Sparks and Dynamic Co-Emergence—How Facilitators Make Sense of and Learn from Critical Incidents in Experiential Learning and Teaching

Abstract

While existing notions of experiential learning help reveal the key process and components of learning from a student’s perspective, how facilitators make sense of and learn from the dynamics of experiential learning are often overlooked. Given their crucial role in shaping experiential learning, it is important to create a deepened empirical understanding of instructor experiences, challenges, and practices for experiential teaching. In this paper, we examine instructors’ reflection, sensemaking, and lessons learned as they encounter critical incidents in their own practice. We present our data through a process model that describes instructors’ dynamic interactions with learners, starting with what we call “the spark.” By revealing how instructors engage in and respond to unscripted moments in experiential teaching, we offer a fuller picture of the relational dynamics that shape their practice. Our findings problematize the existing notions of experiential learning by showing how co-emergence plays out in intra- and interpersonal interactions with the surrounding ecosystem. By introducing an enactive lens, we provide a novel perspective that we present as a “dance,” linking vulnerability and the creation of brave—not merely safe—spaces for learning. We highlight the need for adaptive approaches for instructors to help build experiential expertise.

Cite this work

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 8 citations exist upstream.

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.