Adventure-Based Experiential Learning for the Development of Transformational Leaders in Zimbabwe in the Post-Mugabe Era

The purpose of this project is to explore the means of developing a generation of transformational leaders in Zimbabwe, where there has been over 100 years of government-legislated oppression, disenfranchisement, and despotism. The project was comprised of research with students, parents, teachers, and administrators associated with five schools in Zimbabwe. Results of the project showed that the prevalent form of leadership being modeled in each school by the senior students, who are entrusted with the daily discipline and running of the school, forms the aspirations and subsequent style of leadership followed by each group of student leaders. Through an Appreciative Inquiry process, it was found that adventure-based experiential learning offers an effective learning strategy and has a significant impact on students in terms of building compassion, pride, unity and developing self-awareness and emotional intelligence.