Integrative learning is nothing new to Eastern. Students have long been encouraged to combine classroom and real-world experiences.

Fifteen Eastern employees, including faculty and Blair Lord, vice president for academic affairs, attended an integrative learning conference sponsored by the American Association of Colleges and Universities in Atlanta Oct. 22 through 24.

Lord said the group includes faculty members from each college.

Those who attended the conference will meet Friday to discuss the different sessions they attended and ways to implement their new ideas at the university.

Bonnie Irwin, dean of the Honors College, was one of those to attend the conference.

“One of the most valuable things is going to be having us all get back together to discuss what we all got from the experience,” Irwin said. “As we go forward, I think more will develop as we talk about the different things we learned at the conference.”

Integrative learninghas been part of Eastern’s curriculum for a while, but it has gained special focus as President Bill Perry’s top priority for the university.

Lord has also embraced Perry’s priority.

“Integrative learning entails providing students with coherent curricula, significant learning and life experiences outside of the traditional classroom context and ample opportunity for guided reflection, enabling students to tie the disparate parts of their academic, personal and professional lives into a holistic, transformative university experience,” he said.

For some students, this may mean an internship. For others, it could be undergraduate research.

Irwin said the university is talking about ways to improve undergraduate research projects.

“We want to know what students think about research,” she said. “Did they enjoy the research process? What other class work did they apply to their research?”

Faculty are looking to both improve their curriculum and to gauge the value of integrative learning for their students.

“I was really concentrating on assessing the impact of integrative learning on the university,” Irwin said. “So I learned about things that can be used both in classes and universitywide and about how students are impacted by integrative learning.”

Irwin currently tries to combine outside work experience, other class work and different academic initiatives on campus to her own classrooms.

“Students bring in real-world experiences and we talk about them and how they impact the learning experience,” she said. “It certainly enhances the educational impact. When you’re spending four or five years as an undergraduate it makes sense to tie it all together.”

Sarah Ruholl can be reached at 581-7942 or seruholl2@eiu.edu.