Experiential Learning at its Finest (article by Dave Vasey)

Clearwater 2008 Summary

By Dave Vasey

August 29, 2008

This year marked the forth return of the University of Manitoba’s Rural Communities and Living Environments course led by Dr. Stephane McLachlan to the Clearwater area. Along with Colin Anderson and Alexis Knispel (with Troy Stozek as the ‘busdriver’), twenty-three students engaged in learning, sharing and community to better understand the anatomy of a small prairie town through a whirlwind ten-day visit.

Through precedence by previous years, students ate an almost exclusive diet of food produced by the community and thus the first priority was to visit the Koslowsky’s garden and harvest meals for themselves. The bounty consisted of tomatoes, zucchini, beans, beats, potatoes, peppers, onions and way too many carrots to eat in a week. Fortunately for the group, the Anglican Church group provided a delicious meal after the garden harvest and further chores were left for another day. (more…)