Critical Reflection: Learning Journey

I often have my reservations of learning journeys.  Based on my past experiences, it appears that learning journeys are organized just for the sake of fulfilling an event in the school calendar. As a trainee teacher, I decided to observe what happens when students are left on their own for "independent learning" at an exhibition last year.

"Wee! Lets play catching! "

"Oh! you mean we need to fill up the worksheet? Let me copy your answers!"

"Aiya... the teachers are busy marking their scripts at the cafe...we won't get caught slacking at one corner."

"Eh eh eh... do you think the teacher will even go through the answers for the worksheet?"

"Not our school teacher... external vendor organize one... don't care"

The reality is that, teachers are often relegated to the role of an invisible ghost who would disappear the moment students are at their destinations. Very often, they are not even involved in the designing of the learning journey because the responsibility is handed over to external vendors. The irony is that teachers are the experts who can apply their pedagogical knowledge. On the other hand, profit oriented external vendors are likely to provide a general program that they provide for all customers, and this might not actually benefit the students. I believe that teachers can design a customized Learning Journey that can be truly beneficial to the students of their school. 

In this blog post, I would like to share on how learning journeys can be organized for English Literature lower secondary students. I will be drawing upon the experiences from the learning journey we just experienced.

1) Strategize on Locations

Firstly, it would be strategic that the various destinations are of close proximity from one another. This would be useful because it is ideal that students spend less time traveling from one place to another. In addition, in an event if students will be heading to the same area en masse, students can actually rotate between various destinations within the area. The rotation is crucial because not all destinations are designed for large crowds. This is important because some schools do designate learning journeys as a special day where the entire cohort goes to the same destination.

This implies that teachers must know their locations well. I am not suggesting that teachers undergo an intensive 'recce' of the location and memorize every nook and cranny. However, it would be useful that teachers utilize google maps to navigate their way. A more sustainable suggestion would be for teachers to choose a location that both students and teachers are familiar with. You might wonder, if students are  already familiar, what is the point of bringing them for a learning journey trip? The onus is hence, on the teacher to make old things new. This will be elaborated in my next point.

2) Make Lessons Truly Relevant

Next, the theme of "Nostalgia" is seems to a key feature of learning journey. However, the whole notion of nostalgia revolves around possessing poignant feelings that reminds you of the past. Personally, walking through a row of old preserved shop houses and reading poetry hardly evokes any nostalgic feelings in me. The sharing of personal photos with friends appears to be a poor effort to link one's personal nostalgia past to the wider realm of poetry and old Singapore.

Instead of bringing students on another 'heritage tour' of old shop houses, I would suggest using literature to allow them discover their own personal heritage. By personal heritage, I imply giving students the opportunity to explore their own unique, personal past, and how much they have changed over the years. 

One feasible way would be to organize a 'student-led' learning journey with a theme such as "my past, my neighborhood." Selected students can actually take the lead to become tour guides of places in the neighborhood that is significant to them. At the various locations, they can be given the opportunity to share their self-created creative writing pieces. Teachers may want to make use of the opportunity to introduce the works of poets with similar perspectives. 

Such a learning journey to me, is a smart and practical move. Firstly, there is less logistics required and there is no need to worry over issues such as transport and safety. Secondly, less time is spent on traveling. From a learner's perspective, Literature is transformed as a humanized subject that fully engages individuals on a personal level. This, in my biased opinion, makes literature unique and covering literature under the cloak of "National Education" just does not do the subject any justice. I am not against National Education (NE). But rather, I argue that Literature should become the important vehicle that provides the opportunity for NE to be interpreted through the student's perspectives. It is only then, that NE becomes truly meaningful. 

In conclusion, teachers often complain that learning journeys are troublesome to organize. It is true to a certain extent. However, I have briefly shared that schools need not simply conform to the trend of bringing students to places such as Marina Bay Sands, Gardens by the Bay, Chinatown and Kampung Glam. Perhaps, the best places are the very neighborhoods that the students live in themselves. This would be useful for neighborhood schools because the majority of the students do live in the same neighborhood. Teachers might also want to consider making learning journeys student led - let the students take ownership of their trip. It is only then, that students take responsibility for their own learning and not take learning journeys as another 'outing.'