6 Experiential Learning Theory

At the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Identify key elements of experiential learning theory
• Explain strategies utilized to implement experiential learning theory
• Summarize the criticisms of experiential learning theory and educational implications
• Explain how equity is impacted by experiential learning theory
• Identify classroom strategies to support the use of experiential learning theory
• Select strategies to support student success utilizing experiential learning theory
• Develop a plan to implement the use of experiential learning theory

  Image 6.1

“Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and I will understand.”(Confucius, circa 450 BCE)

SCENARIO:
Frida decided to make her mom a special breakfast featuring “Eggs Benedict” for Mother’s Day, which involved poaching some eggs. She knew how to boil eggs and figured poaching eggs would be pretty easy as her sister had casually explained. She decided to give it a try and prepared the boiling water. She cracked the eggs into the boiling salted water and peered in excitedly. Soon the pot was a swirling mess of egg white, not at all what she could serve on a plate! Frida decided to rely on her old friend YouTube. Fortunately, there were many cooks to observe. The big thing they were all doing was adding vinegar to the water. Some of them swirled the water to get a whirlpool effect. She then consulted a few recipes and planned her next attempt. This time she would not salt the water because she had learned that this affected the egg’s ability to hold its shape. This time she had a plan- and this time the eggs turned out beautifully!

Learning something often does not happen on the first try. Many of us need to fail and try again. This chapter looks at the role of experience in the cycle of learning. Educators who value experiential learning know that students learn by doing and try to incorporate interesting ways for students to experience the learning!

Video 6.1: “The Cycle of Learning from Experience”

Video 6.2: “This is Experiential Learning” 

Other resources: https://experientiallearninginstitute.org/resources/what-is-experiential-learning/

INTRODUCTION

David Allen Kolb (1939- ), American organizational sociologist and educational theorist, is best known for his research into experiential learning and learning styles. Kolb received his BA from Knox College in 1961, his MA from Harvard in 1964 and his Ph.D. in sociology from Harvard University in 1967. His research has its roots in the works of John Dewey, Kurt Lewin and Jean Piaget and the more recent work of Jack Mezirow and Paulo Freire, focusing on how humans process experience. As part of that tradition, Kolb states that experiential learning is a process where knowledge results from making meaning as a result of direct experience, i.e., or simply “learning from experience.” His experiential learning theory is a holistic or “meta-view” of learning that is a combination of experience, perception, cognition, and behavior. To explore and continue research on the experiential learning theory, David Kolb, along with his wife Alice Kolb, founded Experience Based Learning Systems (EBLS) in 1981. In addition to experiential learning, Kolb is also known for contributions in important research into organizational behavior, individual and social change, and career development and professional education. Kolb is an emeritus professor of organizational behavior at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.

Experiential learning is a cyclical process that capitalizes on the participants’ experiences for acquisition of knowledge. This process involves setting goals, thinking, planning, experimentation, reflection, observation, and review. By engaging in these activities, learners construct meaning in a way unique to themselves, incorporating the cognitive, emotional, and physical aspects of learning.

The Experiential Learning Theory

The focus of Experiential Learning Theory is experience, which serves as the main driving force in learning, as knowledge is constructed through the transformative reflection on one’s experience (Baker, Jensen, & Kolb, 2002).

The learning model outlined by the Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) contains four distinct modes of gaining experience that are related to each other on a continuum. When these four modes are viewed together, they constitute a four-stage learning cycle that learners go through during the experiential learning process (Figure 6.1).

Consider learning to ride a bike:

• STEP 1: Concrete Experience:
   Get on the bicycle and try it out and fall.
• STEP 2: Reflective observation:
   Watch others ride the bicycle
• STEP 3: Abstract Conceptualization:
   Piece thoughts together to create abstract concepts about what occurred, which will serve as guides for future   actions.
• STEP 4: Active Experimentation:
  Actively test riding a bike with new information

Figure 6.1: Experiential Learning Cycle

 The ELT model attempts to explain why learners approach learning experiences in such different manners but are still able to flourish. Indeed, some individuals develop greater proficiencies in some areas of learning when compared to others (Laschinger, 1990).

Image 6.2

Applications of Experiential Learning Theory

There are currently many applications of Experiential Learning Theory within educational systems, especially on college campuses. These examples include field courses, study abroad, and mentor-based internships (Millenbah, Campa, & Winterstein, 2000). Additional examples of well-established experiential learning applications include cooperative education, internships and service learning. There are also numerous examples of computer-based interventions based on experience.

Cooperative Education (Co-Op)

Cooperative Education (Co-Op) is a structured educational strategy integrating classroom studies with work-based learning related to a student’s academic or career goals. It provides field-based experiences that integrate theory and practice. Co-Op is a partnership among students, educational institutions, and work sites which include business, government, and non-profit community organizations. Students typically earn credit and a grade for their co-op experience while working in a paid or unpaid capacity. College and university professional and career-technical programs such as engineering, media arts and business often require cooperative education courses for their degrees. The National Commission for Cooperative Education (http://www.co-op.edu/) supports the development of quality work-integrated learning programs.

Internships

Closely related to cooperative education are internships. An internship is typically a temporary position, which may be paid or unpaid, with an emphasis on on-the-job training, making it similar to an apprenticeship. Interns are usually college or university students, but they can also be high school students or post graduate adults seeking skills for a new career. Student internships provide opportunities for students to gain experience in their field, determine if they have an interest in a particular career, create a network of contacts, and, in some circumstances, gain school credit.

Service Learning

Service learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities with the emphasis on meeting community needs. Because of its connection to content acquisition and student development, service-learning is often linked to school and college courses. Service-learning can also be organized and offered by community organizations. Learn and Serve America (http://www.servicelearning.org/) supports the service-learning community in education, community-based initiatives and tribal programs, as well as all others interested in strengthening schools and communities using service-learning techniques and methodologies.

Field Course Scenario – Example:

A university offers a field-based campus course in wildlife and research management that requires students to actively participate in activities other than those normally encountered during a lecture or recitation section of class. These students are introduced to various vegetation sampling techniques in the one-hour lecture period, but application and use of the techniques occurs when students must describe the vegetation’s structural differences between two woodlots on campus.

Students are provided with a general goal statement requiring them to differentiate between the two areas based on structure but are not told how to determine these differences or how detailed the description of structure must be (e.g., vertical cover or vertical cover broken out by height strata).

Students must:

1. Determine the objectives of the project before proceeding. Once these have been agreed on with all members of the group, methods for collecting the data are determined.
2. Students may work with others in the class or with the instructor to determine the most appropriate sampling design.
3. After selecting an appropriate sampling design, students are required to collect the data, and thus learn about the technique(s) through experience with it (concrete experience). By doing so, students learn how to use the technique and are able to more readily decide if the technique is suitable under different sampling regimes (reflection and generalization).

During this process, students gain a broader understanding of the technique and its applicability; much of this may never be addressed or presented in a classroom setting. Based on the prerequisites for the course, the instructor worked from the assumption that students have an understanding of ecological concepts and basic statistics. Having these prerequisites facilitates students putting the techniques to use in the environment being studied.

An additional benefit of allowing students to experiment with techniques is that unexpected events may occur. For example, it might rain halfway through sampling. These unstructured events can further increase a student’s confidence, excitement, and familiarity with a technique requiring the student to make decisions about how to proceed or when to stop (active experimentation). These types of events are difficult to model in a classroom, and even if possible, many students do not know how to deal with unexpected circumstances when their only training has been through discussion. Feeling adequately trained to handle these circumstances will require students to have firsthand knowledge and experience with real-world situations.

Video 6.3: “Role Play & Simulation” 

Role Play

Another popular use of experiential learning which has been around for a long time is role play. It has been used for educational and training purposes, for military strategic and tactical analysis and simply as games. We role play in childhood-imitating our parents, playing with dolls and cars, building sand castles and pretending we are princes and warriors-with the result that learning takes place, preparing us for life.

Role Play Scenario

The subject of this lesson is a controversy that has deep roots in American History, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Using the PBS documentary video In The Light Of Reverence, the teacher has the students closely examine the struggles of the Lakota Sioux to maintain their sacred site at Mato Tipila (Lakota for Bear’s Lodge) at Devils Rock in Wyoming. Although the site at Devils Rock was never ceded by treaty to the U.S. government, it is now under the administration of the National Park Service. Rock climbers claim any U.S. citizen should have complete access to the site because it is on federal land. In deference to the religious practices of the Lakota, the National Park Service asks that people not climb there during the entire month of June. The case has been litigated up to the Supreme Court.

After watching the video and discussing various aspects of the controversy, students role-play members of four teams: the Lakota, rock climbers, National Park Service, and the courts. Using extensive online resources linked to the lesson, students research the issues and evaluate the sources. The first three teams present their demands in a hearing. The court tries to help them reach a compromise and then adjudicates any unresolved issues. The lesson continues as students compare the plight of the Lakota to that of the Hopi and Wintu, who also struggle to maintain their sacred lands. The students will understand the concept of “rights in conflict” arising under the First Amendment (freedom of religion), interpret a current conflict from multiple perspectives, learn to advocate for a point of view, and learn to resolve a conflict through a conflict resolution scenario.

Simulations and Gaming

Simulations and gaming within instruction also involve direct experience and thus are valid examples of experiential learning. Within game interactions, there are often several cycles presented to the participant. These cycles generally consist of participation by the user, decision making, and a period of analysis. This process coincides greatly with the Experiential Learning Cycle outlined above (Marcus, 1997). In addition, it has been found that simulations which shorten the debriefing period at the end of the game session can diminish their own effectiveness. This means that games which do not allow for appropriate reflection are not as effective as if proper reflection occurs. Thus, it is apparent that the reflective observation and abstract conceptualization portions of simulations and games are vital to learning, which has also been established by the Experiential Learning Theory (Ulrich, 1997). Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rYi4KcJJoE

Steps to Integrating Experiential Learning in the Classroom

1. Set up the experience by introducing learners to the topic and covering basic material that the learner must know beforehand (the video scenario as well as discussion).

2. Engage the learner in a realistic experience that provides intrigue as well as depth of involvement (mock trial).

3. Allow for discussion of the experience including the happenings that occurred and how the individuals involved felt (discussion afterwards).

4. The learner will then begin to formulate concepts and hypotheses concerning the experience through discussion as well as individual reflection (discussion afterwards, but also could be done with journaling).

5. Allow the learners to experiment with their newly formed concepts and experiences (interpreting current conflict and conflict resolution scenario).

6. Further reflection on experimentation (discussion, but could also be done through journaling).

Criticisms of Experiential Learning Theory

Since Kolb created the Experiential Learning Theory and the accompanying learning model, his work has been met with various criticisms about its worth and effectiveness. One of the criticisms of this model is that the concrete experience part of the learning cycle is not appropriately explained in the theory and remains largely unexplored. Herron (as cited in Yorks & Kasl, 2002, pp. 180-181) believes that “the notion of feeling is nowhere defined or elaborated, thus concrete experience is not properly explored. The model is really about reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation.” Another common criticism of the theory that exposes a weakness is that the idea of immediate and concrete experience is problematic and unrealistic (Miettinen, 2000).

Other criticisms of the ELT are that the concepts outlined by Kolb are too ill-defined and open to various interpretations and that the ideas he presents are an eclectic blend of ideas from various theorists that do not fit logically together. Another, perhaps more biting criticism of Kolb’s work is that his ELT model is only an attempt to explain the societal benefit of his Learning Styles Inventory and thus may actually be a well derived marketing ploy (Miettinen, 2000). Also, it is believed that the phases in the ELT learning model remain separate and do not connect to each other in any manner (Miettinen).

However, the most tangible weaknesses of the ELT and the ELT learning model are the vast differences between it and the ideas established by John Dewey, whose beliefs are largely attributed to the establishment of the ELT. Dewey believed that non-reflective experience borne out of habit was the dominant form of experience and that reflective experience only occurred when there were contradictions of the habitual experience. But, in a glaring weakness of the ELT, Kolb does not adequately discuss the role of non-reflective experience in the process of learning (Miettinen, 2000). In addition, Dewey believed that observations of reality and nature were the starting point of knowledge acquisition. Kolb, however, believes that the experience is the starting point of knowledge acquisition and disregards the observations concerning the subjective reality of the learner, another blatant weakness (Miettinen). A final weakness in the ELT that was noticed is its lack of discussion concerning the social aspect of experience. The ELT learning model focused on the learning process for a single learner and failed to mention how the individual fit into a social group during this process and what role this group may play. Also, there was no discussion on how a social group may gain knowledge through a common experience.

Educational Implications

Experiential Learning Theory outlines the manner in which learners gain knowledge and understanding through experiences. Though some may debate which steps are present in experiential learning, there is no debate about the worth of experience in learning. Through experience, learners are able to construct firsthand a sense of understanding of the events going on around them. Educators have begun to harness the power of experience in study abroad courses, field studies, role plays, and numerous computer-based interventions. The future could bring even more applications of this theory, a possibility as exciting for the learner as much as it is the facilitator.

Implications for Educators:

Everyone goes through these stages but connect with certain modes of learning over others

Educators should consider taking a particular task through these different stages

How does one do this?

Great teachers create opportunities to experience, reflect, think and practice!

Check out this awesome garden educator!

Video 6.4: “Green Bronx Machine: national health and wellness center at PS 55”
 

Chapter Discussion Questions:

• Explain the benefits of experiential learning theory to support student success?
• How would you summarize experiential learning theory?
• How would you use experiential learning theory to support your students?
• How is equity related to experiential learning theory?

ATTRIBUTIONS

Image 6.1: “Confucius Illustration” by Rob Web is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Image 6.2: “Early childhood education expansion helps kids get the best start” by Province of British Columbia
 is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Video 6.1: “The Cycle of Learning from Experience” by Experience Based Learning Systems 

Video 6.2: “This is Experiential Learning” by Experience Based Learning Systems

Video 6.3: “Role Play & Simulation” by Adelio Ortiz Hernandez
Video 6.4: “Green Bronx Machine: national health and wellness center at PS 55” by Stephen Ritz, TedxManhattan
 

REFERENCES

Baker, A., Jensen, P., & Kolb, D. (2002). Conversational learning: An approach to knowledge creation.
Wesport, CT: Quorum Books.

Frank, M., Reich, N., & Humphreys, K. (2003). Respecting the human needs of students in development of e-learning. Computers & Education, 40, 57-70.

Friedman, A., Watts, D., Croston, J., & Durkin, C. (2002). Evaluating online CPD using educational criteria derived from the experiential learning cycle. British Journal of Educational Technology, 33, 367-378.

LaBanca, F. (2008). Impact of problem finding on the quality of authentic open inquiry science research projects. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Danbury, CT: Western Connecticut State University.

Laschinger, H. (1990). Review of experiential learning theory research in the nursing profession.
Journal of Advanced Nursing, 15, 985-993.

Miettinen, R. (2000). The concept of experiential learning and John Dewey’s theory of reflective thought and action. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 19(1), 54-72.

Millenbah, K. F., Campa, H. III, & Winterstein, S. R. (2000). Models for the infusing experimental learning in the curriculum. In W. B. Kurtz, M. R. Ryan, & D. E. Larson (Eds.), Proceedings of the third biennial conference in natural resource education (pp. 44-49). Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/b28c/cbe10099e8e065dfbf2b0bcfb117aacb9bba.pdf

Ulrich, M. (1997). Links between experiential learning and simulation & gaming. Retrieved from http://www.ucs.ch/service/download/docs/articleexplearning.pdf

Yorks, L., & Kasl. E. (2002). Toward a theory and practice for whole-person learning: Reconceptualizing experience and the role of affect. Adult Education Quarterly, 52(3), 176-192.

ADDITIONAL READING

Credible Articles on the Internet:

Burnard. P. (1989). Experiential learning: Some theoretical considerations.
International Journal of Life Long Education, 7(2), 127-133. Retrieved from http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0260137880070204?journalCode=tled20#preview

Coffey, H. (2010). Experiential education. Retrieved from http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/4967

Dewey, J. (1902). The school as social center. Proceedings of the National Education Association, 373-383. Retrieved from http://www.cws.illinois.edu/IPRHDigitalLiteracies/dewey%201902%20school%20as%20social%20center.pdf

Experiential Learning. (2009). Retrieved from: https://www.niu.edu/facdev/_pdf/guide/strategies/experiential_learning.pdf

Field, R. (1998). Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from http://www.iep.utm.edu/dewey/

Greenaway, R. (n.d.). Experiential learning articles and critiques of David Kolb’s theory. Retrieved from
http: //reviewing.co.uk/research/experiential .learning .htm#axzz3KUY7zIoh

Neill, J. (2005). John Dewey the modern father of experiential education. Retrieved from:
http: //www .wilderdom .com/experiential/ExperientialDewey.html

Neill, J. (2005). Summary of Dewey’s Experience and Education. http://www.wilderdom.com/experiential/SummaryJohnDeweyExperienceEducation.html

Oxendine, C., Robinson, J., & Willson, G. (2004). Experiential learning. In M. Orey (Ed.),
Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from
http://epltt.coe.uga.edu/index.php?title=Experiential_Learning

Peer-Reviewed Articles:

Kayes, D. (2002). Experiential learning and its critics: Preserving the role of experience in management learning and education. Academy Of Management Learning & Education, 1(2), 137-149.

Kirschner, P., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. (2006). Why minimal guidance during instruction does not work: An analysis of the failure of constructivist, discovery, problem-based, experiential, and inquiry-based teaching. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 75-86. Retrieved from http://www.cogtech.usc.edu/publications/kirschner_Sweller_Clark.pdf

Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Roberts, T. G. (2003). An interpretation of Dewey’s experiential learning theory. Retrieved from ERIC database. (ED481922)

Schmidt, M. (2010). Learning from teaching experience: Dewey’s theory and preservice teachers’ learning. Journal of Research in Music Education, 58(2), 131-146.

Dalton State College Books:

Boisvert, R. D. (1998). John Dewey: Rethinking our time. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. Campbell, H. M. (1971). John Dewey. New York, NY: Twayne.

Hook, S. (1971). John Dewey: An intellectual portrait. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Videos and Tutorials:

John Dewey: An introduction to his life and work. (2003). Retrieved from Films on Demand database.