The ride of 411 Fieldwork has been one worth remembering, and I am grateful for the experience. Growing up with my mother being an educator, I always had a slight curiosity of what it’ll be like to teach one day. Never had I thought that this hidden ambition would be satisfied in my college years. Nonetheless, through expeditionary learning I have discovered new ideas of the education system I haven’t yet had. In a personal view, I appreciate being able to be up close and personal with students in the classroom to see if their experience is the same as mine was. Being able to understand the true thoughts of students and knowing what they’re going through is way more important than just making sure they pass.

In an academic sense, the biggest insight that I’ve taken away from this time is the importance of flexibility and technology. In life there will always be an obstacle a student and teacher will face. During this time, the obstacle of COVID-19 was one that was unforeseen(kinda). Being able to transition from a face-to-face learning environment to strictly online is a major change. That being said, for teachers in Rockbridge County to swiftly make this change is amazing. Those teacher along with thousands of other across the country were flexible enough to not let their obstacle hinder their production. With the numerous technological advances that I didn’t have growing up, its exciting to know the many opportunities for students available. This sudden change of learning is a great reminder for the future that plan A might not always work and a plan B must be in your back pocket.

For a civic view, I think expeditionary learning is vital for producing citizens that will take charge rather than sitting back and watching things happen. The different character traits developed through this type of learning can range from teamwork and initiative to time management and creativity. This is important for developing leaders within our local communities. Without them even knowing, these students are being steadily groomed to stand up and take charge and control their own destiny.