Experiential learning for complementary credit: a course to earn credit for extracurricular involvement

Students often have significant learning experiences outside of the classroom, and in particular through their involvement in extracurricular activities. McMaster University has a strong student culture rooted in this type of involvement, and wanted to recognize this experiential learning. These students are often learning a variety of durable skills such as leadership, teamwork, conflict management, and communication. This paper describes the development of a course for students to earn complementary credit for a variety of diverse roles in extracurricular settings across campus. The development approach was informed by principles of student ownership and self-directed learning, and implemented by a diverse team including the instructor, staff, and students. Several focus groups conducted with actively involved students provided insight on both the structure and content of the course: workshop-style classes, with active learning modules, and opportunities for students to learn from each other. Critical reflection was the primary assessment to encourage students to derive learning from their extracurricular experiences. Preliminary observations from the first offering of the course are promising, in that students are deriving significant value from the course, and their related extracurricular experiential learning.