Teaching labor procedural law using an experiential approach: Reflections from a classroom in Bogotá

Abstract

During the first semester of 2023, I was assigned the Labor Procedural Law course at the Universidad de los Andes (Colombia) and I proposed to redesign the course with experiential learning as the central axis of the course. It was the first time I taught a course with this pedagogical approach. In this article I analyze my own experience designing and teaching this optional course, and I present the results of the qualitative and quantitative evaluation that the students gave to my performance. I present the challenges that its implementation may have (increased workload for students and teacher, need for highly scheduled feedback, need for group work time with increasingly shorter class sessions) as well as its advantages (more personal interaction with students, teamwork under supervision, problem solving, meaningful learning). I conclude by reflecting on what adjustments I should make to the course the next time I teach it.