Faculty Resources for Experiential Learning Day
What is Experiential Learning Day (ELD)?
An Albertus education is about pursuing the truth, applying what you learn to make a difference in the world, and sharing the fruits of your research with others.
To highlight and celebrate students’ accomplishments in meeting these goals, every Spring term, the College hosts Experiential Learning Day (ELD). ELD provides students the chance to present what they have learned and accomplished in their hands-on, experiential curricular and co-curricular activities. Students are able to present their work through formal presentations and/or poster sessions.
In addition, ELD consists of an award ceremony to acknowledge and celebrate students who have excelled in different experiential learning activities (i.e., research, internship, and service). Faculty and staff along with presenting students’ families, friends, and prospective students are invited to attend.
How can I help my students participate in ELD?
There are two (2) ways you can encourage your students to participate at ELD: 1) as a presenter, and 2) as an audience member. Below, you’ll find information on how to sponsor your students as presenters, and information on how you can incorporate ELD in your curriculum to encourage your students to attend and maximize learning during their attendance.
1) Sponsoring student-presenters: Albertus faculty are asked to sponsor students who have engaged in experiential learning (EXL) such as research, service, internship, and forms of EXL that occurred within the classroom (e.g., problem-based learning). Through the sponsorship, faculty assist their students in applying and preparing to present on ELD.
2) Encouraging student attendance & learning: On ELD, classes are suspended until 3:00 pm so that the College community can attend and celebrate student accomplishments in a series of talks, panel sessions and exhibits. Attendance is expected of all traditional undergraduate program students and strongly encouraged for students in all the other programs. Albertus instructors are encouraged to integrate ELD into their curriculum as an assignment. This can ensure that students get the most from the ELD experience. Below, you’ll find several sample assignments that faculty can include in their syllabus.
Sample Assignments for ELD
- Sample Assignment #1 – Descriptive Questions on ELD Sessions
- Sample Assignment #2 – Critical Reflection on ELD Sessions
Past Experiential Learning Days (ELDs)
Albertus has hosted Experiential Learning Day (ELD) since 2011. Over that time period, ELD has grown to be one of students’ favorite days of the year. Last year, Albertus celebrated 10 years of ELD.