Educating our Student to be Tomorrow’s Citizen Leaders University of Waterloo Board of Governors Retreat Preparing our Students for 21 st Century Citizenship Tony Chambers, OISE

Order of things…. Before the beginning…. Context – Higher Education and our Students…What we all know (..maybe) Reflections on developing citizen leaders in the 21 st Century Discussion

What is the Student Experience? The student experience is a confluence of conditions that exist in and around campus environments that impact the degree to which students engage with others, their environments, and develop knowledge and skills, and their own sense of themselves.

What is the Student Experience?: Factors that contribute to the student experience Student expectations Institutional expectations Pre-university characteristics (cultural background, academic preparedness, financial status, language, etc.) Quality of the curriculum and teaching Relationships with faculty, staff and peers

Factors that contribute to the student experience: Institutional culture (implicit and explicit values) Opportunities for diverse learning experiences The physical environment The degree to which students “ see ” themselves as part of the institutional environment.

Outcomes related to Student Experience: Student learning and development Institutional improvement Commitment to civic participation Spiritual and/or moral formation Greater social and global literacy Greater competency with technology Commitment to life-long learning

CONTEXT

PSE Graduates say PSE is Worth it…

Postsecondary Education

Institution Type Postsecondary Education

What the assessments of the day tell us to pay attention to in order for students to be successful….

High Impact Practices (NSSE) Learning Communities Service-Learning Research with Faculty Internships or Field Experiences Study Abroad Culminating Senior Experiences

Degree Qualifications Profile (Lumina Foundation) Specialized Knowledge Broad and Integrative Knowledge Intellectual Skills Applied and Collaborative Learning Civic and Global Learning

…but do they tell us if we are preparing students to be the type of citizen leaders we need for them to be?

Citizens for the Future….. ….or Workers for the Future?

Student success is formative… and summative… …Institutional initiatives and educational structures should be both formative and summative.

Student Success Dimensions: Access Persistence Performance Acquisition Impact

What would our institutions look like if we admitted students that reflected the profile of graduates we want from our institutions… …instead of admitting students primarily on the bases of high school grades…which have very little connection to the kind of graduates we want from our institution?

To create the kind of citizen leaders we need… Creativity and Imagination Enjoy challenges Self-knowledge; self-confident Integrative Knowing – across and disciplines; in-class and “other-class” activities Aware of the world – Culturally competent and respectful Difficult to fool Curious Compassionate Happy Committed to grow and create long after leaving PSE

Imagine for a moment a different world, a place in which students find deep meaning in everything they learn. In that universe, learning changes who people are and how they view the world. It makes them into better problem solvers, more creative and compassionate individuals, more responsible and self-confident people. Students are able to think about the implications and applications of what they learn. Not afraid to make mistakes and full of questions and ideas, the citizens of this place easily and happily explore new areas with ease while possessing a deep humility about how complex their world can be. Learning remains an adventure. Someone may forget a few facts but still know how to find them when needed. Bain (2012) What the Best College Students Do

Performing and Learning are not the same. Grades measure performance…not learning!

Artists as Interpreters I agree with Piet Mondrian to a certain extent when he stated, “The position of the artist is humble. He is essentially a channel.” In my opinion, the artist is a creator of art, however his or her best art is a manifestation of his or her surroundings. The most impactful and integral pieces in the history of art could not have been created in a vacuum. I believe that good art is not created from nothing, but is rather an artist’s way of channelling inner and outer forces that drive him or her. Some of the most powerful pieces of art produced by humans were birthed from oppression and tragedy. From the bombing of Guernica, Spain, came Picasso’s great masterpiece, “Guernica”. From a battle and victory against heroin addiction, came John Coltrane’s “A Love Supreme”. Even one of the most essential elements of jazz, the blues, was born from the enslavement and oppression of African Americans. As humans, we have the innate ability and drive to express our emotions, to ask questions, and to formulate opinions. Art is our way of expressing ourselves in a way that is different, and in a sense more profound, than just simply describing what exactly is on our minds. It is our way of taking intangible aspects of our existence and making them into tangible creations. So in this sense, the artist is in fact a creator, but the paint to his or her paintbrush, the notes to his or her horn, and the clay to his or her pottery wheel, is his or her human experience. Kody Chambers – 17 year old jazz trumpeter

“ Always in the deep woods when you leave familiar ground and step off into a new place, there will be, along with the feelings of curiosity and excitement, a little nagging of dread. It is an ancient fear of the unknown and it is your first bond with the wilderness you are going into. What you are doing is exploring. ” ~Wendell Berry ~ We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. ~T.S. Elliot ~

Tony Chambers University of Toronto