205-5
The Extended Classroom: Framework Impacts On International Student Learning.

Poster Number 1206

Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Tampa Convention Center, East Hall, Third Floor

Bryan Runck1, Paul M. Porter2 and Mary Brakke1, (1)University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN
(2)University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN
The problem of sustainability is fully wicked. From the defining of the problem to finding solutions, sustainability escapes disciplinary boundaries and simple solutions. Agroecology as a field has sought to train students in real-world contexts to prepare them to be practitioners working in wicked problems. Experiential and transdisciplinary educational methods have formed the backbone of agroecological pedagogy that brought students out of the classroom into the field. This process, while incredibly effective at the farm scale, is impossible when considering multiple international contexts. The Extended Classroom Framework expands on previous work done in agroecology pedagogy by incorporating online geographic information systems within online social networks that allow international collaborators to interact with students and each other throughout a course. In the 2012 Fall Semester, faculty in the Agronomy and Plant Genetics Department implemented the Extended Classroom Framework in the Agroecosystems of the World course. Eight CFANS undergraduate students participated in the course, and provided initial insights into the effectiveness of the framework for international education. We collected student journal responses, and evaluated course impacts on intercultural development and environmental disposition through survey instruments.
See more from this Division: ASA Section: Education & Extension
See more from this Session: General Undergraduate Education: II

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