Experiential Learning

UW English courses apply literary and language studies to real-world contexts, from information design projects for the City of Waterloo, to the study of Shakespeare’s language with professional voice coaches. Students practice communicating to diverse audiences using multiple genres and technologies, from essays and op-eds to social media, blogs, games, and animation.

My experiences, classes and time at Waterloo shaped me into the person and teacher that I am today. I have no regrets and I’m so thankful for the experiences and life that UW built for me.”

Most of all, the variety and the mix of theory and practical studies have prepared me to be creative, empathetic, and adaptable.

Here are just a few examples of experiential learning opportunities in UW English:

In ENGL 392A, Information Design, students create innovative solutions to real-world wayfinding problems.

Phone with wayfinding systems.

For his M.A. Major Research Project, Dr. Hasan Ahmet Gokce developed Atlasia Kids, a print and digital magazine especially for Muslim Children, which now has 5000 subscribers.

Cover from Atlasia magazinw with kids in a balloon.

At the UWaterloo Games Institute, students learn to make and analyze games.

Poster for GI Game Jam with jumping man with keyboard.

Saajan Kar’s photo/voice project documents the human costs of gentrification in Kitchener.

Photo of man in front of a building in construction.

In the Experimental Digital Media (XDM) graduate program, students make "objects to think with."

Photo of person making a circuit.

Prompted by an assignment in ENGL 308, Race and Resistance, Natachez Feare wrote about her rent-to-own housing campaign in Lawrence Heights, Toronto, and how she used her GreenHouse Social Innovation training to make her vision a reality.

Poster for Rent to Own Project with text and image of building.

For further information about experiential learning possibilities in UWaterloo English, contact our undergraduate chair, Heather Smyth.