbooks, secondary sources, original writings, media
5. What are the possibilities for application and active experimentation?
Can hypotheses be generated and tested through empirical research?
Can general principles be tested in action so that observable results are
obtained?
6. Are there clear relationships among the direct experiences, reflections and
observations, abstract conceptualizations, and applications?
What activities help you perceive and examine those relationships?
How did written papers, metaphors, pictorial or dramatic presentations or
action plans help create effective integration?
7. Does evaluation take account of direct experiences and active applications as well
as observations, reflections, and abstract conceptualizations?
Do arrangements for ongoing informative evaluation examine both the separate
elements of the experiential learning cycle and the relationship among them?
Does the final evaluation examine the level of integration achieved between
concrete experiences and application and the reflections and abstract
conceptualizations?
From Arthur W. Chickering. Experience and Learning Change Magazine Press, 1977
Literary
Architectural
Poetry
Drama
Letter
Novel
Non-Fiction
Text and Image Research Project