AsiaBound. An international study tour model for the application of practice-based and blended learning in creative advertising

As learning and teaching strategies change, one contemporary view is to prepare students for effective participation in professional practice. Within the School of Communication, the focus is on the blending of learning practices in the classroom, online and through engagement with the physical context in which professional practice occurs to help equip students with the skills, attributes and competencies for the real-world environment. One example is the 2013/14 AsiaBound International Advertising Industry Study Tour. Funded jointly by the USCI GO Program and the Department of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIICCSRTE), the tour is predicated on the notions of ‘the world as a classroom’ and provides an opportunity for second year creative advertising students to travel to Singapore to engage with a number of the region’s most influential creative, strategic and digital advertising and marketing communication agencies. Based on the successful 2012 New York Advertising Industry Study Tour, AsiaBound requires students to apply competitively to participate. On their return they are required to develop a reflective journal of their experiences which is then made available on Blackboard, as well as a presentation to the University student cohort. The study tour is a credited course within the Bachelor of Communication. This paper examines the blended learning strategies employed in the preparation of graduates for the challenges of professional practice, seeking to identify the pedagogical practices that naturally connect learning to authentic activity, context and culture as employed in curriculum development, delivery and the evaluation of student learning