Today’s higher education institutions consistently seek new, innovative ways to engage students and promote positive graduate outcomes. One increasingly popular approach is experiential learning—a compelling strategy that focuses on active learning and deep reflection.

The simplest way to offer experiential learning opportunities to your students is to use a dedicated experiential learning platform. Keep reading to find out more!

What is experiential learning?

Experiential learning is a pedagogical approach that focuses on learning through experience. It is similar to hands-on learning, but with a deeper emphasis on reflection and analysis.

Educational theorist David A. Kolb and his colleague, Ron Fry, first proposed the experiential learning model (ELM) in the early 1970s. The model includes four core elements:

• Concrete experience (engaging in an authentic activity),
• Reflective observation (recognising what happened and relating it to past experiences or understandings),
• Abstract conceptualisation (connecting ideas and thinking about what the experience means),
• Active experimentation (taking fresh ideas and applying them to a new experience).

Most representations of the ELM appear as a cycle, which repeats indefinitely with each element holding equal weight. Many people move through each stage of this cycle unconsciously and effortlessly when experiencing something new.

Kolb’s learning styles

To complement his experiential learning model, Kolb proposed several learning styles that describe the unique and diverse ways people learn. The latest version of the learning style model is the Kolb Experiential Learning Profile (KELP).

The KELP describes nine ways of navigating the experiential learning cycle:

• Experiencing (teamwork, trust, connection),
• Imagining (trust, creativity, self-awareness),
• Reflecting (patience, care, listening with an open mind),
• Analysing (structure, methodology, precision),
• Thinking (scepticism, structure, quantitative analysis),
• Deciding (realism, directness, practicality),
• Acting (assertiveness, timeliness, commitment to goals and objectives),
• Initiating (spontaneity, outgoingness, active in seizing opportunities),
• Balancing (identifying gaps, bridging differences, adapting).

Individuals in your classroom may display one or more of these learning styles—but each student likely has a different mix. That’s why the experiential learning model is so advantageous. It allows all students to excel regardless of their learning styles.

Teamwork is especially beneficial here, as it allows students with diverse strengths and weaknesses to come together and share their knowledge, abilities, and ideas.

Functions and features of experiential learning platforms

An experiential learning platform is a one-stop-shop for delivering high-quality, transformative learning experiences to your students.

These platforms offer an enormous range of benefits for educators, higher education institutions, and students alike. From connecting students to employers and industry leaders to reducing delivery costs, it’s a smart investment.

Delivering learning programs becomes seamless, too, with useful features like:

• Detailed analytics,
• Feedback tools,
• Chat-based collaboration options,
• Gamification abilities,
• Adaptive learning pathways,
• AI-enhanced performance and progress tracking,
• Simple assessment management.

Among other benefits, these features can help your institution improve graduate outcomes and create better learning experiences for students.

Invest in an experiential learning platform today

If you’re ready to deliver powerful experiential learning programs to your student cohort, a dedicated experiential learning platform is the way to go! Not only will it reduce delivery costs and boost student engagement, but it’ll also set your graduates up for career success.