Ruth Jebe and Shelle Poole, assistant professors in the Department of Management, recently completed the pilot run of their Business: Total Immersion learning framework.
The Total Immersion framework builds courses around a fictional work environment, constructed in and for the classroom. Total Immersion uses active and experiential learning to deepen student mastery of course materials and concepts and move them closer to being “business ready.”
Jebe and Poole piloted the framework in two undergraduate courses, the capstone strategy course and the legal environment course. The professors are analyzing data about the trial run collected from students through feedback sessions and anonymous online surveys. Initial findings are encouraging. Students commented positively on the active learning components of each course and valued the exposure to problem-solving and critical thinking tools that will prepare them for the work world.
Poole is the fine-tuning application of the framework in the strategy course and will use a shortened version of Immersion for a learning module in the College of Health Sciences. Jebe will translate the Immersion framework for the online environment as part of the redesign of COBE’s online management degree.
Funding for the development of the Total Immersion framework came from the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) and the Provost’s Office.