Learning Outside the Classroom

By Sebastián Benavides Vargas

If I asked you to list what you have learned outside of the classroom, it could take so long that you would not have time to read this article. And do not get me wrong, I love my student life and going to classes. However, as you may have realized as well, we learn much more outside classes. So, I decided to write some of my life experiences to motivate you to get out of your comfort zone.

I am from a country that only has seven small (but beautiful) provinces, and thanks to my university field trips, I have had the opportunity to visit each of them on at least three occasions. And I learned the most when I gathered with community leaders or stakeholders in those locations and discussed real problems and how they had lived with their issues while trying to solve them. For example, I learned how a national park in the Caribbean is facing a coastal erosion problem and how a small community in the Pacific is being affected by monocrops, as well as how other communities are analyzing water quality in their rivers, after talking with community leaders in some less privileged neighborhoods.

In my third year of university, I had the honor to study in Canada for one semester. And during the chaos of preparing all the documents before going, I gradually understood that we need to develop tools to survive in life. For example, I had to learn how to ask for help in understanding the preparation process, writing formal letters and international emails, booking my trip, traveling alone for the first time, and so many other important details. I had to learn countless social skills that were not taught in a PowerPoint presentation in my country’s classes. And finally, when I arrived there, it was a totally new beginning being on a Canadian island. Luckily, I also had the opportunity to go on field trips around the city, which helped me understand more of the environment and society there. Then, as part of one of my classes, while completing a community project, we developed a waterfront improvement proposal and then had the opportunity to present it to the local city hall. I still remember how the mayor, staff, stakeholders, and professors were interested in gaining fresh ideas from university students like our visiting group.

Then after going back home, I helped as an assistant student for an environmental magazine. At that time, I did not know that starting the editing process of articles or packing magazines to send them internationally would help improve my skills. Of course, after that experience, I was the one who volunteered to read the final version of the class projects. Another example of how I assisted was in a chemistry laboratory, where I learned to analyze the results of water samples from a polluted lagoon. However, I also learned a lot from different professionals while drinking coffee during our break times, or when I had the opportunity to listen to result presentations during activities outside class time.

What is more, I learned exponentially from one of my internships in one non-governmental organization, at a private industrial company, and at a public teaching institute. I learned that every organization has its own system and culture. Asking for information and presenting results depends on the place, the project, and more importantly, who is listening to the information are all examples of knowledge that I collected during field trips. But also, having breakfast, lunch, or coffee with your team teaches you countless experiences, details, and methods that are a significant part of your learning process, if only you are paying attention and willing to learn from them.

Now I am here in South Korea, where I have been learning the language intensively for a little more than one year. I am not going to lie: Traveling and leaving my family in the middle of a pandemic was hard, but it has been totally worth it. I have learned exponentially since I arrived here, not only from all the new processes of these institutions but also from the environment, culture, history, stories, geography, life experiences, and other people’s mistakes as well as my own. In addition, I have learned about time management, about how to learn a new language inside and outside the classroom, how to save money while having to buy everything new, and much more.

Another clear example of what I have learned here in Korea is when I participated in a camp and had the opportunity to improve my Korean language skills with native speakers and foreigners who helped me practice the language and complete activities together. We had tours in an unknown province for all of us, and we had the opportunity to learn, prepare, and present a dance on stage as part of the camp activities. Moreover, I learned about other cultures and met awesome people who I would not have had the opportunity to meet if I had chosen to stay in my room instead.

These, as well as many more life lessons, have built me up and prepared me for more experiences. This is my message to you: Find ways to excel with your abilities, improve your skills, and remember that we will be students forever, so let’s choose our methods of learning early. As always, I am trying to get out of my comfort zone (like right now, writing an article in English), and I would love to see that you also get out of your comfort zone and learn outside the classroom.

Photographs by Katya Molina Ayala and Takhmasib Mollaeiubli.

The Author
Sebastián Benavides Vargas is a Costa Rican environmental management engineer who loves deep conversations while drinking coffee, learning from other people, and traveling to know more about communities, cultures, environments, and ways to improve them all.
Instagram @sebaspbv