The Summer Institute course that happened this August seems like it wasn’t all too long ago, although it was almost two months ago now. From this two-week intensive course, it was very clear that this masters program was quite different from the type of schooling that had my mind had been entrenched in. There are no lectures and no exams that require pure memorization and regurgitation of facts. Instead, we participate in dialogue and co-create our classes and present our knowledge and take in that of others through art and discussion. The lessons are often experiential and place-based. These two features are vital to meaningful learning; education that is tied to place and action truly sticks to one’s heart and mind. Two things that have really stuck from the Summer Institute are the canoe trip (and learning about Colony Farm and the teachings we received at Musqueam ), and our final project (during which we tied wooden blocks to a brownfield fence). My favourite types of classrooms are those without walls. The city itself has much to teach if you just pay attention.
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