An Education Beyond Textbooks
"It is not so very important for a person to learn facts. For that he does not really need a college. He can learn them from books. The value of an education in a liberal arts college is not the learning of many facts but the training of the mind to think something that cannot be learned from textbooks." - Albert Einstein 1921
Learning Beyond the Facts
We spend our whole lives as students. Whether we recognize it or not, life is all about learning from experiences and applying our new knowledge to our prior knowledge to help us continue to grow. Therefore, while there is certainly a time and place for learning facts, the most important part of an education is the experiences that go along with those facts.
At Loras, I have been given the opportunity to learn not only facts but to have experiences that help me to place meaning and value to each of those facts. My liberal arts education has shown me that education is as much about what happens in the classroom, the tests, the papers, and the presentations as it is about your experiences that happen when you aren't sitting behind the desk. My education has been the opportunity to take everything I already knew about myself and completely rediscover it over and over again in every single experience I have been blessed with in my time at Loras.
We spend our whole lives as students. Whether we recognize it or not, life is all about learning from experiences and applying our new knowledge to our prior knowledge to help us continue to grow. Therefore, while there is certainly a time and place for learning facts, the most important part of an education is the experiences that go along with those facts.
At Loras, I have been given the opportunity to learn not only facts but to have experiences that help me to place meaning and value to each of those facts. My liberal arts education has shown me that education is as much about what happens in the classroom, the tests, the papers, and the presentations as it is about your experiences that happen when you aren't sitting behind the desk. My education has been the opportunity to take everything I already knew about myself and completely rediscover it over and over again in every single experience I have been blessed with in my time at Loras.
![Picture](/uploads/1/7/5/4/17544543/8050420.jpg?359)
Liberal Arts is Integrating Experiences
Coming to Loras in the Fall of 2010 I was absolutely sure of a few things, I wanted to be a teacher, I couldn't wait to see what I could do on my own, and I had no idea what to expect. If only I had known then what I know now: college is not a journey you experience on your own, this educational journey, like life, happens with one of the biggest support systems you can imagine. The honors program and education department have come to be two of those many support systems. From my classmates to my professors in the honors and education classes I have taken, I know I can always count on them to challenge me, to question what I think, and to push me to consider things about myself and my values that I would have never thought to take a second look at. Just when I start to think I've figured it all out, someone or something comes into my life to help me realize my learning is far from over. Each day presents an abundance of unique opportunities to be an active learner, responsible contributor, ethical decision maker, and reflective thinker.
My time here at Loras has helped me to completely rediscover education. It's something I experience first in the classroom, as can be seen on my Dispositions page, and then experience to a much greater extent in the clubs, organizations, and other experiences I've gotten involved with since my first year here. I have learned that education both in and out of the classroom takes several very important things: team work, a willingness to take risks, full participation, and embracing the unexpected opportunity.
Coming to Loras in the Fall of 2010 I was absolutely sure of a few things, I wanted to be a teacher, I couldn't wait to see what I could do on my own, and I had no idea what to expect. If only I had known then what I know now: college is not a journey you experience on your own, this educational journey, like life, happens with one of the biggest support systems you can imagine. The honors program and education department have come to be two of those many support systems. From my classmates to my professors in the honors and education classes I have taken, I know I can always count on them to challenge me, to question what I think, and to push me to consider things about myself and my values that I would have never thought to take a second look at. Just when I start to think I've figured it all out, someone or something comes into my life to help me realize my learning is far from over. Each day presents an abundance of unique opportunities to be an active learner, responsible contributor, ethical decision maker, and reflective thinker.
My time here at Loras has helped me to completely rediscover education. It's something I experience first in the classroom, as can be seen on my Dispositions page, and then experience to a much greater extent in the clubs, organizations, and other experiences I've gotten involved with since my first year here. I have learned that education both in and out of the classroom takes several very important things: team work, a willingness to take risks, full participation, and embracing the unexpected opportunity.
![Picture](/uploads/1/7/5/4/17544543/7829824.jpg?266)
Team Work
In the classroom, Loras has challenged me to work on countless group project, debates, and small group discussion. One of the biggest examples of this for me has been my Democracy and Global Diversity class my sophomore year. This class gave me the confidence to move from being one of the last people you would expect to be jumping in and taking a big role in a heated debate my first year at Loras to being someone taking a very active role in discussions and debates every class period. Being part of honors classes like Democracy and Global Diversity helped to build my confidence in skills like debate since everyone truly wanted to push the other member of the class to a higher level of thinking and evaluation of content. This team work in the classroom started in my honors classes and gradually crossed over and continued to grow in how I interacted and worked with my peers in classes outside of the Honors program. This was furthered through countless opportunities to examine case studies on important topics in education course. The more I worked with and discussed concepts with my peers the deeper my understanding of the topic became and through team work I was more effectively able to reflect on and revise my own ideas about education. The more perspectives I considered the better I was able to enhance my skills as an ethical decision maker. In every classroom experience, I was challenged to learn how to more effectively communicate and apply what I knew, to consider what others knew, and to find a way to make it all work together.
These skills of team work that were helping me to gain a deeper understanding of the facts expanded into the work I did outside of the classroom as well. From working on executive boards to joining the Residence Life team, I saw the importance of taking the skills I learned about team work in the classroom and applying them to these positions and vice versa. I learned more about my role in life and grew more from my experiences outside of the classroom the more I opened myself up to the idea that team work is about challenging and questioning one another as well as being a support system for each other. It means recognizing that your peer or your co-worker can teach you new skills or help you to refine your understanding in ways no textbook ever could.
In the classroom, Loras has challenged me to work on countless group project, debates, and small group discussion. One of the biggest examples of this for me has been my Democracy and Global Diversity class my sophomore year. This class gave me the confidence to move from being one of the last people you would expect to be jumping in and taking a big role in a heated debate my first year at Loras to being someone taking a very active role in discussions and debates every class period. Being part of honors classes like Democracy and Global Diversity helped to build my confidence in skills like debate since everyone truly wanted to push the other member of the class to a higher level of thinking and evaluation of content. This team work in the classroom started in my honors classes and gradually crossed over and continued to grow in how I interacted and worked with my peers in classes outside of the Honors program. This was furthered through countless opportunities to examine case studies on important topics in education course. The more I worked with and discussed concepts with my peers the deeper my understanding of the topic became and through team work I was more effectively able to reflect on and revise my own ideas about education. The more perspectives I considered the better I was able to enhance my skills as an ethical decision maker. In every classroom experience, I was challenged to learn how to more effectively communicate and apply what I knew, to consider what others knew, and to find a way to make it all work together.
These skills of team work that were helping me to gain a deeper understanding of the facts expanded into the work I did outside of the classroom as well. From working on executive boards to joining the Residence Life team, I saw the importance of taking the skills I learned about team work in the classroom and applying them to these positions and vice versa. I learned more about my role in life and grew more from my experiences outside of the classroom the more I opened myself up to the idea that team work is about challenging and questioning one another as well as being a support system for each other. It means recognizing that your peer or your co-worker can teach you new skills or help you to refine your understanding in ways no textbook ever could.
![Picture](/uploads/1/7/5/4/17544543/1332819.jpg?381)
Taking Risks
All of the activities that have taught me the value of team work have caused me to take on new roles, explore areas of learning, and in general embrace experiences that make me a more active learner that in some cases have been terrifying at first. Like jumping off the dock into a freezing lake during my service trip to Morton, Missippi, there is always an element of uncertainty in each step of education. When you learn new material, try a new teaching strategy in a lesson, walk into a different debate, or take on a new challenge in a student organization, the final outcome is impossible to know. However, you have to trust that no matter what the outcome, your support system of peers, professors, and other members of the community will be there to help you re-emerge from the freezing lake with new knowledge and the wonderful feeling of being able to say I accomplished this and from it I overcame something be it fear or a lack of understanding.
In my education classes as well as my general education classes I have been challenged to take the risk and question what I already knew in order to reach a greater depth. Each of my classes challenges me to take my reflective thinking skills to a deeper level. On a daily basis in education classes I am challenged to reflect about why I use the teaching strategies I do, why I believe what I believe in inclusion, and what my areas of strength are in. Each time I question myself or something I believe whether that is my teaching philosophy, my faith, or my understanding of another subject matter in an advanced general education class, I take a risk. I run the risk of not finding concrete answers to my questions. I risk finding confusion and more questions. My classes and experiences at Loras in all sorts of disciplines have proven to me though that these risks, the confusions, and the questions are a necessary part of learning. Sometimes the right answers aren't in the back of the book and you have to jump into the lake and experience the outcome to really learn what the right answer is for you.
All of the activities that have taught me the value of team work have caused me to take on new roles, explore areas of learning, and in general embrace experiences that make me a more active learner that in some cases have been terrifying at first. Like jumping off the dock into a freezing lake during my service trip to Morton, Missippi, there is always an element of uncertainty in each step of education. When you learn new material, try a new teaching strategy in a lesson, walk into a different debate, or take on a new challenge in a student organization, the final outcome is impossible to know. However, you have to trust that no matter what the outcome, your support system of peers, professors, and other members of the community will be there to help you re-emerge from the freezing lake with new knowledge and the wonderful feeling of being able to say I accomplished this and from it I overcame something be it fear or a lack of understanding.
In my education classes as well as my general education classes I have been challenged to take the risk and question what I already knew in order to reach a greater depth. Each of my classes challenges me to take my reflective thinking skills to a deeper level. On a daily basis in education classes I am challenged to reflect about why I use the teaching strategies I do, why I believe what I believe in inclusion, and what my areas of strength are in. Each time I question myself or something I believe whether that is my teaching philosophy, my faith, or my understanding of another subject matter in an advanced general education class, I take a risk. I run the risk of not finding concrete answers to my questions. I risk finding confusion and more questions. My classes and experiences at Loras in all sorts of disciplines have proven to me though that these risks, the confusions, and the questions are a necessary part of learning. Sometimes the right answers aren't in the back of the book and you have to jump into the lake and experience the outcome to really learn what the right answer is for you.
![Picture](/uploads/1/7/5/4/17544543/5488046.jpg?380)
Full Participation
The path to discovering the answers isn't always clear cut or clean. Sometimes, like my experience helping build a house during my service trip to Vanceburg, education requires you to get a little bit dirty. Whether this is in the literal sense of being covered head to toe in mud or in the figurative sense of finding yourself unsure of where you stand on an issue, my time at Loras has given me that opportunity.
Education is exactly what you make of it. You can go to class, read the book, accept the fact, and leave it at that. You can go through life and stay completely clean and never muddy things up with elements of confusion. However, then you aren't really getting the full experience of education. You only really grow and learn when you get into the mud and ask questions. Education happens when you show up to the class and question the facts. It happens when you go into a field experience and truly reflect on if you would approach teaching in the same way as your cooperating teacher does. Through honors classes, field work in education, and experiences like helping build a house in Vanceburg I have found with absolute certainty that staying completely clean is not the way I want to approach my life or my education. I grow so much more when I am willing to be confused. Sometimes this confusion leads to me being more sure of my beliefs and values like during my Honors Service Learning class when we debated what it really means to serve someone else and live a good life. Other times,like when I question something in a field placement for education I realize that there was an element of teaching I am missing or that there is an area I need to grow in to fully understand a part of the teaching pedagogy being examined. In other cases after reflection I determine that there may not be only one correct or ethical way to approach a situation. However, one thing is the same in all of these outcomes, without questioning and getting a little bit dirty, without fully participating in every element of the experience, I would have missed the part of education and growth that can't be found in answer section of the textbook. You have to embrace the opportunity to participate 100% even if it scares you or means you might get dirty.
The path to discovering the answers isn't always clear cut or clean. Sometimes, like my experience helping build a house during my service trip to Vanceburg, education requires you to get a little bit dirty. Whether this is in the literal sense of being covered head to toe in mud or in the figurative sense of finding yourself unsure of where you stand on an issue, my time at Loras has given me that opportunity.
Education is exactly what you make of it. You can go to class, read the book, accept the fact, and leave it at that. You can go through life and stay completely clean and never muddy things up with elements of confusion. However, then you aren't really getting the full experience of education. You only really grow and learn when you get into the mud and ask questions. Education happens when you show up to the class and question the facts. It happens when you go into a field experience and truly reflect on if you would approach teaching in the same way as your cooperating teacher does. Through honors classes, field work in education, and experiences like helping build a house in Vanceburg I have found with absolute certainty that staying completely clean is not the way I want to approach my life or my education. I grow so much more when I am willing to be confused. Sometimes this confusion leads to me being more sure of my beliefs and values like during my Honors Service Learning class when we debated what it really means to serve someone else and live a good life. Other times,like when I question something in a field placement for education I realize that there was an element of teaching I am missing or that there is an area I need to grow in to fully understand a part of the teaching pedagogy being examined. In other cases after reflection I determine that there may not be only one correct or ethical way to approach a situation. However, one thing is the same in all of these outcomes, without questioning and getting a little bit dirty, without fully participating in every element of the experience, I would have missed the part of education and growth that can't be found in answer section of the textbook. You have to embrace the opportunity to participate 100% even if it scares you or means you might get dirty.
![Picture](/uploads/1/7/5/4/17544543/585806.jpg?381)
Embracing the Unexpected Opportunity
If you would have told me my first year that I would take classes like Artisitic Thinking and Collage or Barbarian Ethics, or if I would have joined so many leadership teams like Residence Life or student coordinating for a service trip, I would have walked away laughing. In my time at Loras though these unexpected experiences and classes have been some of the most meaningful parts of my journey.
Life, like my experience at Loras, is not what you think it will be. Without joining the honors program, something I had no intention of doing until right before my registration at orientation, I would have missed the opportunity to be engaged by a group of students and faculty that are just as passionate about learning as I am. If I had not taken the chance and applied for the Resident Advisor job second semester my sophomore year, I would have not have joined one of the teams that helped me meet the group of people who really pushed me to work with and communicate with others that had life experiences, beliefs, and interests that were completely different than mine.
When I took the unplanned opportunities that were placed on my path while I have been at Loras I found my expectations about my college education were completely wrong. First, I don't just want to teach in the conventional sense with books and homework, I want to inspire students to embrace the chance to learn and to guide them on that path just like my professors, peers, and co-workers do for me on a daily basis. Even more than that I want to be taught not just while I'm in college, but in every single unexpected learning opportunity I encounter. Second, I'm not going to do it alone. Learning doesn't happen when you're on your own. It happens when you open up to those who are part of every aspect of your life and let them challenge what you know and think. Third, and most importantly, I know exactly what I can expect to learn from in life. I expect to learn from textbooks, I expect to learn from experiences, and I expect to learn from every unplanned deviation from my plan for my life.
If you would have told me my first year that I would take classes like Artisitic Thinking and Collage or Barbarian Ethics, or if I would have joined so many leadership teams like Residence Life or student coordinating for a service trip, I would have walked away laughing. In my time at Loras though these unexpected experiences and classes have been some of the most meaningful parts of my journey.
Life, like my experience at Loras, is not what you think it will be. Without joining the honors program, something I had no intention of doing until right before my registration at orientation, I would have missed the opportunity to be engaged by a group of students and faculty that are just as passionate about learning as I am. If I had not taken the chance and applied for the Resident Advisor job second semester my sophomore year, I would have not have joined one of the teams that helped me meet the group of people who really pushed me to work with and communicate with others that had life experiences, beliefs, and interests that were completely different than mine.
When I took the unplanned opportunities that were placed on my path while I have been at Loras I found my expectations about my college education were completely wrong. First, I don't just want to teach in the conventional sense with books and homework, I want to inspire students to embrace the chance to learn and to guide them on that path just like my professors, peers, and co-workers do for me on a daily basis. Even more than that I want to be taught not just while I'm in college, but in every single unexpected learning opportunity I encounter. Second, I'm not going to do it alone. Learning doesn't happen when you're on your own. It happens when you open up to those who are part of every aspect of your life and let them challenge what you know and think. Third, and most importantly, I know exactly what I can expect to learn from in life. I expect to learn from textbooks, I expect to learn from experiences, and I expect to learn from every unplanned deviation from my plan for my life.
Looking Ahead
After almost four years as a full time student at Loras, I can safely say I have learned a lot of facts and read a lot of text books. However I can say with even more certainty, I have become a huge believer in the idea of being a life long learner beyond the classroom. In many of my education classes I've heard the phrase "you'll learn along with your students", and the more I work in the classroom and have progressed in my course work in various disciplines I think this phrase only scratches the surface. My experiences with a liberal arts education and with Loras' dispositions have led me to the conclusion that no matter where I go in life I will be able to find the learning opportunities in every experience I have whether small or large.
My time at Loras has inspired me to pursue higher levels of education, but not without experience in the field first. In education, like many other fields of study, I feel like so much of the learning at the professional level has to happen in the field and on the job. It comes from asking questions, trial and error, and a continued refining of skills. So while I know that I will return to this side of the desk as a traditional student at some point in my future, I see myself first pursuing the ultimate hands on learning experience for my profession as a teacher. After all, one of the biggest lessons Loras has taught me is that life and education are not always something you can learn from a textbook, it's starting where you are and letting experience be your biggest teacher.
After almost four years as a full time student at Loras, I can safely say I have learned a lot of facts and read a lot of text books. However I can say with even more certainty, I have become a huge believer in the idea of being a life long learner beyond the classroom. In many of my education classes I've heard the phrase "you'll learn along with your students", and the more I work in the classroom and have progressed in my course work in various disciplines I think this phrase only scratches the surface. My experiences with a liberal arts education and with Loras' dispositions have led me to the conclusion that no matter where I go in life I will be able to find the learning opportunities in every experience I have whether small or large.
My time at Loras has inspired me to pursue higher levels of education, but not without experience in the field first. In education, like many other fields of study, I feel like so much of the learning at the professional level has to happen in the field and on the job. It comes from asking questions, trial and error, and a continued refining of skills. So while I know that I will return to this side of the desk as a traditional student at some point in my future, I see myself first pursuing the ultimate hands on learning experience for my profession as a teacher. After all, one of the biggest lessons Loras has taught me is that life and education are not always something you can learn from a textbook, it's starting where you are and letting experience be your biggest teacher.