Experiential Education and
Student Leadership
By Aditya,based on the work of
Joy In Classrooms

How many people do you know in this
room?
A) No one
B) A few
C) Lots

After graduating from your program of
TFI,you would:
A) Continue working in classrooms,
B) May not continue working in
classrooms

Leadership can be practiced by:
A) A select few people
B) Anyone and everyone

Which statement do you agree more
with:
A) There is one correct way of leading
B) There are several correct ways of
leading

Leadership is…
A) Continuous action informed by a
mindset
B) A periodic action

Note down one thing that
you would like to take away
from this session.

Categorise!
Philosophy
↓
Mindset
↓
Meaningful
Actions
→What does leadership
mean to me?
→Am I practicing the
leadership that I want my
students to embody?
→ How do I create
opportunities for them to
become leaders?

Self-
Verification

Imagine a class where student
leadership exists!
What do you see and/or
hear?
Collaborative
Leadership

A Critical Look
What do you think,
would help children
take these leadership
actions?
What do you think,
would stop children
from taking these
leadership actions?

Safe Learning Environments
P hysical Safety
I ntellectual Safety
E motional Safety
S ocial Safety
= PIES safety

Experiential Education Cycle

Role of the
Teacher

Cooperation Stage – Leader
• Put ups/put downs, Hidden agendas, Active Listening, Mixing,
Perspective Taking
• Takes care of confusion,along with anxiety.
• Students try to make sense of their environment.Anyone walking by
the classroom would see the teacher directing the activities.
• Active leadership role. Leadership is welcome.Gurukul First Day
• The students are seen making sure what they are ‘supposed to do’.
• At this point,the teacher is seen as the expert.
• Playing,Getting to know each other,Challenge by Choice

Play For Peace
Core Values:
1. Inclusion
2. No Competition
3. Emotional and Physical Safety (rules,no correct way)
4. Role Model
5. Fun!
Khel Se Mel – Documentary on YouTube -23 minutes
(English Subtitles)

Trust Building Stage - Guide
- Making mistakes,trustworthiness,Empathy,Risk Taking,
Physical and emotional
- Power shift begins.
- Still in charge of PIES safety.Taking help of the Contract.
- Expression and class vocabulary – Nexta Hungra
- Opportunities to students to make decisions
- Processing is important during this phase -reflection journal
- Spotlight activities,Blindfold activities,Risk Taking

Problem Solving stage - Mentor
- Decision making,Group Goals,Taking Turns,Leadership,
Conflict Resolution
- Process observer.
- Sometimes a well-placed time-out for an observation from
you is all your students need in order to refocus. (Rule of
Loud Example)
- Sharing observations
- Helps make students aware of strategies they may not have
known about before. (new stuff)
- Academic Content, Problem Solving Initiatives

Challenge Stage - Consultant
• Individual goals,Stating needs,Support,getting over fears,Success
/ failure
• An equal part of the community – approval of leave
• No longer the sole expert
• Can offer connection to the larger picture and offer suggestions
• Students can choose to take your advice or not.
• Encourage independence.Challenge by Choice.
• Handle the meta-data
• Community work,Outdoor experiences,Presentations and projects

3 personal keywords
1. Trust the process
2. Self-facilitation
3. Relationships

Reflection
1. Think about the last
50 minutes and your
original objective
2. Continue,Start,Stop

• References:
• Journey Toward The Caring Classroom, By Laurie Frank
• Article ‘Creating Safe Environments’ – Trimiti Newsletter
on Mental Health – Aditya and Nisha (2014)
• Group Formation,Group Challenge,Group Support,and
Group Achievement are from p.32 of “A Dissertation of
Varying the Sequence of Categories of Adventure
Activities on the Development of Group Cohesion,” an
unpublished dissertation by Christian Bisson,1997.

Thank you!
ANY KOCHANS?