The Hidden Reason Schools Struggle to Build Experiential Programs

I was attracted to teaching not only because the profession is about giving yourself for the benefit of others, but because it meant working with like-minded people. People who have good hearts and aren't in it for the salary. They genuinely care about their students and want to help them become the best version of themselves.

I loved working in that environment and seeing how each teacher pursued this common goal in their own style.

I had high expectations for myself. As a grad teacher, I wanted to be the best teacher to every student I met and teach the best lesson every period. But pretty quickly, I noticed the gap between my intentions and my actions grow wider.

It wasn't a lack of care or passion. It was the rigour and complexity of the school day, the week, and the constant additional demands on teachers.

The 61 emails before lunch. The way time flew by in the 50 minute "free" lesson between classes meant for planning, marking, and developing resources. Then there were the faculty meetings that also landed in those "free" lessons. The unexpected call from a parent, the knock on your door from a colleague wanting "to chat about something quickly", and the student you're helping plan an event popping by to check on their progress.

The challenge was that these disruptions were all good and necessary things. But where was the deliberate time for design work? Especially when trying to build an experiential department and program that required deep thought about school systems, structures, and culture change.

Designing learning, and especially experiential learning, isn't a mechanical process. It's a creative expression that needs time between sittings to let the experience take form. I wish teachers and school leaders could have half their week set aside for the creative process. Time that isn't interrupted by the phone call, the knock on the door, and the 100 emails a day.

I was lucky that the school I worked at gave us some days away from campus to put undivided attention towards breaking down the current systems and developing a clear long-term strategic plan. Most schools can't afford this.

This is why I've moved into consulting. For myself and for school leaders, I want the headspace and time to create experiential learning, like student leadership, character formation and transition programs, that makes an impact. Breaking down current systems and addressing cultural needs takes a lot of problem solving, and that can't be done in a disrupted 50 minute window.

These experiential programs have so much power to transform the individual, the group, and the broader school community. We just need to give them the time they deserve. For now, that looks like a consultant supporting school leaders in this space. Maybe one day schools will be able to carve out the time and space for deep, creative thinking without the stress.