How experiences transform over time: A retrospective study on place-based education in Micronesia and the Philippines

This study asked the participants of place-based educational programs in Micronesia and the Philippines between 1992 and 2017 how past learning experiences impact them now and how the learning changed over time. The responses of 128 program participants, mostly Japanese, were examined using a mixed-methods approach with an emphasis on qualitative data analysis. Ninety-four percent of the respondents stated that what they learned in these programs is linked to their current lifestyles, ways of thinking, and jobs. The categories of perceived learning were the same regardless of the age during the program and the time that had passed after the program. Most reported that the influence continued in various forms and transformed as an extension of the initial effect. The study demonstrates that learning develops through interaction with new learning in different contexts after the program through a meaning-making process, using the initial impactful experience as a reference.