On the Imperative of Differentiating Between Student Experiences, Learning, and Development in the Third Wave of Development Research

Antonio Duran, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Higher and Postsecondary Education, Division of Educational Leadership and Innovation, Arizona State University  

        The first time I took a college student development class was as an undergraduate student at New York University as they were piloting a course titled, “Who are You and Why are You Here?” I remember feelings of excitement as I learned about the fact that there were theories describing how college students explored formative questions of the self and of their identities as they moved through life, theories that would inform one’s work in higher education settings. This enthusiasm carried over as I took another student development theory class as a master’s student at Miami University where I deepened my understanding of the development journeys of those in college. And yet, as I got deeper into this research, the questions I had grew (probably a good sign of my own learning, and perhaps development). Specifically, I worried about what I perceived to be a lack of engagement with the oppressive systems that inevitably played a role in college students’ experiences, and consequently, their development. I wondered about where the attention to racism, heterosexism, trans oppression (amongst others) was and how experiencing these structures molded development. 

Fast forward to my own subsequent research and teaching in the study of college student development, I have continued to wrestle with what it means to implicate structures of privilege and oppression when making meaning of students’ developmental trajectories. This is especially important to achieve when doing work within the context of the third wave of student development, which involves using critical and poststructrual frameworks to challenge preexisting ideas of development (Jones & Stewart, 2016). For this reason, I find it important to provide some thoughts on how I strive to differentiate between three related, yet differentiated concepts when engaging in student development research. In particular, I dive into thoughts on how experiences, learning, and development are interconnected–especially within the realm of third wave student development research. 

        The differentiation between experiences and development (and further complicating the equation, the difference between growth, change, and development) has consistently been a sticking point for those interested in developmental theory. I credit my dissertation chair and advisor (for life), Dr. Susan Robb Jones, for constantly getting me to think about the conditions that cause development to occur. Thanks to her, I often refer back to the work of Sanford who defined development as “the organization of increasing complexity” (p. 47) In the study of student development, educators are attentive to the fact that development occurs within contexts that offers them challenge and support. Moreover, development is sparked when a person faces dissonance that in turn triggers them to revisit their existing frames and create new forms of thinking about and viewing the world/the self. Here is where we draw the line between experiences and development: Experiences can contribute to development when they introduce a disorienting dilemma and students are appropriately pushed/supported in ways that initiate a revisiting of their preunderstandings.  

Now the question becomes why is this distinction important to think about within the context of the third wave of student development? As I have used critical and poststructural frameworks to reason through how minoritized students come to view their identities, relationships, and social structures while moving through their college environments, I find it critical for student development researchers to further understand how experiences of marginalization and privilege influence individuals’ overall development. For instance, in my research mobilizing intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1989, 1991) as a framework, I have displayed interest in comprehending how queer students of color experience the influences of overlapping structures of domination and how this in turn shapes their identity development. I have learned in doing this research that most students are extremely adept in naming how practices and policies at their institution shape their experiences on campus, but that they are oftentimes not prompted to then reflect on how these realities then inform their ways of making meaning of their identities and developmental trajectories. Here is where I see it important for third wave student development research to address: how do students report encountering systems of privilege and oppression within their higher education contexts? And importantly, how do these experiences then inform their developmental journeys? I find that in higher education research, we (including myself) are especially strong in being able to encourage students to answer the first question but not necessarily, the second. And it is imperative that we move toward comprehending this relationship as it then helps us answer the inverse question: how do students’ developmental capacities inform how they experience and make meaning of structures of oppression? 

Of note, another concept that further complicates this relationship is that of learning. Past scholars, such as Rodgers (2009) have tried to clarify the ways that learning, and development are not one in the same. To consume information does not necessarily mean that it is going to drastically change one’s developmental frames. Said another way, though learning can certainly be a catalyst for development if it meets the previous conditions that I referenced, it is not always the case. In the third wave of student development research, the connection between learning and development is perhaps even more relevant as scholars attempt to gain awareness of why learning about systemic oppression may not be enough to create a disorienting dilemma for people to recognize their own privilege and marginalization. For example, critical whiteness scholars writing about white racial ignorance have brought to the forefront that white people may not in fact lack knowledge of how white supremacy functions, but can be engaging in an active practice of being willingly ignorant (Applebaum, 2010). So, what actually prompts someone to wrestle with their whiteness within higher education (and beyond) if it is not learning about inequitable realities? How can the learning and teaching process be further adapted with systems of marginalization and development in mind? These are questions that I believe student development researchers must continue to examine.

Having definitional clarity has always been important in the study of student development. However, as I reflect upon the scholarship I encountered as an undergraduate student up until the present moment, I find it even more pressing to differentiate between experiences, learning, and development in the third wave of student development research. This imperative is at the forefront as scholars continue to implicate how systems of marginalization and privilege shape students’ realities. Though the thoughts in this post are incomplete (partially by design), I look forward to the possibilities that can emerge as we in the field continue to parse through these concepts in the service of creating more equitable environments for our students.

References

Applebaum, B. (2010). Being white, being good: White complicity, white moral responsibility, and social justice pedagogy. Lexington Books.

Jones, S. R., & Stewart, D-L. (2016). Evolution of student development theory. In E. S. Abes (Ed.), Critical perspectives on student development theory (New Directions for Student Services, no. 154, pp. 1–113). Wiley.

Rodgers, R. (2009). Learning and development: One and the same? Journal of College and Character, 10(5), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.2202/1940-1639.1433

Sanford, N. (1967). Where colleges fail: The study of the student as a person. Jossey-Bass.

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About the Author

Antonio Duran, PhD (he/him/él) is an assistant professor in higher and postsecondary education at Arizona State University. His research examines how historical and contemporary legacies of oppression (e.g., racism, heterosexism, trans oppression) influence college student development, experiences, and success. As a queer cisgender Latino man, Antonio is particularly passionate about uplifting queer and trans communities of color, Latinx populations, and other marginalized groups.