EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING AMID DISRUPTION: NORWICH UNIVERSITY'S HONORS PROGRAM AND THE INTERNATIONAL SPY MUSEUM PROJECT

ABSTRACT

This article incorporates a case-study approach that examines how faculty and students in a first-year honors seminar at Norwich University navigated the disruption of the COVID-19 crisis. It delineates the revision of an undergraduate research project in partnership with the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC. The authors describe steps professors and students took to ensure successful collaboration and completion of this project, including assignment modifications, the development of a collaborative virtual learning process, assessment of project management, and tools and research strategies employed. Student reflections and pedagogical measures support the challenges and solutions outlined. The article concludes with recommended course design measures to ensure consistent learning outcomes that support positive and productive research and teaching experiences amid programmatic disruption.