Material objects have the power to excite, inspire, challenge, inform, and motivate students when used as tools for active learning and exploration, which are hallmarks of Fort Lewis College’s commitment to experiential learning. Because of this, object-based learning (OBL) can increase student engagement and retention by enriching the learning experience, making concepts more accessible, and adding depth to understanding.
What Is Object-Based Learning?
Object-based learning is a student-centered pedagogical approach that uses material objects such as artwork, natural history specimens, archaeological and historical objects, and archival documents to promote learning. Material objects are physical embodiments of processes and concepts. As such, they can be “read” like texts, each having its own syntax or vocabulary that influences how meaning and knowledge are communicated. Through OBL, students learn how to decipher these objects, gaining a greater understanding of their context and making connections to broader socio-cultural, political, aesthetic, scientific, and technological ideas.
This experiential and multi-sensory approach can be used across a wide range of disciplines and is based on the understanding that active engagement with objects encourages subject-specific knowledge, student-driven learning, and the long-term retention of ideas while building transferable skills. Object-based learning:
- cultivates an appreciation for cultural difference
- enhances visual literacy and observational skills through sustained looking and focus
- fosters dialogue, competency with communication, and the ability to work collaboratively
- encourages the development of problem-solving skills and abstract thought
- inspires creative endeavors
- supports critical and analytic thinking through the examination, evaluation, and use of primary sources
For more information on object-based learning, you can also see the Object-Based Learning Guide.