Tuazon, Sharjah B.

An Experiential Learning cycle is used to

represent the order in which this learning takes
BSEd 3A place.
Experiential Learning

- is the process of acquiring skills and

expertise by doing things.

Carl Rogers (1902- 1987) - “Experience is, for

me, the highest authority. The touchstone of
validity is my own experience. No other
Experiential Learning Cycle 3-Stage Model
person’s ideas, and none of my own ideas,
are as authoritative as my experience. It is to
experience that I must return again and
again, to discover a closer approximation to
truth as it is in the process of becoming in me.”

- Is essentially a way of acquiring

Teacher and Learner together:
knowledge or skills through direct and
keen observations followed by an analysis  Plan
of what has been sensed and understood.
 Consider curriculum goals
Experiential learning requires:
 Decide expected learning outcomes
 Self-Initiative
 Decide on activities to meet these goals
 Self-Assessment
The purpose of experiential learning is to learn  Do
from one’s:
 Engaging activities
 Mistakes
 Consequences  Self-directed learning
 Achievements
 Review
Why is experiential learning effective way to
learn?  Check the effectiveness

1. Learn from Experience  Compare actual outcomes to

expected outcomes
2. Learn from their own Mistake
 Repeat the cycle
3. Positive experiences make learning fun
 The review in new input for planning!
4. Negative experiences can sometimes
hinder learning The 21st Century Classroom

How do we implement experiential learning?  Employs the whole learning cycle.

 Learn new skills, new attitudes or new
 Prepare learners for the experience ways of thinking
 Reflection of experience  Stages of the Experiential Learning
Cycle
 Concrete Experience
  Reflective Observation c. The objectives of the learning activity
 Training must be clearly understood.

Advantages of Experiential Learning 3. Can be distinguished from other

teaching models in that it emphasizes
1. Develop leadership capabilities to a directly experiencing what one is studying,
significant level also making conclusions and
2. Easy to transfer knowledge and skills generalizations based on direct
experiences.
3. People and consequences are real
Pointers / Suggestion
4. Memorable Activities
 Involve the students in planning learning
5. Motivation to learn activity.

Disadvantages of Experiential Learning  Allow sufficient time for student

reflection.
1. It is not helpful to experienced people
 During analysis of a learning experience,
2. Too much entertainment results in loss of
pay attention to positive feelings.
focus on learning
 Encourage students to communicate
3. Learning outcomes are not predictable
their experience to others.
4. Negative emotions that the learner may
 Have an adequate supply of materials
experience
and tools available in order to facilitate
Experiential Learning simple investigations and instant
explorations in the environment.
1. Effectiveness
 Include variety of real-life in planning a
a. Children learn best from experiences lesson.
with natural occurrences and with
concrete objects in the environment.  Encourage the students to record their
observations in order to assist in their
b. Experiences gained through interactions recall and interpretations.
with other individuals also promote
learning situation.  On the teachers’ part, a journal would
be of great help in keeping track of
c. Such accumulated experiences are observable changes. The journal entry
further examined and evaluated by should include.
themselves.
a. description of the learning event;
2. Requirements
b. outcomes of consequences of the
a. A child should be personally involved in event;
the learning task.
c. causes of success and failures; and
b. The knowledge or information must be
discovered by the child herself. d. value of such event.
How to achieve Experiential Learning  Learning is facilitated when the learner
participates responsibly in the learning
1. For Beginning Teachers process.
a. Experiential learning for beginning  Self-initiated learning involves the whole
teachers can be promoted through person.
interaction with colleagues.
 Independence, creativity, and self-
b. Joining professional organizations that reliance are all facilitated when self-
convene members regularly. criticism and self-evaluated are basic.
c. Travelling is the best way to enrich  Much socially useful learning is learning
ones knowledge about a lifetime
the process of learning and retaining
profession. openness to experience, so that the
2. For Students process of change maybe incorporated
into the self.
Take the class out on educational tours to
the following: Conclusion: Experiential Learning takes place
when learners gain knowledge through their
a. nature reflections based on daily experiences

b. cultural centers

c. their own communities Discovery Learning

d. industrial and commercial establishment - A teaching strategy in which students are

given a problem situation, for which they
e. Academic institutions
find an answer by making an hypothesis,
Principles of Experiential Learning testing the hypothesis, recording and
analyzing their results, and coming up with
 Human beings have a natural a conclusion (the main point of the lesson.)
potentiality to learn.
- Bruner believes that students must be
 Significant learning occurs when the active—they must identify key principles
learner perceives the relevance of the for themselves rather than simply
subject matter. accepting teachers’ explanations.

 Learning involves a change in self- - A method of inquiry-based instruction in

organization and self-perception. which learners discover facts, relationships
and solutions.
 Learning that threatens self-perception
is more easily perceived and assimilated Advantages of Discovery Learning
when the external threats are at a
minimum.  Active engagement

 Learning occurs when the self is not  Promotes motivation

threatened.
 Promotes ownership of learning
 Much significant learning is acquired by
 The development of creativity and
doing.
problem solving skills.
  A tailored learning experience How can discovery be integrated in the
classroom?
 Have fun
- Students are given a purpose question and
Students: must come up with their own hypothesis,
 Enjoy discovering the answer to the then test their prediction through an
question or problem they are given. experiment set up by the teacher.
- Students are given a set of step-by-step
 Are generally engaged throughout the instructions followed by a set of questions
lesson. in which the students discover something
new.
 Feel a sense of control over their own
learning. In upper elementary and secondary
classrooms:
Disadvantages of Discovery Learning
- Can be an opportunity to research a
 Must be set up so that students first use
subject of interest.
prior knowledge, and then build on new
- Students can use technology to do
skills and knowledge as they go through
research and to prepare a presentation.
the lesson.
- Online encyclopedias and other internet
Criticisms of Discovery Learning sites can be used to research the
information.
 Too much information (cognitive
overload). Discovery in Action

 Often requires vast resources  A distinction is usually made between

unavailable in traditional classroom. pure discovery learning, in which the
students work on their own to a very
 Lack of teacher control great extent, and guided discovery, in
which the teacher provides some
 Potential misconceptions
direction
 Teacher may fail to recognise
 Discovery Learning- Bruner’s approach,
misconceptions
in which students work on their own to
Examples of Discovery Learning discover basic principles.

 Learning with and through narratives  Guided Discovery- An adaptation of

discovery learning, in which the teacher
 Case-based learning provides some direction.

 Guided discovery

 Problem-based learning

 Simulation-based learning

 Incidental learning