Cathy N. Davidson, a CUNY faculty member and author of soon to be released book on revolutionizing the university in order to prepare students for a global future, advises in her essay that the "key to successful learning is for the learner to be aware of what the given knowledge will add to their goals and their life." She goes on to say, "We do a poor job helping students translate the specific content or knowledge gained in our classrooms into a tool (informational, conceptual, methodological, epistemological or affective) that will help them thrive in life. If higher education doesn't do that -- if it isn't geared to helping students succeed beyond the final exam and after graduation -- they why bother?"
Professor Davidson's realizations were sparked by a workshop on designing learning outcomes and her own commitment to involving students in determining what they want to learn based on the assertions of education philosophers such as John Dewey, Paulo Friere, bell hooks, and Carol Dweck.
The realizations that Davidson recounts can and should be exploited by those who value holistic learning and particularly by those who work in student affairs. Since its official founding through the "Student Personnel Point of View" in 1937, student development educators have always sought to teach through experience-based learning and they have connected this learning to the reality of what students need to learn in order to be effective in their workplaces and communities. Student affairs educators have also been at the head of the "learning outcomes" movement. It's time to connect with faculty who are now beginning to value these perspectives as well.
Professor Davidson's realizations were sparked by a workshop on designing learning outcomes and her own commitment to involving students in determining what they want to learn based on the assertions of education philosophers such as John Dewey, Paulo Friere, bell hooks, and Carol Dweck.
The realizations that Davidson recounts can and should be exploited by those who value holistic learning and particularly by those who work in student affairs. Since its official founding through the "Student Personnel Point of View" in 1937, student development educators have always sought to teach through experience-based learning and they have connected this learning to the reality of what students need to learn in order to be effective in their workplaces and communities. Student affairs educators have also been at the head of the "learning outcomes" movement. It's time to connect with faculty who are now beginning to value these perspectives as well.
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