Creative WIL as Pedagogical Proof of Concept: A Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Research Brief on Non-Placement, Course-Embedded Work-Integrated Learning

Abstract

As post-secondary institutions grapple with limited traditional practicum and professional placement opportunities and increasing calls for inclusive, practice-connected learning, there is growing interest in non-placement forms of work-integrated learning (WIL). This research brief presents Creative WIL as a pedagogical proof of concept situated within the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). Creative WIL is a course-embedded, non-traditional WIL initiative that brings together Bachelor and Master of Education students and Engineering students to codesign and facilitate a three-day, strengths-based, project-based learning camp for Grade 7 youth. Using an iterative case study design informed by reflexive thematic analysis, this study examines how real-time pedagogical application, feedback loops, and co-design foster student agency, pedagogical fluency, and inclusive practice. Findings demonstrate collective learning across students and instructors, with participants describing the experience as hopeful, energizing, and generative for their own classroom practice. Through iterative delivery, the project also gave rise to the kinetic teaching and learning model, an emergent pedagogical framework aligned with self-determination theory. This brief contributes to SoTL by positioning Creative WIL as an iterative, course-embedded approach to pedagogical inquiry and a provocation for rethinking how pedagogy, practice, and inclusivity are integrated within course-based learning.