COSMA Conference
Experiential Learning in Higher Education in a Post-Pandemic Society
The COVID-19 pandemic forced significant alterations to our daily lives. While we continue to adjust to a post-pandemic global society, the effects of COVID-19 restrictions, lockdowns, and quarantines are still significant. Within the field of sport management specifically, many pandemic-related safety precautions have become – or are destined to become – standard practice (Hagen et al., 2020; O’Brien, 2020) as the sport industry adjusts and adapts to the “new normal.” However, the balance between the desire for a return to normalcy and adaptation to a post-pandemic society is delicate and necessitates unique discussions regarding health and safety to determine best practices and develop an understanding of how to proceed.
Experiential education is integral to the student experience in higher education (Eyler, 2009; Itin, 1999; Katula & Threnhauser, 2009; Laurin et al., 2014; Smith, 2016; Stanton, 1987). COSMA Principle 7.3 codifies as much:
Experiential learning integrating knowledge and theory with practical application and skill development is essential to a student’s educational experience (2022, p. 57).
Beginning in March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic preempted the scarcity of experiential education and learning opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students in the United States and around the world. Faculty struggled to find meaningful internships, practicums, and placements for students. The market for student-specific experiential development opportunities has shifted in accordance with societal adjustments to the pandemic (Bilsland et al., 2020; Feldman, 2021; Gill, 2020; Park, 2021; Slater & Cojanu, 2021). Amid the changing marketplace, experiential education and learning remains an invaluable component of the greater student experience in the field of sport management.
Accordingly, the changing landscape, market, and structure of experiential education opportunities available to sport management students within higher education is in need of examination. In order for faculty to best serve the needs of students and provide the most valuable educational experience, the 2023 COSMA Conference seeks to serve as a colloquium for students, academicians, and practitioners to engage in constructive discussions regarding the re-formation of the marketplace pertaining to student experiential education and learning opportunities.
Topics examining this theme from a variety of methodological approaches are encouraged.
ABOUT | The Commission on Sport Management Accreditation is a specialized accrediting body whose purpose is to promote and recognize excellence in sport management education worldwide in colleges and universities at the baccalaureate, master's and doctoral levels through specialized accreditation.