The experience of learning: approaches to sustainability and ethics education

Citation

Kipka, C. and Painter-Morland, M. (2014), "The experience of learning: approaches to sustainability and ethics education", Journal of Management Development, Vol. 33 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-05-2014-0043

The experience of learning: approaches to sustainability and ethics education

Article Type: Guest editorial From: Journal of Management Development, Volume 33, Issue 6.

Learning is experience. Everything else is just information (Albert Einstein)

After a successful first Experiential Learning Congress in November 2010, followed by a Special Issue (JMD, Vol. 31, No. 3, 2012) many scholars and practitioners expressed their wish to continue the rich exchange of ideas, methods and knowledge in the field of experiential learning and management education. The Academy of Business in Society (ABIS) took this as a mandate to organize a second Experiential Learning Congress, taking place in April 2012 in Paris, focussing on the interdependency of learning and experience.

While it is one of the premises of experiential learning that experiences framed by reflection will lead to learning (Schön, 1983), it is rarely reflected upon that learning in itself constitutes an experience. Indeed, learning is dependent on social interactions and social structure (Nonaka, 2003) exposing the individual not only to a new body of knowledge but most of the time also to institutional frameworks and interactions with peer groups and supervisors; similarly influencing the learner's development and progress. Over time, many have come to realize that the broader the experiences and interactions are that students are exposed to, the more likely they are to be able to relate theoretical constructs to work-life practices and to come up with creative solutions to complex problems. In order to do this, theory and scientific data must find its place within the narrative structure of our lives, which always contains a past, present and future. Our self-concept, and our sense of right and wrong only emerge within a complex relational context (Painter-Morland, 2004). In fact, developing a narrative imagination requires dramatic rehearsals that engage with past, present and future and allow students to be actively engaged with others in seeking new interpretations (Starkey and Tempest, 2009, pp. 578-583).

When it comes to integrating sustainability and ethics into the learning that takes place at business schools and universities, the importance of experiences that challenges customary worldviews and equips students with reflexive skills and insights, becomes even more important. Unfortunately, the history of management education has created an environment mostly devoted to scientific theory and academic rigor, rather than to reflective practice and experience. Buchholz and Rosenthal (2008, p. 199) argue that this “scientific” model resulted from two studies sponsored by the Ford and Carnegie Foundations in the 1950s, which criticized the vocational training offered by business schools at the time. In fact, some have argued that business schools came to suffer from “science-envy,” which resulted in a preoccupation with financial and economic models, statistical analysis and the occasional use of laboratory psychology (Schoemaker, 2008, pp. 120-121). The result was the development of a learning style that tended to ignore the effects of things that are distant in time and space, or complex in nature (Augier and March, 2007, p. 140). This myopic orientation also leads to a style of problem-solving that ignores long-term consequences in favor of short-term consequences, and focusses on local and immediate experience instead of reflecting more broadly on a complex set of factors.

This rationalist, reductionist mindset may serve business well in times of stability, but different capabilities are needed when business managers are confronted by complexity and ambiguity (Schoemaker 2008, p. 122). In fact, reflective executives require: connective thinking; critical thinking and personal thinking (De Dea Roglio and Light, 2009, p. 159). Connective thinking is a systemic approach, which entails the capacity to identify and link the specific elements that compose a specific problem, combining ideas and facts to come up with creative solutions. Critical thinking requires the reframing of mental models. This is only possible if students are made aware of own tacit mental models and come to question them. They then also have to have the courage and communication skills to identify and critique the dominant mental models of the groups within which they operate. Personal thinking entails a process of coming to terms with illusions or misconceptions, and to better understand the difference between reality and one's own vision. Designing learning experiences that allow students to acquire all three of these dimensions of reflexivity is quite a challenge, but one that we believe can be met by the kind of teaching and learning practices discussed in this Special Issue.

One of the focal points of this Special Issue is hence the construction of learning spaces, the analysis of environments in which learning occurs as well as the assessment of the quality of learning. For Kolb (1984), learning appears to result from the combining of concrete experience or action with abstract conceptualization, or understanding. Learning arises as “the combination of grasping and transforming experience” (p. 41), but which role is played of the experience of learning? Through the papers here presented, this Special Issue offers suggestions to answering this question and therefore not only captures the knowledge shared during the Experiential Learning congress but also adding to the body of knowledge in both theory and practice.

We saw that the experience of learning is facilitated in and through the creation of various learning spaces, which we broadly characterized as business practice as a learning space; and the classroom as a learning space. The first section helps us understand how we can turn the world into our classroom in a way that fosters the reflexive capacities that students need to acquire. Through the authors’ reflections on service-learning programs, public-private partnerships, we see the emergence of capacity for systemic thinking, critical thinking and personal development. In the second section, we reflect on how the complex world of practice may best be brought in the classroom.

The sequence of papers starts with “Comparative analysis of international service programs” by Pless and Borecká which provides an in-depth analysis of international service learning initiatives. The authors research corporate volunteering programs co-designed by companies and NGOs to allow for the development of competencies such as leadership skills, teamwork and cultural integration; with the ultimate goal to shape responsible leaders who will drive the firms’ sustainable strategy. Offering not only a comparison of international service programs but a typology and categorization of such programs, the authors lay the foundations for future research into the outcome, effectiveness and impact of service learning programs.

The comparative analysis of the first contribution is followed by “Rules of engagement”: how experiential learning facilitates the formation of a public-private partnership in Russia” by Mouraviev and Kakabadse. The authors illustrate societal aspects of experiential learning theories by applying them in complex organizational settings. They analyze in particular the role of learning cycles and experiential learning in management decision making in an uncertain and challenging environment, highlighting the significance of experiential learning in applied management education and development.

The paper “Walking with intangibles: experiencing organisational learning” by Patterson closes the first section of this Special Issue focussing at business-practice interactions. It offers a perspective at an equally complex environment, analyzing the knowledge transfer partnership between a third-sector service provider and a university. The author looks at the effectiveness of environmentally related outdoor learning opportunities for children with the objective to build a sustainable social marketing strategy, a brand identity and a fundraising strategy for the third-sector service provider. The paper reflects upon the importance of the learner-centered approach, co-constructed learning and facilitative leadership in order to achieve beneficial and sustainable societal development on the long term.

The transition between both sections is made by “The interaction between learning styles, ethics education, and ethical climate” by Lawter, Rua and Guo. The authors use the data collected from students of ethics education classes to trace the influence of individual and context factors on ethical behavior through means of statistical analysis. They assess the importance of learning styles, spaces and preferences influencing formal and informal learning.

The starting paper on class-room reflections and skills development is by Canto de Loura entitled “Dilemmas in sustainability: a pedagogical approach to raise awareness on the key role businesses play to practice and promote sustainability” – nowadays, and enhance the teaching and learning experience of business management undergraduate students. It focusses on the pedagogical, teaching and learning strategies used within business schools to encourage reflection and develop awareness and capacity among managers to engage with ethical, social and environmental issues.

These reflections are complemented by the contribution from Brown, Rich and Holtham “Student engagement and learning: case study of a new module for business undergraduates at ABC Business School.” Through measuring engagement, the authors look at the quality of student learning as well as at teaching effectiveness. Within the particular setting of Virtual Learning Environments (VLE), they critically evaluate action research methodology as well as the impact on individual understanding and judgment, contributing thus to deep learning theory.

The Special Issue closes with the paper “Application of the experiential simulation learning approach (ELSA) model to teach sustainability to international business management undergraduate students” – analysis of the outcomes of a two-year case study – by Canto de Loura. Offering an applied approach, the author studies learning as a social process by opposing it to delivering learning content. It illustrates how experiential learning – in an environment of diverse learners with various objectives – leads to personal knowledge creation through critical engagement and the empowerment of students.

We agree with Mintzberg (2009, Kindle location 208 of 6324) that effective managing is more dependent on art than on science, and that it is especially rooted in craft. A craft can hardly be learnt without practice, without being willing to figure things out as one goes along. This practice requires discipline and patience in dealing with the frustration that early failures may entail. But it also holds the promise of the satisfaction and pleasure that comes with mastering a craft. It the context of integrating sustainability and ethics into the learning that takes place in management education, this craft may bring together systemic insight, critical thinking and personal mastery. And since these are the building blocks of reflective practitioners, our students may stand a much better chance of addressing the sustainability challenges that confront us globally. We have seen in this Special Issue that many teachers and scholars have come to the same conclusion, and that they are actively seeking ways to engender this practice of learning inside of the classroom. This provides us all with hope and inspiration going forward.

In closing, our thanks and acknowledgements are due to a number of individuals and institutions. We are grateful to a panel of anonymous peer reviewers from Ashridge, Bentley University, UFPR, St. Johns University and Hosei University; to colleagues at ABIS without whose assistance the second congress would not be possible and in particular to Professor Leslie Shaw and his team at ESCP Europe; to all those who attended the congress and made this Special Issue possible in one way or another; to the editors and editorial assistants at JMD who found both the wisdom and the patience to work with us on this project. We hope that this Special Issue offers stimulating reading to management scholars and leadership development managers, coaches and in-company trainers alike.

Claudia Kipka and Professor Mollie Painter Morland
The Academy of Business in Society (ABIS), UK

References

Augier, M. and March, J.G. (2007), “The pursuit of relevance in management education”, California Management Review, Vol. 49 No. 3, pp. 129-146

Buchholz, R.A. and Rosenthal, S.B. (2008), “The unholy alliance of business and science”, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 78, pp. 199-206

De Dea Roglio, K. and Light, G. (2009), “Executive MBA programs, p. the development of the reflective executive”, Academy of Management Learning and Education, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 156-173

Kolb, D.A. (1984), Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ

Mintzberg, H. (2009), Managing, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, San Francisco, CA
Nonaka, I. (2003), “The knowledge-creation theory revisited: knowledge creation as a synthesizing process”, Knowledge Management Research and Practice, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 2-10

Painter-Morland, M.J. (2004), “Narrative witnessing: an alternative approach to moral education”, Teaching Ethics Across the Curriculum, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 1-21

Schön, D. (1983), Educating the Reflective Practitioner: Towards a Design for Teaching and Learning in the Professions, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA

Schoemaker, P.J.H. (2008), “The future challenges of business: rethinking management education”, California Management Review, Vol. 50 No. 1, pp. 119-139

Starkey, K. and Tempest, S. (2009), “The winter of our discontent: the design challenge for business schools”, Academy of Management Learning and Education, Vol. 8 No. 4, pp. 576-586

Further reading

Painter-Morland, M.J. (2007), “Redefining accountability in a network society”, Business Ethics Quarterly, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 515-534