Experiencing Campus as a Playful Everyday Field Site Using DIY Methods

DIY (Do-It-Yourself) culture is a movement that emphasizes self- sufficiency and creativity in various aspects of life, including education. In geographic education, cultivating DIY culture can play an essential role in promoting hands-on, multi-sensory learning experiences and empowering students to take charge of their learning. This chapter investigates the use of multiple field excursions on a university campus as an experiential “playground” for translating classroom concepts in critical thinking and communication about everyday landscapes through observation and reflective processes stemming from experiential learning theory (Dewey J, Experience and education. Touchstone, 1938; Kolb DA, Experiential learning: experience as the source of learning and development. Prentice-Hall, 1984). The results of these exploratory inquiry cycles are captured and disseminated using DIY materials appropriate to novice geographers.