The importance of debriefing to experiential learning in an international study context

In preparation for our follow up meeting in a few weeks I have assembled some ideas from three articles including my own:

From International Study and Experiential Learning: The Academic Context
Lynne Montrose

“Experiential learning sends students out of the classroom into a world that is complex and interconnected, challenging their prevailing world view and their ability to take responsibility for their own learning. In experiential learning it is the student who determines intentional, measurable learning objectives.”

“Experiential education involves the student in a concrete experience, adds pre-determined educational outcomes, and engages the learner in critically analyzing the situation in order to form new knowledge that can be utilized the next time a situation is encountered. What makes this an educational enterprise is not so much the activity in and of itself, but the analysis of the activity through personal reflection, discussion, writing or projects that help the learner transition from the experience to integrated meaning and finally to subsequent understanding.”

From Global Citizenship: The Human Face of International Education
Kirsten Sheppard

“The impact of international education is hard to determine because each experience is so personal in nature. No one person starts at the same point or finishes with the same outcome. For many students one experience abroad, regardless of duration, can last a lifetime. For some, the experience begins long before they actually leave their homes. For others, it may be only a snapshot in time away from home.”

“What does it take for international education to have the desired impact? How can we ensure that international experiences provide students with global perspectives, appreciation for diversity, and intercultural understanding?”

From Granada Reflections
Linda Smith Tabb

“I think that in addition to preparation, some kind of debriefing after the trip is equally important. It is a good thing to share the feelings upon returning as people all have to somehow process what they have experienced in some way. Sharing this experience with others, and perhaps acknowledging how we all differ in a group, could be very valuable. One way of measuring the impact of a study abroad experience in addition to mastery of course material, the development of critical thinking skills, and language proficiency, could involve the sharing during this debriefing of a creative work, such as an essay, video, film, music or artwork (Gillespie 2002). Asking students to express themselves in their own individual medium will help them to be able to recognize what about the trip touched them uniquely, and also help to gauge how they engage with culture, and will hopefully encourage them to want to make this type of trip an ongoing presence in their personal lives.”