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Adolescence is a stage that’s soft, malleable and highly impressionable – like Jell-O (US)/Jelly (UK). Immersive, emotionally resonant learning at this time can leave a lasting imprint. Dewey (1938) similarly stressed aligning pedagogy with developmental readiness, advocating for experience-based learning. Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) offers a rich, relational context that deeply engages the whole learner. In a recent ½¿É«µ¼º½ Blog post by Garrett and Holman the focus centred on fostering connection to students’ local environments – a valuable foundation in its own right.

Our work focuses on experiential learning away from home, as identity can be shaped both locally and globally. Our blog post explores how LOtC, grounded in curricular intention and reflection, supports identity formation in university students. Drawing from our work in educational psychology and business education, we examine case studies from Hong Kong, Ethiopia and Japan to show how international fieldwork can promote growth, cross-cultural competence and character development (figure 1).

Figure 1: International field trips led by Dr Sathees Kunjuthamby & Dr Liya Endale

From observation to insight: Student minds on global ground

Many students arrive at university without a strong foundation for experiential learning, particularly in countries like England where recent educational reforms have emphasised teacher-led, knowledge-based instruction over discovery or project-based learning (Gibb & Peal, 2025). This shift can limit students’ adaptability in immersive, real-world settings, making experiences like international fieldwork all the more valuable.

During international field trips to Hong Kong in 2017 and 2018, undergraduate and postgraduate students visited the Container Port, Legislative Council and China Aircraft Services, gaining a lived understanding of governance models such as the ‘Special Administrative Region’ and ‘one country, two systems’.

Cultural visits to Lantau Island, Po Lin Monastery and the Big Buddha helped students explore spirituality and tradition in modern society, while stops at the Ladies Market and Golden Bauhinia Square invited reflection on entrepreneurship and post-handover identity. Students also engaged with local faculty and peers at partner universities.

According to the , such experiences cultivate the kind of global mindset that empowers students to return home with renewed awareness, ready to apply their learning locally.

‘Cultural experiences cultivate the kind of global mindset that empowers students to return home with renewed awareness, ready to apply their learning locally.’

The adolescent mind abroad: Identity in the making

The most impactful LOtC, experiences are intentionally designed to support reflection and identity development. International service-learning (ISL) deepens this through cross-cultural immersion and real-world service, enhancing cultural competence and global awareness.

A 2017 programme in Ethiopia (figure 2) centred identity exploration for Black American students who had never travelled to Africa. The curriculum connected their lived experiences to African cultural frameworks through service, dialogue with local youth, visits to historical sites, and structured reflection. One prompt asked students to compare the role of religion in Ethiopian and US society; another used creative writing to help them adopt the perspective of a historical figure or even an element of the natural environment – fostering empathy, critical thinking and narrative identity.

Figure 2: Students in traditional Ethiopian attire stand together overlooking the Church of Saint George (Bete Giyorgis) in Lalibela, Ethiopia

Source: Photo by Crystal Furlong (with permission), gifted to the Global Education Foundation (2017)

Contrast in design: Surface joy vs deep identity work

A separate 2024 programme in Japan (figure 3) offered rich cultural engagement with manga illustration, kendo and traditional dyeing, but it was not grounded in reflective or identity-focused design. While the culminating discussion captured joy, gratitude and bonding, it lacked deeper provocation.

Figure 3: Participating in a traditional Kendo class in Japan

Source: Author with permission (2025)

Joy and connection matter, but transformative ISL fosters worldview shifts, deeper values and global self-awareness in adolescent identity development.

‘Transformative international service-learning fosters worldview shifts, deeper values and global self-awareness in adolescent identity development.’

The difference wasn’t if students changed, but how. Ethiopia prompted deeper self-reflection; Japan fostered emotional, social memories. Both matter, but deeper transformation stems from intentional design programmes that integrate reflection, context and difference, as these tend to produce the most meaningful growth.

As readers and educators, we might ask ourselves: How can we more deliberately create spaces where young people can test their emerging identities against complex cultural and historical backdrops? What kinds of partnerships, programme designs or curricular scaffolds would ensure that such experiences reach beyond surface enjoyment into deeper growth? Future research could extend this work by systematically comparing outcomes across different cultural contexts, disciplines and age groups, and by tracing the long-term effects of international service-learning on students’ academic, professional and civic trajectories.

References

Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. Macmillan.

Gibb, N., & Peal, R. (2025). Reforming lessons: Why English schools have improved since 2010 and how this was achieved. Routledge.