Effective Experiential Learning in The Artificial Intelligence Age

Abstract

This reflection on our teaching of an overseas experiential learning course in the College of Alice & Peter Tan (CAPT) in the last academic year aims to illustrate how experiential learning can address concerns about students’ reliance on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education. The current discourse on AI-augmented teaching and learning practice in higher education has raised considerable focus on filtering the AI-generated information to translate it into authentic knowledge. Reflecting on our own teaching, we claim that experiential learning can be an effective filter to help students learn in this AI-age education environment. We intentionally redesigned an assignment and thereby introduced a ‘creative disruption’ to the course. Describing the design, we present the findings from systematically analysing students’ work using the programme learning outcomes as the lens. This reflection focuses on one of the significant findings on a crucial learning outcome – critical thinking. The discussion elaborates how it has been achieved in the course. This evidence-based reflective analysis demonstrates that when classroom boundaries are crossed, and epistemic access is thoughtfully broadened, students can cultivate higher-order thinking skills like interpreting and explaining complexities, applying knowledge from the perspectives gained, empathising with the other (culture/community) and increasing self-knowledge.