September 6, 2024
From Monday, July 29 to Wednesday, July 31, a survival camp funded by Keio University's 2024 Design the Future Fund was held at Keio's Yamanaka Sanso (located in Hirano, Yamanakako Village, Minamitsuru District, Yamanashi Prefecture). The program, titled "X-ship Camp: A Multi-Generational Co-Creative Survival Camp for the Development of Future Leaders," was designed to help students develop various abilities such as leadership, followership, friendship, and ownership (thus "X-ship") through multi-generational co-creative activities in a survival camp setting. Keio's integrated education system including elementary and secondary students as well as undergraduate and graduate school students is one of the key characteristics of Keio University and makes such a "multi-generational" collaboration project possible.
On Saturday, July 6, a pre-camp workshop was held at Keio Yokohama Elementary School to help participants gain the knowledge and skills necessary to conduct the camp, including mutual understanding, sharing of goals, and tent setup. A total of 33 students participated in the camp: 16 from Keio Yokohama Elementary, 9 from Keio Shonan Fujisawa Junior and Senior High School, 5 from the Graduate School of System Design and Management (SDM) (including 2 international students), and 3 from the Keio University Rover Crew, a university-recognized student organization. The students and faculty members of each organization participated in a variety of activities. In addition, this year's program created many opportunities for cross-generational co-creation, where students carried out their initiatives in 4 groups called "houses," each consisting of 4 elementary school students, 2 or 3 junior and senior high school students, and 2 undergraduate or graduate school students. During their stay at Yamanaka Sanso, the students also had the opportunity to interact with the high school rugby football club, which was staying there at the same time. On Saturday, August 3, a workshop was held at the Graduate School of SDM on Hiyoshi Campus for participants to reflect on their experiences and share their thoughts regarding their personal growth in terms of the various "X-ship" qualities.
The effectiveness of the program was validated through reflective dialogue with the participants, questionnaires, and observations of the students as they engaged in each activity, comparing their development in various areas before and after the camp.
Photo: Takeshi Kishi