education
sciences
Article
Excursions as an Immersion Pedagogy to Enhance Self-Directed
Learning in Pre-Service Teacher Education
Josef De Beer
Citation: De Beer, J. Excursions as an
Immersion Pedagogy to Enhance
Self-Directed Learning in Pre-Service
Teacher Education. Educ. Sci. 2023,
13, 862. https://doi.org/10.3390/
educsci13090862
Academic Editors: Anna
Elizabeth Du Plessis, Elize Kung and
Elize (E.C.) du Plessis
Received: 19 July 2023
Revised: 18 August 2023
Accepted: 21 August 2023
Published: 23 August 2023
Copyright: © 2023 by the author.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
4.0/).
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13090862
Faculty of Education, University of the Western Cape, Bellville 7535, South Africa; jdebeer@uwc.ac.za
Abstract: Pre-service teacher education should be underpinned by pedagogies that would enhance
self-directed learning. Future teachers need to create contexts in the classrooms that would enable
learners to, as self-directed learners, identify individual learning goals for themselves, search for
appropriate resources, and monitor and assess their own learning. Self-directed learning is essential to
adequately prepare learners for a complex and changing world. This paper focuses on the affordances
of a first-year student teacher excursion to scaffold learning and the development of a professional
identity, and to address the ‘apprenticeship of observation’ that could prevent optimal learning.
Pre-service teachers often enter the Bachelor of Education degree with a naïve understanding of
the teaching profession. Furthermore, they come from school contexts that often do not enhance
self-directed learning. The faculties of education from three different universities have engaged in
excursions for first-year student teachers, where the student teachers, as Homo ludens (the playing
human), engage in problem-based and cooperative learning activities, exploring the complexities
of the teaching profession. Social constructivism underpins the excursion. Findings over 17 years
(2007–2023) across three universities—the University of Johannesburg, North-West University and the
University of the Western Cape—show that such immersion pedagogy is a high-impact educational
practice, in which student teachers learn from practice. The findings show that the excursion provides
pre-service teachers with a more nuanced understanding of the teaching profession, enhanced
sensitivity to diversity, social justice and inclusivity, an understanding of the value of reflection,
and a sense of belonging as a student in the higher education sector. The findings also highlight
the affordances of excursions to enhance self-directed learning, an important attribute to ensure
continued professional development. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutions
had to rethink teaching and learning, and this article also explores the transformation of face-to-face
excursions to virtual online excursions.
Keywords: cooperative learning; excursions; immersion pedagogy; pre-service teacher education;
problem-based learning; self-directed learning; teacher identity
1. Introduction
Student teachers often start their degree studies with a naïve understanding of the
complexity of the teaching profession [1]. There are many reasons for this, one being
the phenomenon that Lortie [2] coined: the ‘apprenticeship of observation’. Student
teachers starting with their four-year Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) degrees have spent
12 years or more in school classrooms, observing teachers. Often, they observed poor
teaching practices, such as transmission-mode teaching, that do not enhance self-directed
learning [1]. Also, Rusznyak [3] observed that student teachers often “focus their efforts on
planning fun-filled activities for the lessons they teach”, but that these lessons are often
“marred by inaccurate, disjointed or incoherent content knowledge” (p. S107). Recent
research [1] shows that a large percentage of first-year student teachers view themselves as
prepared to start teaching immediately. In research from Petersen et al. [1], 7.3% of first-year
student teachers felt completely prepared, 44.7% mostly prepared, 40.4% slightly prepared,
and only 7.6% under-prepared to immediately teach. These naïve views of their knowledge
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/education
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 2 of 13

and skills negatively impact self-directed learning, as student teachers might not see the
need to set individual learning goals for themselves, amongst others, to develop their
pedagogical content knowledge. It is important to sensitize student teachers to self-directed
learning in the first year of study. If they develop or further enhance the attributes of
self-directed learners, they would better cope with the demands of tertiary studies.
Lortie [2] alerts us to the fact that student teachers saw the ‘frontstage’ activities
that their teachers engaged in, such as monitoring, correcting and lecturing, but did not
necessarily see the ‘backstage’ activities that are a critical part of a teacher’s work: “Students
do not obtain invitations to observe the teacher’s presentation from the wings; they are not
aware of the teacher’s private goals and subjective considerations on classroom activities.
Students seldom contribute to choosing goals, making arrangements, or post-teaching
analyses. Therefore, they are not pushed to place the teacher’s activities in a pedagogically
focused framework” (p. 62).
Another aspect that should be considered as part of higher education institutions’
first-year experience (FYE), is their integration into the faculty, and the development of
a sense of belonging. Van Zyl [4] highlights that higher education institutions (HEIs)
should provide effective interventions for first-year students, especially if they are first-
generation university students, to adapt to the institutional climate and new ways of doing.
Tinto’s model [5] makes it clear that academic success is dependent on the academic and
social integration of students at the HEI. Such social integration encompasses meaningful
relationships with faculty and other students [5].
To address all the above matters—the apprenticeship of observation, naïve under-
standings amongst first-year students about the complexity of the teaching profession, and
their integration into the HEI, the Faculty of Education of the University of Johannesburg
initiated an excursion for student teachers in 2007 [6]. This was later extended to the
North-West University (NWU) (2016)—and to the University of the Western Cape (2023).
Schön [7] speaks of creating low-risk settings for novice learning, and such excursions
could provide conducive learning opportunities for pre-service teachers.
The University of Johannesburg (UJ) was a pioneer in introducing the first-year stu-
dent excursion as a component of their B.Ed degree in 2007. The value of excursions in
enhancing learning is well researched. However, the majority of studies prior to 2007
focused on excursions in school contexts, and the role of such excursions in pre-service
teacher education only started to gain momentum when UJ introduced it. De Beer, Petersen
and Dunbar-Krige [8] highlight a number of affordances of student teacher excursions.
These authors show that excursions provide unique learning environments for personal
and professional development. Burke Da Silva’s [9] research shows that excursions provide
authentic learning opportunities to enhance creative thinking and problem solving. Such
excursions, furthermore, hold the potential to improve student–lecturer relationships [8],
and to sensitize student teachers towards cultural diversity and social justice issues [8].
Research carried out on the first-year student excursion at the NWU had a strong focus
on how it could enhance self-directed learning [1]. Becoming a teacher in a complex 21st
century, characterised by rapid and constant change, asks for self-directed qualities. Pe-
tersen, De Beer and Mentz [10] show that student teachers might be aware of their own
learning needs, but that they often expect the pre-service (B.Ed.) programme to address
these needs. Student teachers need to take own responsibility (as self-directed learners) for
addressing their individual learning needs, and the excursion holds affordances to create
such awareness [1,10]. The excursion also provides student teachers with an appreciation
for the value of engaging pedagogies and pedagogy of play [10].
The literature on such excursions (in a pre-service teacher education context) mainly
highlights two aspects: (a) the affordances of such excursions, as summarised above, and
(b) the design principles for such excursions. In order to enhance self-directed learning in
student teachers, excursions should be grounded in engaging pedagogies such as problem-
based learning and cooperative learning [1,8,10–12]. Sebotsa, Petersen and Vaughn [11]
show how gamification could be used to create awareness among student teachers of social
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 3 of 13

justice issues. For such excursions to be effective, the learning environment created should
supplement the often ‘clinical’ lecture room [8]. Engaging student teachers as Homo ludens
(the playing human) [13] in learning tasks, might enhance their pedagogical knowledge [8].
The objective of this paper is to provide an overview of the main research findings on
student teacher excursions over the past 17 years. In this paper, findings are disseminated
across four specific perspectives: (a) excursions as a vehicle to sensitize student teachers
towards the importance of environmental education in the age of environmental emergen-
cies [14]; (b) designing such programmes on sound theoretical frameworks and teaching
and learning philosophies; (c) its affordances in an online learning environment; and (d)
addressing the affective domain, and specific student needs.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Research Paradigm and Design
A pragmatic paradigm underpinned this research, as the focus was on studying a
real-world pluralistic issue: pre-service teacher education. This convergent parallel mixed
methods research [15] spanned a period of 17 years (2007–2023) across three HEIs. The
quantitative and qualitative components were conducted concurrently, the two components
were analysed independently, and the results/findings were interpreted together [15].

2.2. Research Population and Sampling

The research participants were first-year B.Ed students, embarking on their pre-service
teacher education, as well as teacher educators at the three institutions (UJ, NWU and
UWC). As 15,800 student teachers participated over the 17 years in multi-institutional
contexts in excursions it is not possible to provide detailed biographical data. However,
all the student teachers were in their first year of studies, attending classes at an urban
university. The student teachers were diverse in terms of race and home language spoken.
Although there were also older students, 98% of the student teachers were in the age
group of 17–19 years. The excursions took place in the first semester (February–May), and
this varied between the three HEIs. As the excursion was a compulsory component of
the curriculum, all registered students participated in the excursions. Despite the large
population (15,800), only students who provided consent participated in the research
itself (n = 10,740). All students who provided consent completed the questionnaires.
Student artefacts (such as newspapers that they created) were analysed, but again only
where consent was provided (n = 2030) (student teachers compiled the newspapers in
cooperative learning groups of 4–6 students). For the focus group interviews, student
teachers were randomly selected, and between eight and ten students participated in a
particular focus group interview. The number of focus groups per excursion was guided
by the principle of achieving saturation. Striving for data saturation makes data collection
robust and valid [16]. On average, three to four focus group interviews were conducted
per excursion. In total, 272 focus group interviews were conducted over 17 years. Cohen,
Manion and Morrison [17] claim that a focus group interview often generates much more
diverse responses compared to an individual interview, and this was proven during this
extended period of excursion research. For example, during the NWU excursions, students
from the three different campuses (Potchefstroom, Mahikeng and Vaal) met for the first
time, and during the focus group interviews, student teachers honestly reflected on their
preconceived perspectives and stereotypes that they held, and how they often “othered”
students. This would probably not have happened in individual interviews.
Individual interviews were conducted with teacher educators involved in the excursion
programme. Purposive sampling was used to select teacher educators to participate in individual
interviews. In total, 43 individual interviews with teacher educators were conducted.

2.3. Research Instruments and Data Analysis

The Self-directed Learning Instrument (SLDI) of Cheng et al. [18] informs the quantita-
tive research, measuring the impact of such excursions on students’ self-directed learning.
 in individual interviews. In total, 43 individual interviews with teacher educators were
conducted.

2.3. Research Instruments and Data Analysis

Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 The Self-directed Learning Instrument (SLDI) of Cheng et al. [18] informs the quan- 4 of 13
titative research, measuring the impact of such excursions on students’ self-directed learn-
ing. This SDLI instrument, applied as a pre-intervention and post-intervention question-
naire,
This wasinstrument,
SDLI used during the North-West
applied University and
as a pre-intervention excursions. Cronbach’s
post-intervention alpha values
questionnaire,
ranging between 0.7 and 0.85 over the years indicate the internal
was used during the North-West University excursions. Cronbach’s alpha values consistency of the rang-
SDLI.
In order to establish whether the pre- and post-intervention tests
ing between 0.7 and 0.85 over the years indicate the internal consistency of the SDLI. In highlighted practical
significant
order differences,
to establish whethera paired sample
the pre- andtest was done [1]. The
post-intervention differences
tests highlighted were interpreted
practical sig-
using Cohen’s d-value and Hedges’ correction. The SDLI measures
nificant differences, a paired sample test was done [1]. The differences were interpreted self-directed learning
acrossCohen’s
using four domains:
d-value learning
and Hedges’ motivation,
correction.planning
The SDLI andmeasures
implementing, self-monitoring
self-directed learning
and interpersonal communication [18].
across four domains: learning motivation, planning and implementing, self-monitoring
Qualitative methods
and interpersonal and instruments
communication [18]. in this QUAL-quan research included focus
group interviews with student teachers, individual
Qualitative methods and instruments in this QUAL-quan interviewsresearch
with teacher educators,
included focus
open-ended questionnaires, observation, and the studying of
group interviews with student teachers, individual interviews with teacher educators,artefacts such as student
open-
teachers’
ended newspaper reflections,
questionnaires, observation, asandis shown in Figure
the studying 1. (At allsuch
of artefacts threeasHEIs,
studentstudents
teachers’on
the last dayreflections,
newspaper of the excursion reflected
as is shown on their
in Figure 1. (Atlearning
all threebyHEIs,
compiling
studentsnewspapers.)
on the last dayThe
interviews
of werereflected
the excursion transcribed and learning
on their coded. Saldaña’s
by compiling [19] coding technique
newspapers.) The was used towere
interviews ana-
lyse the qualitative data, and codes assigned were grouped into categories,
transcribed and coded. Saldaña’s [19] coding technique was used to analyse the qualitative and then from
the categories
data, and codes emerging
assignedthemes were distilled.
were grouped A rubric was
into categories, andused
thento from
analysethethe artefacts
categories
(newspapers),
emerging themes and thedistilled.
were instrument used was
A rubric criteria
used such as nuanced
to analyse understanding
the artefacts of the
(newspapers),
complexity
and of the used
the instrument teaching profession,
criteria clear communication,
such as nuanced understanding oflogical argumentation,
the complexity of the
awareness
teaching of inclusivity,
profession, social justice, critical
clear communication, logicalreflection, and setting
argumentation, professional
awareness devel-
of inclusivity,
opment
social goals.critical reflection, and setting professional development goals.
justice,

Figure1.1. Flowchart
Figure Flowchart showing the convergent
convergent parallel
parallel mixed
mixedmethods
methodsresearch
researchdesign.
design.(Conceptual-
(Conceptu-
ised by
alised bythe
theauthor).
author).

2.4.
2.4.Validity
Validity and
and Reliability
Reliability
Triangulation, member checks, an audit trail and providing rich, thick descriptions,
were all used to promote the validity and reliability of the research [20]. Denzin [21]
proposed four types of triangulation, namely the use of multiple methods, multiple sources
of data, multiple investigators, and multiple theories to confirm emerging findings. These
were all utilised in this research.
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 5 of 13

2.5. Ethical Considerations

The research adheres to ethical principles: all participants provided consent to par-
ticipate in the research. Ethics approval was obtained from the relevant research ethics
committees at the respective universities, as well as from the relevant gatekeeper authority
at NWU (the Registrar). All student teachers were briefed on what their participation
would entail, that they may withdraw from the research at any stage, and that anonymity
would be ensured.

3. Results and Findings

The extensive findings over the 17-year period are presented in this paper under four
subsections, as indicated earlier.

3.1. Excursions as a Vehicle to Sensitize Student Teachers towards the Importance of

Environmental Education in the Age of Environmental Emergencies
The first (UJ) excursion in 2007 was hosted in the Golden Gate Highlands National
Park in the eastern Free State Province of South Africa [6]. The three-day programme
mainly focused on environmental education. For three years (2007–2009) student teachers
engaged in cross-curricular activities in the national park, sensitising them to the role
of the teacher in scaffolding learning to become environmentally literate citizens [6]. As
of 2010, UJ’s Faculty of Education changed the focus to better align with its conceptual
framework for teaching and learning, and to scaffold learning of student teachers as
reflective practitioners. The site of the excursion also changed to the Achterbergh campsite
on the West Rand of Johannesburg. As of 2010, the excursion programme focused on the
development of a professional identity of the student teacher, and environmental education
was removed from the programme. Teacher educators reflected positively on this change.
One of the research participants stated, “The shift to an excursion programme highlighting
the responsibilities of the teacher as a caring professional and reflective practitioner, aligns
so much better with the B.Ed curriculum. I did not like the strong focus on environmental
education” (UJ teacher educator, 2011).
In hindsight, the excursion programme lost a valuable component with this change.
It is said that the next World War will be fought over water, and it is becoming critical to
infuse environmental education into all school subjects, to address environmental literacy
in young people. It is therefore important to also address environmental education in
pre-service teacher education programmes. Teachers need to develop the knowledge and
skills to scaffold learners’ cross-disciplinary and complex thinking. Gandolfi [14] shows
that in an age of environmental emergencies (if one considers all the environmental catas-
trophes that faced humankind in the last decade), a more meaningful engagement with
environmental issues is needed. One could argue that this could be done in the lecture
hall, but as Dunlop and Rushton [22] indicate, content-based approaches often lead to the
inability to engage with complex socio-political, moral and ethical aspects related to the
environment. Therefore, the excursion as immersion pedagogy holds many affordances to
address environmental education effectively in pre-service teacher education (and also ad-
dress the affective domain of learning). The UJ findings (2007–2009) highlight this. Students
indicated that the excursion assisted them in developing the knowledge and skills to infuse
environmental education into different school subjects. A few student teacher responses
were: “I never thought that I, as a language teacher, have to teach about environmental
issues. I now know how I can give my learners comprehension tests about important
environmental issues” (UJ student, 2008). Another student commented, “The excursion
made me realize what an important responsibility we have as teachers to make learners
aware of environmental issues, and caring for our fragile planet” (UJ student, 2008).
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 6 of 13

3.2. Designing Excursion Programmes on Sound Theoretical Frameworks and Teaching and
Learning Philosophies
The University of Johannesburg’s Faculty of Education adopted a framework for
teaching and learning in 2008 which included aspects such as becoming a caring teacher,
managing learner diversity, and being a reflective teacher [6]. It was underpinned by
critical education theory, and how a teacher’s beliefs about children, authority, teaching and
learning influence the practice in the classroom [23]. Critical theory and Giroux’s [24] view
that critical education is moved by the passion to create a just society that ‘links struggle to a
new set of human possibilities’ (p. 242), therefore, also infiltrated the excursion curriculum
from 2010. In line with the framework for teaching and learning, emphasis was placed
on Nodding’s relational ethic and care [25] and on critical reflection [7]. This signalled a
departure from the original focus on environmental education, and the excursion became
an extension of the formal B.Ed curriculum.
When the excursion migrated to the North-West University in 2016, the UJ conceptual
framework for the excursion was maintained, but a stronger focus was placed on self-
directed learning (SDL). The classic definition of Knowles [26] was used as a design
principle in customising the excursion for NWU students: SDL is ‘the process in which
individuals take the initiative, with or without the assistance of others, in diagnosing their
learning needs, formulating learning goals, identifying human and material resources
for learning, choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating
outcomes’ (p. 19). Student teachers were asked to critically reflect and set professional
learning goals for themselves, based on their experiences of participating in the excursion
learning activities.
In 2023 the University of the Western Cape also started to engage in first-year excur-
sions for student teachers. A pilot project was done with the first-year B.Ed. Foundation
Phase students. The NWU excursion curriculum was followed in an adapted form.

3.2.1. The Excursion Developed Sensitivity to Cultural Diversity

The first UJ excursion took place 13 years after South Africa became a democracy.
It would be naïve to think that, in such a young democracy, where so many people still
carried the scars caused by an oppressive apartheid regime, all student teachers would
demonstrate the necessary relational ethic, care and understanding of the task of improving
the status of marginalised groups [8,27,28]. Student teachers had to, through the excursion
programme, be made aware of the practices, attitudes and beliefs that limit the status and
potential of marginalised groups [28]. Student teachers also had to reflect on their own
beliefs in terms of cultural diversity, and had to ask those difficult questions, such as, “Am
I racist?” and “Am I homophobic?”. The excursion over the years had been characterised
by ‘dramatical collisions’, as explained by De Beer and Henning [28]. These authors refer
to Veresov [29], who states that conflict often results in enhanced learning.
This is an opportune moment to discuss the theoretical framework, and social con-
structivism, underpinning the excursion. Veresov, a leading scholar in social constructivism,
argues that Western scholars do not fully understand the richness of Vygotsky’s [30] theory
of the zone of proximal development (ZPD). During the excursion, student teacher learn-
ing is scaffolded across the ZPD (from actual to potential development), using different
semiotic tools (see Section 3.2.2). Students first (in a cooperative learning fashion) construct
knowledge in social groups, and then later this is internalised (individualised). Vygotsky
used the word ‘category’ when he referred to the interpsychological- and intrapsycho-
logical levels on which learning takes place. The category should be traced back to the
context of pre-revolutionary Russian theatre [29] where the word meant a ‘dramatic event’,
or the ‘collision of characters on the stage’. This ‘hidden meaning’ of Vygotsky’s work
escaped many Western scholars [29]. The excursion, where students for three days had
to share dormitories, and had to engage with people with different cultures, religions
and sexual orientations, often lead to conflict. De Beer and Henning [28] refer to student
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 7 of 13

teachers ‘playing out social dramatical collisions’ (p. 203). One such ‘dramatical collision’
is described below.
De Beer, Petersen and Dunbar-Krige [8] refer to an incident that took place during the
Golden Gate UJ excursion. As part of a hike in the national park, students were allowed to
swim across a very deep cave pool. A black female student swam across the pool, but when
she reached the other side, she lost her nerve, and could not swim back. A white female
student, who had provincial colours in swimming, went to her rescue and helped her to
swim back to the other side. This was captured in a cellphone video by one of the other
students (p. 105). The white heroine was extremely upset and demanded that the video be
deleted immediately. That evening the author spoke to her. She had the following to say
about this incident: “I am so ashamed of my behaviour. However, it made me realise that I
have to deal with deep-rooted issues, that will affect my job as a teacher one day. When I
saw the video, I immediately thought of my father disapproving that I risked my own life
saving that of a black student. I grew up in a very racist family, and I realized today that I
will have to stand up to my own beliefs” (UJ student, 2009). This narrative gives testimony
to the student teacher’s confusion about her own racialised self. The excursion with such a
‘dramatical collision’ prompted reflection in the student, that she needed to address this
aspect if she want to be an inclusive teacher in a multicultural classroom.
Both at UJ and at NWU, the data revealed that the excursion was seen by students as
an effective vehicle to sensitize them about diversity and social justice. These tensions often
arose due to differences in religious beliefs and sexual orientation. A concurrent theme
emerging from the data through the 17 years is that student teachers realize not to ‘other’
(label) people, and to be aware of personal biases, as can be seen in the following student
comments: “I have learned to treat people the same way because I have issues or treating
other people like gays, lesbians like. . .I had a problem with them but I am okay because
we are one, you know, we are one” (NWU student, 2018). Another student commented,
“We learned that although each culture is unique, they do have something in common-
proudly South African. This also made us aware of the number of different cultures we
will have in our classrooms one day. Every unique culture must be treated with respect.
Ubuntu!” (NWU student, 2019). Many student teachers reflected on the fact that a teacher
should be inclusive, respecting different religious views: “It was difficult at first for me to
connect with some of the Muslim students. One of them was upset with me, when I helped
myself to food at the Muslim food station. I should have handled the situation better. I now
understand that I did not show the necessary respect and courtesy towards the student,
due to my ignorance of the Islam faith. The conflict made me reflect on my own status as
an inclusive teacher” (NWU student, interview, 2018).
As the main facilitator during the past 17 years of excursions (at all three HEIs), the
author made a mind shift in terms of these ‘dramatical collisions’. In the first few years, he
wanted these excursions to be harmonious and ‘perfect’. When conflict between students
(which mainly arose along three strands: race, religion and sexual orientation) emerged, he
in the beginning years was most upset and tried to resolve it immediately, without thinking
of it as a learning opportunity. In later years he realised that these conflicts should be
welcomed, as they resulted in embodied cognition and powerful learning. The excursion
as an immersion pedagogy provides student teachers the opportunity to critically reflect on
their worldviews and biases, and to juxtapose this to the leitmotif of the excursion, namely
being a “super teacher”.

3.2.2. The Excursion Exposed Student Teachers to Different Semiotic Tools for Teaching
and Learning
Research shows that many student teachers enter the B.Ed degree with limited ex-
posure to engaging pedagogies that would foster SDL [1]. A major reason for this is the
dominance of transmission-mode (‘chalk and talk’) approaches that characterise many
classrooms [1,8]. During the excursion programme, student teachers engage with learning
as Homo ludens [13], the ‘playing human’, and come to understand the affordances of a
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 8 of 13

pedagogy of play. All of the excursion learning activities are underpinned by engaging
pedagogies such as cooperative- and problem-based learning, and when HEIs started to
experiment with virtual online excursions due to the COVID-19 pandemic (see Section 3.3),
this pedagogy of play was refined into gamification. Simulation games and drama activ-
ities (dramatizing case studies) have become the backbone of the excursion programme.
Students responded very positively to such a pedagogy of play, as can be seen in some
of the student responses. (One of the learning activities is the Famine and Abundance
Game [11], where every student is (randomly) issued a passport of a country. Based on
the Human Development Index of that country, the student receives an amount of money
that can be used to purchase food at the ‘shop’ (items such as potato chips, chocolate, etc.).
The game has been contextualised to show the inequality between developing and highly
industrialised countries [11]. A student from a Scandinavian country will be able to buy
at her heart’s desire, whereas a war-ridden African country passport holder will not be
able to afford anything. The game has been designed to result in a flair-up of emotions, or
‘dramatical collisions’).
One student commented, “After I reflected on the activity, I saw the relevance of the
Famine and Abundance game that we played. It alerted us to the “haves” and “have-nots”
in an unequal society, and that we as teachers should be aware of this, and that we should
also be change agents”. (NWU student, 2021). Another student reflected that “I realised
that I, coming from a privileged background, should not be blind to the suffering of many
learners, who live under challenging conditions” (NWU student, 2021).

3.2.3. The Excursion Sensitised Students to Self-Directed Learning

A strong theme that emerged from the data, is that the excursion holds affordances to
enhance self-directed learning. This is the case for both face-to-face excursions and virtual
online excursions. In Table 1 the difference in pre-excursion and post-excursion tests are
shown for a cohort of 828 NWU students in 2021. Students answered the SDLI of Cheng
et al. [18] prior to the excursion, and then again after the excursion. There was a practical
significant difference of medium effect in all four categories in the SDLI, namely learning
motivation (LM), planning and implementing (PI), self-monitoring (SM) and interpersonal
communication (IC) [1].
Table 1. The affordances of excursions to enhance self-directed learning.

Mean Mean STD STD Cohen Hedges

Category p-Value
(Pre) (Post) (Pre) (Post) d-Value Correction
LM 4.43 4.75 0.54 0.32 <0.001 0.53 0.54
PI 4.13 4.37 0.66 0.58 0.001 0.61 0.62
SM 4.16 4.43 0.63 0.60 <0.001 0.62 0.62
IC 4.14 4.46 0.72 0.52 <0.001 0.73 0.73
Key: LM: learning motivation; PI: planning and implementing; SM: self-monitoring; IC: interpersonal communi-
cation (acknowledgment: Petersen, Mentz and De Beer [1] (p. 91)).

The SDLI focuses on SDL in four categories, namely learning motivation, planning and
implementing, self-monitoring, and interpersonal communication. The data shows practi-
cal significant differences in all four categories, with the biggest difference in interpersonal
communication, arguably because of the strong emphasis on cooperative learning [1].

3.2.4. The Excursion Sensitised Students to the Importance of Reflection

The theoretical framework for pre-service teacher education at all three HEIs places
a big emphasis on reflection, and this is centre-stage during the excursion. Students
(in cooperative learning groups) reflected on the excursion programme by producing
newspapers. At UJ students also had to submit personal portfolios after the excursion. The
UWC introduced a ‘walk and share’ activity, where two students walked in the Kogelberg
Biosphere Reserve near Grabouw (the site of the excursion), sharing their reflections with
each other. From the data, it is clear that students came to understand the value of reflection
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 9 of 13

in professional development. A UJ student commented ”When I heard that we need to

submit a portfolio, I was rather upset, as I saw it as a waste of time. However, I so enjoyed
compiling the portfolio, and I realised that I have learned so much during the three days.
The making of the clay symbols made me reflect on my own teaching philosophy, and
I realised that I do not want to be a boring teacher such as many of the teachers I had
in school. I also want to use games and play, as I saw how effective it can be the last
few days”. The newspapers that students created also provided rich data. One group of
student teachers reflected on the fact that ignorance often leads to marginalisation: “On
the bus to the camp, we were talking about the Mafikeng campus students. We spoke
about the fact that they burned down a building on campus, and that we should rather
avoid them during the camp. During the three days, we realised how wrong we were.
Like us, they were keen to become super teachers, and we could see how dedicated and
passionate they are. We realised that we were biased. We made many new friends” (Group
of Potchefstroom student teachers reflecting in their newspaper, 2019). Such reflection
assists student teachers in envisaging a professional trajectory for themselves.

3.3. Excursions Hold Affordances in Pre-Service Teacher Education in Both Face-to-Face and
Online (Virtual) Learning Environments
Since 2007 the first-year excursions were held in face-to-face (f2f) mode. With the
outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the NWU had to rethink the mode of delivery,
as contact tuition was not possible. The NWU decided in 2021 to present a two-day virtual
online excursion. One of the design principles of these virtual online excursions was to
stay true to the f2f design: utilising a pedagogy of play, and emphasising cooperative-
and problem-based learning, to promote self-directed learning. Using a Zoom platform,
a synchronous virtual excursion programme was developed. The two-day programme
started with showing a 20 min video, in which the principal of a dysfunctional school
portrayed (through a video diary) her concerns. An ill-structured problem was therefore
presented to the students. Using the breakaway group function on the Zoom platform,
students then met (in groups of four) with fellow students, and discussed the problems
in this fictitious school, and possible solutions. The five essential elements of cooperative
learning as identified by Johnson and Johnson [31] underpinned this cooperative learning.
These elements are (a) positive interdependence, (b) individual accountability, (c) face-
to-face promotive interaction, (d) interpersonal and small-group skills, and (e) group
processing. After such a cooperative learning session, students would provide (live)
feedback to the facilitators, who were in a studio (“green room”) in Potchefstroom. The
facilitators (teacher educators) engaged with the student feedback, and this often resulted
in very engaging discussions.
De Beer, Petersen and Conley [12] emphasise that ‘withitness’, the construct of
Kounin [32], is of the utmost importance in such virtual online learning spaces. ‘Withit-
ness’ refers to the ability of a teacher/facilitator to be aware of what is going on in the
classroom, and being aware of the dynamics underpinning teaching and learning in a
particular context. Such ‘withitness’ becomes tricky in an online environment, but the
data showed that it was achieved [12]. There are three core elements in the community
of inquiry framework [33] for online learning, namely cognitive presence, social presence
and teaching presence, and the NWU data has shown that such compliance could ensure
sufficient ‘withitness’ in an online learning environment.
The data obtained indicated that online virtual excursions hold similar affordances
as f2f excursions. One student commented, “The virtual excursion was a life-changing
excursion, I learnt more about the teacher I am becoming. As much as I wished and prayed
that it could have been a face-to-face excursion, I enjoyed every little bit of the excursion”
(NWU student, 2021) [12]. Another student commented on the affective outcomes of the
excursion: “. . .it showed me that there is more to a teacher than what I thought. I now
know that a teacher is not only the person who just write on the chalkboard and explains
but rather the person that goes an extra mile in order to ensure the success of the learners.
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 10 of 13

The excursion was an eye-opener and it made the love of teaching to really escalate and to
be more eager than never before” (NWU student, 2021) [12]. Just like f2f excursions, virtual
online excursions also provide student teachers with a more nuanced understanding of the
teaching profession.

3.4. Addressing the Affective Domain, and Specific Student Needs

As this is an overview article on the rhizomic development of the excursion over
a period of 17 years, it is not possible to provide a comprehensive discussion of all the
findings related to the affordances of excursions in pre-service teacher education. One major
theme, however, is the affective gains, and confirming to students that they have made the
right career choice. It is important to note that a very personalised learning space is created
by the excursion, which is characterised by more informal and collegial relationships
between students and staff (teacher educators) [8]. This often provides a platform for
student teachers to ‘open up’, and discuss personal problems or concerns with the teacher
educators. One example is the UWC 2023 f2f excursion, in which B.Ed Foundation Phase
students participated. The 2023 cohort of Foundation Phase students included a healthy
number of male students (for a specialisation that predominantly attracts female students).
In informal discussions with the male students afterward, they indicated that they were
unsure whether they made the right career choice, but that the excursion gave them the
peace of mind that they chose well, and that they were looking forward to teaching in the
Foundation Phase. One particular student shared his anxiety with staff members during the
excursion on becoming a teacher, since he gets epileptic seizures. This sharing of insecurities
assisted the staff to refer him to receive professional help. The excursion provides a learning
environment that vastly differs from the more sterile lecture hall on campus [8]. Students
often view the lecture hall as ‘sterile’, characterised by ‘hierarchical structures of authority’
and abstract discourse [8]. In contrast, the excursion is characterised by more informal
relationships and pedagogy of play. A student commented, “I really enjoyed the excursion.
The professors were informative, clearly communicated all information and tasks, and
were extremely kind” (NWU student, 2021). Another student commented “I enjoyed the
professors. They had a good sense of humour and communicated with us in a manner
which made us feel like their equals” (NWU student, 2021) [12].

4. Discussion
As illustrated in this paper, the excursion over the past 17 years was characterised
by a rhizomic development to address some of the perennial problems facing pre-service
teacher education. Research done over an extensive period, indicates that the excursion
fosters good relationships between students and lecturers, provides students with the
tools to negotiate rules of interaction in culturally diverse groupings, develops sensitivity
for cultural diversity, exposes student teachers to diverse semiotic tools for teaching and
learning [8], and enhances self-directed learning [1,10]. The fact that the excursion migrated
from UJ to two other HEIs (NWU and UWC) speaks of its value in providing student
teachers with a unique learning experience. Huber and Hutchings [34] state that HEIs
should guard that their qualifications are not just defined in terms of modules and credits,
but most importantly by a vision of what the degree should mean. So often, teacher
education institutions are criticised for being too theoretical, and not adequately preparing
student teachers for practice- the so-called ‘theory–practice divide’ [35]. This theory–
practice divide leads to many novice teachers experiencing a ‘practice shock’ when faced
with the reality of teaching. The excursion, building on immersion pedagogy, requires
student teachers to not only think like teachers but also act like teachers [36]. The excursion,
building on engaging pedagogies, confront student teachers with the unknown and the
unfamiliar, set the table for self-directed learning, and assists them in finding their own
voice and ‘footing’ as future teachers.
It became clear over the years that such excursions should be embedded in sound
frameworks. Social constructivism provides a good theoretical framework, and the excur-
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 11 of 13

sion provides semiotic tools for scaffolding learning across the zone of proximal develop-
ment [30]. A unique feature of excursions is the fact that it often takes students out of their
comfort zone and immerses them in contexts conducive to ‘dramatical collisions’ [29].
One could ask why excursions are not more common in the sector. One reason is
that such professional development excursions ask for creative engineering of learning
programmes, as it often ‘goes against the grain of many structural features of campus
life’ [34] (p. 4). Often such excursions are disruptive in terms of the official timetable and
university calendar. Face-to-face excursions come at a huge financial cost (student transport
to the venue, accommodation, food, and teaching and learning resources). There is also
the danger of accidents, both when travelling to the excursion site, and while engaging in
activities outdoors. Likewise, virtual online excursions also present challenges, amongst
others, the cost of data for students, and the impact of load shedding on connectivity.
HEIs are often viewed as ‘aloof within the ivory tower, espousing ideals and the
principles that govern them’ [37] (p. 1400). The excursion discussed in this paper, as a
learning from practice initiative, is a high-impact intervention that holds affordances to
address the theory–practice divide. Finding solutions to the challenges experienced when
implementing excursions might therefore be worth our while.
One of the limitations of this research is that it only focuses on the first-year B.Ed
student experience. Such excursions might hold significant affordances in the senior years,
as third- and fourth-year student teachers would have gained much experience during
their school practicums/work-integrated learning. This is an avenue for future research.

5. Conclusions
In 2007 UJ started with nascent research on the affordances of excursions in pre-
service teacher education [6]. Research during the past 17 years provided rich data on
how the excursion provides a different learning space, which could supplement the more
formal (and clinical) university classroom [1,6,8,12,28]. The excursion, with its ‘dramatical
collisions’ [29], provides a fertile learning space for student teachers to reflect on their own
biases and professional development. The student excursion greatly enhances the first-year
experience of student teachers. Not only does it provide a sense of belonging amongst
first-year student teachers, but it also scaffolds learning that results in a more nuanced
understanding of the complexity of the teaching profession [1,8,10]. Data over the past 17
years have shown that the excursion could address the ‘apprenticeship of observation’ [2],
and better equip the neophyte teacher for the ‘coalface of practice’. As an immersion
pedagogy, the excursion holds affordances to bridge the theory–practice divide. The
excursion also holds much potential to sensitize student teachers toward the significance
of environmental education in the age of environmental emergencies. The findings over
the 17 years highlight the importance of sound theoretical frameworks and teaching and
learning philosophies that should underpin the excursion programme. Nascent research
on redesigning the excursion for an online and virtual platform shows much promise [12].
When reimagining the excursion as a virtual and online programme, aspects such as
cognitive presence, social presence and teaching presence should be ensured.

Funding: This research was funded by various agencies: the various HEIs (UJ, NWU and UWC), as
well as a University Capacity Development Grant (UCDG) by the Department of Higher Education
and Training (DHET).
Institutional Review Board Statement: The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration
of Helsinki, and approved by the Education Ethics Committee of NWU (protocol code NWU-00487-
17-S2).
Informed Consent Statement: Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.
Data Availability Statement: The data presented in this paper are available on request from the
corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to ethical guidelines of the relevant
Higher Education Institutions.
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 12 of 13

Acknowledgments: I acknowledge the contributions of colleagues over the years in this research,
amongst others, Sarah Gravett, Nadine Petersen, Helen Dunbar-Krige, Elbie Henning, Neal Petersen,
Elsa Mentz, Tswakae Sebotsa and Lloyd Conley.
Conflicts of Interest: The author declares no conflict of interest.

References
1. Petersen, N.; Mentz, E.; De Beer, J. First-year students’ conceptions of the complexity of the profession, sense of belonging, and
self-directed learning. In Self-Directed Learning in the Era of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Research on the Affordances of Online Virtual
Excursions; De Beer, J., Petersen, N., Van Vuuren, H.J., Eds.; AOSIS: Cape Town, South Africa, 2020; pp. 77–100.
2. Lortie, D. Schoolteacher: A Sociological Study; University of Chicago: Chicago, IL, USA, 1975.
3. Rusznyak, L. Learning to explain: How student teachers organize and present content knowledge in lessons they teach. J. Curric.
Stud. 2011, 15, S95–S109. Available online: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/16823206.2011.643632 (accessed on
15 March 2023). [CrossRef]
4. Van Zyl, A. The Predictive Value of Pre-Entry Attributes for Student Academic Performance in the South African Context. Ph.D.
Thesis, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa, 2010.
5. Tinto, V. The Principles of Effective Retention. Fall Conference of the Maryland College Personnel Association, 20 November
1987. Available online: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED301267.pdf (accessed on 17 January 2012).
6. Taljaard, S. The Value of an Excursion in the Professional Development of Preservice Teacher Education Students. Ph.D. Thesis,
University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa, 2018.
7. Schön, D. The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action; Basic Books: New York, NY, USA, 1983.
8. De Beer, J.; Petersen, N.; Dunbar-Krige, H. An exploration of the value of an educational excursion for pre-service teachers. J.
Curric. Stud. 2012, 44, 89–110. [CrossRef]
9. Burke Da Silva, K. Biological fieldwork in Australian higher education: Is it worth the effort? Int. J. Innov. Sci. Math. Educ. 2014,
22, 64–74.
10. Petersen, N.; De Beer, J.; Mentz, E. The first-year student teacher as a self-directed learner. In Becoming a Teacher: Research on the
Work-Integrated Learning of Student Teachers; De Beer, J., Petersen, N., Van Vuuren, H.J., Eds.; AOSIS: Cape Town, South Africa,
2020; pp. 115–155.
11. Sebotsa, T.; Petersen, N.; Speight Vaughn, M. The role of work-integrated learning excursions in preparing student teachers for
diverse classrooms and teaching social justice in South African classrooms. In Becoming a Teacher: Research on the Work-Integrated
Learning of Student Teachers; De Beer, J., Petersen, N., Van Vuuren, H., Eds.; AOSIS: Cape Town, South Africa, 2020.
12. De Beer, J.; Petersen, N.; Conley, L. Withitness in the virtual learning space: Reflections of student-teachers and teacher-educators.
In Self-Directed Learning in the Era of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Research on the Affordances of Online Virtual Excursions; De Beer, J.,
Petersen, N., Mentz, E., Balfour, R., Eds.; AOSIS: Cape Town, South Africa, 2022.
13. Huizinga, J. Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play Element in Culture; Beacon Press: Boston, MA, USA, 1955.
14. Gandolfi, H.E. Teaching in the age of environmental emergencies: A utopian exploration of the experiences of teachers committed
to environmental education in England. Educ. Rev. 2023, 75, 1–21. [CrossRef]
15. Creswell, J.W.; Creswell, J.D. Research design. In Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Methods Approaches; Sage: Los Angeles, CA,
USA, 2018.
16. Hennink, M.; Kaiser, B.N. Sample sizes for saturation in qualitative research: A systemic review of empirical tests. Soc. Sci. Med.
2022, 292, 114523. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
17. Cohen, L.; Manion, L.; Morrison, K. Research Methods in Education, 5th ed.; Routledge: London, UK, 2005.
18. Cheng, S.-F.; Kuo, C.-L.; Lin, K.-C.; Hsieh, J. Development and preliminary testing of a self-rating instrument to measure
self-directed learning ability of nursing students. Int. J. Nurs. Stud. 2010, 47, 1152–1158. [CrossRef] [PubMed]
19. Saldaña, J. The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers; Sage: London, UK, 2009.
20. Merriam, S.B.; Tisdell, E.J. Qualitative Research: A Guide to Design and Implementation, 4th ed.; Bossey-Bass: San Francisco, CA,
USA, 2016.
21. Denzin, N.K. The Research Act: A Theoretical Introduction to Sociological Methods, 2nd ed.; McGraw-Hill: New York, NY, USA, 1978.
22. Dunlop, L.; Rushton, E.A. Putting climate change at the heart of education: Is England’s strategy a placebo for policy? Br. Educ.
Res. J. 2022, 46, 1083–1101. [CrossRef]
23. Petersen, N.; Osman, R. The teacher as a caring professional. In Becoming a Teacher, 2nd ed.; Gravett, S., De Beer, J., Du Plessis, E.,
Eds.; Pearson: Cape Town, South Africa, 2022.
24. Giroux, H. Living Dangerously: Multiculturalism and the Politics of Difference; Peter Lang: New York, NY, USA, 1993.
25. Noddings, N. Caring: A Feminist Approach to Ethics and Moral Education; University of California Press: Berkeley, CA, USA, 1988.
26. Knowles, M. Self-Directed Learning: A Guide for Learners and Teachers; Prentice Hall: Chicago, IL, USA, 1975.
27. Brookfield, S. The Power of Critical Theory: Liberatory Adult Learning and Teaching; Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, CA, USA, 2005.
28. De Beer, J.; Henning, E. Retreating to a Vygotskian stage where pre-service teachers play out social ‘dramatical collisions’. Acta
Acad. 2011, 43, 203–228.
Educ. Sci. 2023, 13, 862 13 of 13

29. Veresov, N. Zone of proximal development: The hidden dimension? In Sprak Som Kultur (Language as Culture); Ostern, A.,
Heila-Ostern, R., Eds.; Vasa Publishers: Richmond, Canada, 2004; Available online: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
280322665_Veresov_N_2004_Zone_of_Proximal_Development_ZPD_the_Hidden_Dimension_In_Ostern_A_Heila-Ylikallio_R_
Eds_Sprak_som_kultur_-_brytningar_I_tidoch_rum_-_Language_as_culture_-_tensions_in_time_and_space_Vol (accessed on 1
August 2023).
30. Vygotsky, L. Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes; Harvard University Press: Cambridge, UK, 1978.
31. Johnson, D.; Johnson, R. An Overview of Cooperative Learning. 1994. Available online: http://digsys.upc.es/ed/general/
Gasteiz/docs-_ac/Johnson_Overview_of_Cooperative_Learning.pdf (accessed on 2 February 2016).
32. Kounin, J. Discipline and Group Management in Classrooms; Holt, Rinehart and Winston: New York, NY, USA, 1970.
33. Fiock, H. Designing a community of inquiry in online courses. Int. Rev. Res. Open Distrib. Learn. 2020, 21, 134–152. [CrossRef]
34. Huber, M.T.; Hutchings, P. Integrative Learning: Mapping the Terrain; Association of American Colleges and Universities: Washing-
ton, DC, USA, 2004; Available online: https://researchgate.net/publication/254325229 (accessed on 7 July 2022).
35. Kessels, P.; Korthagen, F. The relationship between theory and practice: Back to the classics. Educ. Res. 1996, 25, 17–22. [CrossRef]
36. Darling-Hammond, L. Powerful Teacher Education: Lessons from Exemplary Programs; Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, CA, USA, 2006.
37. Smagorinsky, P.; Cook, L.S.; Johnson, T.S. The twisting path of concept development in learning to teach. In Proceedings of
the Fifth Congress of the International Society of Cultural Research and Activity Theory, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 18–22
June 2003.

Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual
author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to
people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.