Online ISSN: 2515-8260

INSIGHTS INTO ENHANCING MEANINGFUL LEARNING EXPERIENCES IN HIGHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

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*Prof. A. Suryanarayana and **Dr. B. Mohan Kumar

Abstract

In Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs), educators are perpetually confronted with the challenge of making a meaningful and lasting learning experience for the student-learners. In this context, it becomes an imperative to create connections between the learning odyssey and their respective lives. To make education truly purposeful, two critical conditions to be fulfilled are (i) acknowledgement of the fact that meaningful knowledge must be valued and (ii) an acceptance of the linkage between education and its impact on human lives to make a positive difference. Demonstrating the influence of invaluable knowledge in human life is critical in making education meaningful. Fostering curiosity, critical thinking, and imagination make learning satisfying as well. Connecting the content with its meaning and to make learning ‘stick’, self-testing should replace forthwith rote memorization and rut learning. Immersive teaching-learning process and pedagogical techniques should facilitate memory and effective application of learning received by the students. Examining the theoretical paradigms becomes a necessary preliminary for stimulating critical thinking in the minds of the learners that would be of immense use later in their careers. In a knowledge ecosystem model, we need to accept and appreciate the distinction between ‘education’ and ‘learning’. Helping the learners function better in future should ideally remain the overarching goal of learning. Learning experiences are required to be designed by involved students to ensure that the learning outcomes are dovetailed with lesson objectives and are grasped by the students through an immersion process. They assist students in understanding where they want to go in life and how they want to make a difference. An attempt is made in this article to suggest ways and means to the educators to effectively navigate the classroom so that comprehension and learning are enhanced and meaningful learning experiences are gained by the students using their prior knowledge and personal experience.

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