Episodes

Ever felt sick or were injured at school? Ever have to face the grumpy school nurse? Well, not at Bosque School in Albuquerque New Mexico! This is an amazing student led program, where all of the first responders for illness or injury are the students themselves. As members of the school’s Medical Reserve Corps, the students learn how to respond to medical incidents and emergencies and take the lead when something happens. In this episode, we talk with Dan Shaw, teacher, first responder and fac...

Have you ever wanted to start the school year by getting away somewhere, fun, challenging remote or culturally unique? No this is no holiday, this is the Aspen High School ExEd program, which provides students the opportunity to learn through experience right across the country. In mixed year level groups, students get to choose from a huge range of options, from Hiking in the Tetons, to Biking in New Mexico, or perhaps a dive into the Cajun culture of Louisiana or some glitz and glamour of Fas...

Have you ever tried washing an Elephant at school? Explored a jungle and encountered a family of Gibbons? Well you can at The Howling Gibbon Outdoor Centre in Thailand In this episode, we talk with Alex Moxon Founder and program Director of the Howling Gibbon Centre. What better way to learn than to spend time in a rural centre in Thailand which combines, outdoor adventures with field studies and service learning. This centre runs a great range of interesting and diverse programs, with the ser...

Want to lose yourself in centuries of political and religious conflict and dark mysteries locked in snapshots from the past? Then the National Gallery in London is just the place for you. With an enormous collection of stunning artworks spanning over half a millennia, this is an amazing experience. No matter how many times I’ve been there, I haven’t even scratched the surface of the passion, the love, the hatred, the rebellion, the political intrigue and the social and emotional commentary that’...

Are you between 14-25 and have a problem you want to solve? Do you have lots of ideas, but just need the right space, equipment and support to turn those ideas into something cool? In this episode, we talk with Andrew Moss, director of the YMCA 4C Centre, Christchurch. The YMCA 4C Centre is a place where young entrepreneurs, inventors and problem solvers can go to build their solutions in a really cool and supportive environment. From robotics, to 3D printing, to video and artistic pursuits, ...

Want to have 3 classes a day and learn in the heart of a city and use everything around you as a lab? The Downtown School in Seattle is a leading-edge school which uses Downtown Seattle as part of their integrated educational program. This is a grade 9 through 12 school. It’s a great example of a school that’s future focussed and enabling students to pursue their own interests and identity as part of their education. More time in the classroom doesn’t equate to better learning outcomes and the...

How do you get students to buy into their role and responsibility in caring for the environment? How do you use this to build a sense of community at the same time? In this episode, we talk with Pete Johnson, from the Christchurch City Council in NZ who leads the environmental experiential education programs for schools. We take a look at how these programs are aimed at all ages and build and grow on prior experience year after year to help students, not only understand the local environment ...

Where do you start with Risk Management? With any experiential education, you have a professional responsibility to pro-actively manage risk. This is an ever-evolving and dynamic skill-set that you develop over the years through training and experience. It’s something we can never take for granted. We take a look at some of the challenges we face in managing risk and what can happen, when things don’t go to plan. In this episode, we talk with Paul Tame, who is a leading risk management trainer ...

Want to learn how to be an entrepreneur? Often this sort of thing is left to chance, luck or sheer force of will. Why not avoid this and get started at school with some real-world problem solving, idea hacking and industry partnerships to help you build an entrepreneurial mindset and skill set whilst still at school In this episode, we talk with Dr Paul Browning, Principal of St Paul’s School in Brisbane, Australia and Author of ‘Compelling Leadership and Principled. In a rapidly changing worl...

I know it’s been a year longer than we had hoped, but now, despite the current global issues, which reminds me of the Billy Joel song, ‘We Didn’t Start The Fire’, we’re back for season 2 of the Xperiential Education podcast! This season, we cover all sorts of great programs from art, to science, to risk management, to outdoor ed, to a really wonderful student-led medical program and a few things in between. The depth and breadth of the podcast and our guests, highlights how important it is for ...