Experiential Learning: A Catalyst for Transformative Education

Stephany Fontanone, Director of Upper School, sat down with Mary Rose Guerin, Head of School, to delve into the nuances of experiential learning and its alignment with the Institution’s mission and values and to shed light on ways in which Forest Ridge continues to provide an outstanding and intentional program for our students that will carry over beyond their time on the Ridge.

In today’s educational landscape, experiential learning has emerged as a powerful pedagogical approach, offering students immersive, real-world experiences that extend learning beyond the confines of traditional classroom learning.

Experiential learning isn’t a new trend in education. In 2013, Independent School magazine devoted its spring issue to “The Rise of Experiential Education,” but much has changed in the course of a decade—or has it? Experiential learning, according to the Association for Experiential Education, is a “philosophy and methodology in which educators purposefully engage with students in direct experience and focused reflection in order to increase knowledge, develop skills, and clarify values.”

This combination of direct experience, focused reflection, analysis, and experimentation is a beautiful manifestation of the Sacred Heart Goals and Criteria in action. Providing students the opportunity to dig deeper into their learning, transfer skills learned and practiced, and explore content to help make meaning is at the root of the transformative educational experience provided to students at Forest Ridge.

What do you think is the first thing that comes to mind when people hear the phrase experiential learning?
MARY ROSE: People often associate experiential learning with field trips and fun activities. However, it is more than that. It is about extending their learning beyond the walls of the traditional classroom and creating real life experiences for our students to apply the knowledge and skills that they’ve developed and allowing them time to reflect on those experiences.

Do you think there are any misconceptions about experiential learning?
MARY ROSE: I do, yes. I think that sometimes when people hear that phrase, they think it's about creating fun experiences. And again, these experiences are meant to be engaging for students and they are often fun. This fun and joy stems from students taking what they’re learning inside of the classroom and applying it to the real world, allowing students to make connections in ways that are really difficult to do when you’re inside of a traditional classroom setting. So, while it is fun and hands-on and engaging, experiential learning also aims to move students up Bloom’s taxonomy of skills from simple recall and memorization of information to really applying that knowledge and skill set to a context outside of the classroom.

Do you think that application piece is the hardest to achieve?
MARY ROSE: I do. It's challenging within the confined walls of a classroom to ask students to pretend to be in the real world. It's much easier for them to apply what they’ve learned when they are directly immersed in scenarios that mimic real working conditions.

What do you see as the biggest benefit of experiential learning if you had to parcel out one thing?
MARY ROSE: There are a lot of benefits, but one of the most significant, particularly for girls, is the opportunity to understand how their learning applies to the world around them. Experiential learning allows students to apply their knowledge and skills and delve deep into areas of curiosity. A traditional curriculum often lacks the time and space for this exploration. So in the context of girls' education, the most important benefit is helping students understand the real-world applications of their learning and why what they are learning is important, fostering deeper engagement and that buy-in for them to go even deeper in their learning.

I want to talk a bit more about that idea of buy in and piquing of interest. Do you think Forest Ridge is ready for this shift or do you even think it's a shift if you think about our curriculum as a whole?
MARY ROSE: Forest Ridge has been gearing up for this shift for a long time. When we moved away from the standardized IB curriculum and began developing courses based on student interests, while asking students to integrate knowledge across multiple disciplines, we laid the groundwork for this next phase of our program. So to me, this evolution represents a natural progression in our educational approach, building off of the foundation that has been set. Our shifts in grading and assessment methods also complement the experiential learning that is happening at Forest Ridge. We've moved beyond relying solely on summative assessments like taking a true or false quiz or standardized tests that really don’t ask students to apply their learning, incorporating formative assessments that allow for ongoing feedback, helping to deepen student learning.

How do you think experiential learning fits in the context of the Sacred Heart mission and the Goals and Criteria?
MARY ROSE: I think it fits beautifully. We aim to nurture the holistic development of students within Sacred Heart schools, and experiential learning does just that, encompassing intellectual growth alongside hands-on, immersive learning. Of course intellectual growth is at the heart of experiential learning, but it also calls students to think about how they relate to other people, about their impact on the world outside of this campus, and about the ways in which they serve their community. All of these things align so well with our mission and really reinforce our commitment to holistic education.

I'm continually struck by the timely and timeless nature of Sacred Heart education. There's nothing that exemplifies this more than hands-on problem solving of real-world scenarios in real time. What do you see as the biggest challenge to experiential learning?
MARY ROSE: I think the biggest challenge is time - both how we have traditionally structured our time in schools and student and family perception of what school “should” look like for the best learning. Making time to get students outside of the classroom and into the field, while not missing their other classes, is what makes experiential learning so challenging for schools with traditional schedule models. Additionally, teachers require time to design meaningful experiences that encourage the application of classroom knowledge. It's crucial to allocate time for post-experience reflections, allowing students to assess their learning and how they’ve applied their knowledge and identify areas for further exploration in their studies.

What is the ultimate takeaway for this type of experience for students?
MARY ROSE: The ultimate takeaway, I believe, is for students to truly understand how the learning that's happening inside of their classroom is meaningful for life outside of the classroom. Far too often, we hear students question if they are ever going to use certain skills. However, through experiential learning, they not only learn something, they then also use that skill pretty immediately, making learning feel relevant, and I think that is an important part of what cultivates a lifelong love of learning in our students. I also think students are going to find that they are really interested in things that they didn’t realize they were interested in because they’re being put in these experiences that ask them to dig deeper instead of simply learning a skill and checking the box. Experiential learning really opens up the world to our students in a way that doesn’t traditionally happen until they’re in grad school or beyond.

Ultimately, I hope our students discover their purpose in the world, moving beyond conventional career aspirations to uncover what truly drives and fulfills them. We've intentionally created a program that allows opportunities for students to really explore their purpose, going beyond thinking about what they want to study in college or what career path they want to take, and really digging into the experiences in life and the opportunities they've had that have lit a fire inside of themselves, so that when they leave Forest Ridge to do whatever is next, they know what drives them towards purpose and happiness, rather than choosing a path because it checks the box of what they think is the right next step or profession because they know it will be one that earns good money or satisfy some sort of expectation someone might have of them. Education at Forest Ridge is about igniting a passion for purpose-driven learning that extends far beyond graduation.

When you look at our Portrait of a Graduate and you look at the competencies that we’re trying to grow in our students, it becomes clear that the traditional classroom makes these things much more difficult to achieve. We are not only interested in helping students grow intellectually, but we’re also interested in helping them become strong leaders and good global citizens who are more agile in their lives. While a traditional classroom education, as we know it, can do those things, experiential education helps us actually live those goals outlined in our Portrait of a Graduate much more authentically and helps us push the boundaries in terms of the education we’re able to provide for them.

One word that has come up quite a few times is traditional. There could be pushback about why we don’t have a traditional curriculum. As I see it though, if you reframe your thinking, our program isn’t radically different than “school” as most people know it, it is just a more authentic way of learning. What is your take on that?
MARY ROSE: Experiential learning aligns seamlessly with our commitment to intellectual values and fosters a holistic approach to education. While some may question the departure from a traditional curriculum, it's essential to understand that experiential learning doesn't replace traditional learning—it enhances it. We'll still provide the foundational skills through conventional courses, but experiential learning enriches a student’s educational journey, empowering them to apply their knowledge in meaningful ways beyond the classroom. It's about deepening understanding, fostering critical thinking, and ultimately preparing our students for a dynamic, ever-changing world.