Why experiential learning matters in school, and how to get ahead of the game

So, you’ve seen “experiential learning” repeated on every university website and brochure.

It’s clearly a preferred learning method and a key selling point to any institution — but what does it actually mean?

“Learning is the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience,” explains psychologist and educational theorist David Kolb.

To put it simply, it means to learn by doing. 

According to a 2021 study, medical students were shown to have a 70% increase in knowledge retention after the didactic approach was designed to follow the experiential learning theory developed by Kolb.

In 2022, Wiley reported that 81% of higher education students felt it was important that schools offered company-led projects. A student who participated in the research said, “My institution includes a variety of case studies and assignment formats that help simulate real-world problem-solving.”

Experiential learning through real-world opportunities takes many different forms, depending on your field of study. Source: AFP

The human brain develops through practice — when you apply the theories and concepts you’ve learned in the classroom through the act of doing. 

“Doing” can take many forms: internships, study abroad, industry projects, simulations, etc. That culmination of experience is integral in building a skill set that ensures you perform well in your career. 

By applying the experiential learning theory, schools ensure no drastic skill imbalance occurs among their students when they start working.

It also helps them explore what they like and don’t like to find their career path.

In the same Wiley study, only 30% of instructors state that their schools offer opportunities like company-led projects and professional certification prep.

So, if you’re clueless about where to go from here, here’s how the experiential learning theory works to help you plan for a worthwhile education.

The Kolb cycle of learning

It’s been proven that students retain information better using the experiential learning theory. Source: AFP

There are four stages to the Kolb cycle of learning: concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualisation, and active experimentation.

It’s a process meant to be taken whole to be effective, though there’s no exact stage you have to enter first. It’s simply meant to be completed.

To start, concrete experience is where you try something new or reinterpret a concept you’ve encountered in a new way. This is the foundation of experiential learning — the experiences you find in everyday settings, whether professional or not.

Reflective observation is the period where you reflect on the concrete experience. It could be through reports or journaling, individually or in a group. You’ll want to consider what stood out most to you and your level of understanding.

Next is abstract conceptualisation, where you start connecting ideas. You’ll take what you have observed through your experience, connect it to existing information, and develop your own concepts and theories. Here, you can trace new patterns and find new strategies and solutions.

In active experimentation, those concepts and theories are tested in real-world simulations or settings to see if they work. This is where you create new experiences, using those theories to drive problem-solving.

Kolb first published his experiential learning theory in 1984. Source: AFP

Once you’ve completed the Kolb cycle of learning, you’ll come to discover your specific learning style and how you best absorb new information. The four styles are:

• Diverging — by concrete experience and reflective observation
• Assimilating — by abstract conceptualization and reflective observation
• Converging — by abstract conceptualization and active experimentation
• Accommodating — concrete experience and active experimentation

So, the question to tackle now is: how do you get involved in hands-on learning opportunities?

While most universities worldwide have incorporated some form of experiential learning into their curriculums, some might not.

That means you’ll need to seek opportunities out on your own. To help you get started, we’ve listed a few ways you can apply theory to practice below.

8 ways to implement the experiential learning theory

Gaining experiential learning opportunities will help you build a strong resume when you begin your career. Source: AFP

Internships

One of the most prevalent ways to gain hands-on experience, internships can guide you towards a career path and passion.

Whether paid or unpaid, you’ll have the opportunity to get involved with industry projects and learn how an organisation runs in the real world. It’s also a chance to start building your professional network and meeting connections in the industry and beyond.

Many local and international companies offer internships that cover a range of roles. So, if you don’t land your dream internship, there’s always another that could turn out just as well. Certain skills can play a part in landing the right internship too, so hone those while you can to stand out from your peers.

Study abroad

To become a global leader, cultural literacy and a vast understanding of global contexts isn’t a benefit but a necessity.

Doing a study abroad programme allows you to witness how people from different parts of the world live their everyday lives and helps you sharpen your interpersonal skills. It’s a great way to learn to be independent as you’re away from home and your comfort zone.

Not to mention, it’s a fantastic opportunity to figure out what you’d like to do with the rest of your studies and career and seize the opportunities that come your way during a study abroad programme.

Travel opportunities for students can help increase their cultural understanding and create leaders who work to create a better world. Source: AFP

Research

If you need to gather prior experience to qualify for an internship, you can start building up your resume with research opportunities at university.

The core of it is simple: gather information and analyse it to prove a hypothesis. In a lab, you’d be experimenting with different materials to find a solution to a real-world problem.

Forbes writes, “It’s through research, scholarship, and discovery that we learn about our history and ourselves, understand the present context in which we live, and plan for and secure our future.”

Many universities have research work built into their programmes, but you can seek out those opportunities too by reaching out to a faculty professor whose speciality interests you.

Simulations and role-playing

Simulations and role-plays are learning strategies that can induct a long-term understanding of any given topic because you’re not just absorbing the material in theory.

You’re applying what you’ve learnt to an acted-out, real-world scenario. It allows you to make mistakes in a space that permits error without heavy consequences and develop critical-thinking skills to navigate the problems you may face in your field.

Many business schools use simulations and role-playing to portray a company’s organisational structure, the hierarchy dynamics and the challenges posed within it in a risk-free setting.

An environmental scientist from Burapha University collects a crude oil sample on Mae Ram Phueng beach following a spill caused by a leak in an undersea pipeline. Source: AFP.

Fieldwork

Whether you’re conducting conservation work in a forest or digging up an anthropological site — fieldwork is a great way to interact with the natural world and get your hands deep into experiential learning.

This is especially important if you’re aiming for more hands-on careers such as zookeeping or wildlife conservation.

One Redditor writes, “How are you to really learn the ins and outs of the industry if you didn’t put your time in out in the field? You would be hard-pressed to find an archaeologist who hasn’t spent many hours on dig sites or a doctor who didn’t spend years in a hospital before becoming one.”

“Environmental scientists and the like are no different. Fieldwork is essential to managing our natural resources, and the people who fill those roles are entry-level new college grads. So, if you’re looking into environmental management as a degree choice, just know that if you don’t like working outside in adverse weather or inspecting facilities for a few years starting out, this career path may not be for you.”

Service-learning

Service-learning, offered by many universities worldwide, combines academics and community-based work. 

It starts with the pretext of academic coursework and pairs that with service work to better the state of a community.

Take Purdue University’s Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) programme, for example. It has provided nonprofit organizations with technology to improve and deliver services to their community while broadening undergraduate engineering students’ hands-on experiences.

“By tackling community needs in the areas of access and abilities, education and outreach, human services, and the environment, students participating in EPICS in IEEE are gaining firsthand experience in marrying engineering and community,” says Leah Jamieson, 2007 IEEE president and a co-founder of EPICS at Purdue.

Service-learning and volunteering allow for experiential learning while giving back to the community at the same time. Source: AFP

Volunteering

Not only does volunteering look good on college admissions essays, but it looks even better on CVs.

Whether it’s helping out in a soup kitchen, a community garden, or the local animal shelter — volunteering is a way to give back to the community and gain brownie points with your university and employer.

In fact, those who volunteer have a 27% higher chance of finding a job compared to their non-volunteering counterparts, according to a federal study by the Corporation for National and Community Service.

Professional development events

Professional development events aren’t just lecture halls where you sit idly in and listen to the experts talk. Such events typically feature rigorous activities to enhance your professional skills for the real world, like workshops, seminars, and team-building.

Beyond that, one of the biggest advantages of participating in these events is accessing the vast network available. One introverted PhD Redditor shares that they interviewed for their first academic position at a conference they participated in and even got the job.

“I made sure to attend sessions I found interesting, not just in my research area, and I also attended the business meetings for those groups,” they wrote. “Through attending the business meetings, I was able to get minor (then later major) service opportunities I needed for my position.”

“When the time came to go up for promotion, individuals I had served with on those committees made up the majority of my external reviewers. I never had to struggle to find external reviewers who knew me.”