Once again, we hit you with another learning theory. But be encouraged, we’re pretty sure you use this one already. Like its name suggests, experiential learning is basically, ‘learning by doing’. Your students are ‘constructing’ knowledge, so it is considered a ‘constructivist theory’ and David Kolb who put forth the theory, was influenced by the likes of Dewey and Piaget (names you should know as an educator).
But I’m not here to lecture you on theories or wax philosophical. When it comes to the classroom, all the theories in the world serve no purpose without sound application and without YOU knowing EXACTLY what your role is.
So let’s start there. Experiential learning asks you to step out of the spotlight and learn to be a ‘FACILITATOR’ of learning, rather than a ‘sage on the stage.’ Experiential Learning is also student-centered, as it should be, particularly in the 21st Century. Just to support my point, let’s consider the following quotes:
The purpose of 21st century education has evolved to include the generation of student competence in self-directed learning, citizenship, eco-sustainability and employability, in addition to traditional knowledge, skills and attitudes within particular disciplines.
(Deakin Crick, Goldspink & Foster, 2013)
The role of the teacher in this process is to facilitate rather than direct the student’s progress.
(Kolb & Kolb, 2009).
So, are you ready to embrace being a facilitator and be a little less controlling? I know this can be hard, and admittedly, I still struggle with it. I see a student ready to jump down a rabbit hole, or get messy with paint or glue…and I cringe at what my desks/ papers will look like once they’re through. I want to just reach out and show them the ‘proper’ way to do it.
But then as a 21st Century educator I ask myself, what exactly is the proper way? And when I jump in to overtake the situation and ‘fix’ the problem, what lesson am I really teaching my students? That Miss is always going to be there to ‘save’ them? Tell them where to find what they need? Even as I was writing this, a student asked me to find the glossary in his textbook. Do I know where it is? Yes. Did I tell him? No, because I realized that if I did, how would I have helped him use his problem-solving skills? I told him to look through the book for himself. He flipped through the entire book (it took a while), but now he knows that the glossary of a book can be found at the back.
I’m not only writing this as an educator, but as a guardian & very doting aunt of a soon-to-be 8 year old boy. He creates problems by the minute and I’m sure if you have children of your own, you can relate. Over the weekend, my darling nephew decided to conduct the ‘not-so-genius’ experiment, of trying to pour juice from a pack with the ENTIRE top of the pack cut off. The cup was near the edge of the table and yes, it was nerve wracking to watch the episode unfold, but watch it, I did. Everyone warned him not to do it, but he persisted.
Result? Juice everywhere, but in the cup.
As parents/ guardians, we rush into ‘quarrel/ lecture’ mode as we pick up a cloth or begin frantically mopping up the mess. Why? Because we just know we’ll clean it up faster and more efficiently. And we will, because we’ve learnt FROM EXPERIENCE how to clean up a mess as well as prevent one.
But stop. Don’t deny your child the same lesson you learnt. Instead, point the child in the direction of a mop - let him rinse, mop and rinse again- pick up a cloth for himself and wipe up the spill. When he’s cleaned up, help him reflect: ‘So what was the experience you had? What did you learn about pouring juice in the way that you did? If you had to do it again, how might you do it differently?
Now let’s head back to the classroom. Sometimes we do the same thing: lecture, point out all the ways the student did things ‘wrong’ and offer our ‘sage’ advice. Again, stop. Bite your lip and contain the “preach speech”.
Yet let me be clear, teacher as facilitator, doesn’t mean teacher with nothing to do. It’s not ‘go forth and learn my students! It’s a free-for-all!’ In fact, being a facilitator may even take more work and planning. At first anyway, before you get the cogs turning.
Let’s consult what Emma Bartle (2015) notes as ‘key findings’ of the Association for Experiential Education (AEE). These include what a teacher’s responsibilities are in Experiential Education:
The teacher’s primary roles include setting suitable experiences, posing problems, setting boundaries, supporting students, ensuring physical and emotional safety, and facilitating the learning process.
The teacher recognises and encourages spontaneous opportunities for learning.
Teachers strive to be aware of their biases, judgments and preconceptions, and how these influence the student.
(Bartle, E. (2015). Experiential learning: an overview. Institute for Teaching and Learning Innovation. Australia: The University Of Queensland.)
So no, it’s not a walk in the park for us educators. We have to come up with authentic, real-life problems/ issues for our students to try and solve, ensure a safe environment in which they can troubleshoot, be encouraging in word and in action when the experiment turns messy…..All the while trying to stop the experienced adult in us from saying: “Just do it this way.” or even worse, “I told you it wouldn’t work.”
So what are some examples of experiential learning in practice? These can be, but are not limited to:
- Field trips
- Nature walks for specimen collection
- Mock political debates
- Design/ Creation of models (of towns, cities, active volcanoes for e.g.)
- Simulations
- Games
- Field work (growing plants/ sowing crops)
- Collaborative learning projects
- Overseas study/ language immersion programmes
I know I may say this a lot, but the possibilities are in fact, endless.
As always, I like to give an example from my own teaching experience. In my younger, more energetic days, I used to help organize trips for students to go to a French-speaking country. I chaperoned them during planned visits, but essentially, they stayed with families and had to communicate in French, within the household. Of course the families were closely vetted before, and I was only a phone call away, but that’s not even what I want to point out with this example.
One day, we went to a mall, and a student wanted ice cream. He was having trouble communicating which flavor he wanted, and how many scoops. Bear in mind that the vendor spoke no English. Now, it would have been easy for me to answer my student when he asked me how to say ‘flavor’ and ‘scoop’; it might have even been easier if I placed the order for him. But no, that wouldn’t have been facilitating learning.
Instead, I communicated with the vendor that we were here on an immersion programme and that I wanted to see how the student would fare without my intervention. Note, I was close by, but I wasn’t going to solve the problem for my student. Safe space but room for STUDENT troubleshooting. Through a lot of pointing and hand motions, the student indicated which flavor he wanted and how many scoops. The vendor took the opportunity to teach him some French, and my experience with the French is that they’re always ready to tell you how to pronounce their language correctly. The vendor had him pronounce ALL the flavors 😂 AND the word for ‘scoop’ at least twice. Learning happened, I was present, I helped facilitate it, but I didn’t overtake the learning experience.
I hope this blog gives you a clearer idea of what Experiential Learning is. But more than this, I hope it demonstrates what TEACHER as FACILITATOR looks like. So in parting, are you ready to be a guide on the side? I sure hope so, because that’s what being a 21st Century educator entails. Don’t deprive your students of having authentic learning experiences. As much as you want to keep them from making mistakes, remember, it’s probably your own mistakes that have taught you the most.