3.6 Experiential learning: learning by doing (2) - BC Open ...

“the strategic, active engagement of students in opportunities to learn through doing, and reflection on those activities, which empowers them to apply their ... Skiptocontent Chapter3:Methodsofteaching:campus-focused 3.6Experientiallearning:learningbydoing(2) Infact,thereareanumberofdifferentapproachesortermswithinthisbroadheading,suchasexperientiallearning,co-operativelearning,adventurelearningandapprenticeship. Iwillusetheterm‘experientiallearning’asabroadumbrellatermtocoverthiswidevarietyofapproachestolearningbydoing.  3.6.1.Whatisexperientiallearning? Therearemanydifferenttheoristsinthisarea,suchasJohnDewey(1938)andmorerecentlyDavidKolb(1984). SimonFraserUniversitydefinesexperientiallearningas: “thestrategic,activeengagementofstudentsinopportunitiestolearnthroughdoing,andreflectiononthoseactivities,whichempowersthemtoapplytheirtheoreticalknowledgetopracticalendeavoursinamultitudeofsettingsinsideandoutsideoftheclassroom.”  Thereisawiderangeofdesignmodelsthataimtoembedlearningwithinrealworldcontexts,including: laboratory,workshoporstudiowork; apprenticeship; problem-basedlearning; case-basedlearning; project-basedlearning; inquiry-basedlearning; cooperative(work-orcommunity-based)learning. Thefocushereisonsomeofthemain waysinwhichexperientiallearningcanbedesignedanddelivered,withparticularrespecttotheuseoftechnology,andinwaysthathelpdeveloptheknowledgeandskillsneededinadigitalage.(Foramoredetailedanalysis ofexperientiallearning,seeMoon,2004). 3.6.2Coredesignprinciples Experientiallearningfocusesonlearnersreflectingontheirexperienceof doingsomething,soastogainconceptualinsightaswellaspractical expertise.Kolb’s experientiallearningmodelsuggestfourstagesinthisprocess: activeexperimentation; concreteexperience; reflectiveobservation; abstractconceptualization. Experientiallearningisamajorformofteachingat theUniversityofWaterloo.Itswebsiteliststheconditionsneededtoensurethatexperientiallearningiseffective,asidentifiedbythe AssociationforExperientialEducation. RyersonUniversityinTorontoisanotherinstitutionwithextensiveuseofexperientiallearning,andalsohasanextensivewebsiteonthetopic,alsodirectedatinstructors.Thenextsectionexaminesdifferentwaysinwhichtheseprincipleshavebeenapplied.  3.6.3 Experientialdesignmodels Therearemanydifferentdesignmodelsforexperientiallearning,buttheyalsohavemanyfeaturesincommon.  3.6.3.1 Laboratory,workshoporstudiowork Figure3.6.3.1ConcordiaUniversitywoodshop Today,wetakealmostforgrantedthatlaboratoryclassesareanessentialpartofteachingscienceandengineering.Workshopsandstudiosareconsideredcriticalformanyformsoftradestrainingorthedevelopmentofcreativearts.Labs,workshopsandstudios serveanumberofimportantfunctionsorgoals,whichinclude: togivestudentshands-onexperienceinchoosingandusingcommon scientific,engineeringortradesequipment appropriately; todevelopmotorskillsinusingscientific,engineeringorindustrialtoolsorcreativemedia; togivestudentsanunderstandingoftheadvantagesandlimitationsoflaboratoryexperiments; toenablestudentstoseescience,engineeringortradework‘inaction’; toenablestudentsto testhypothesesortoseehowwellconcepts,theories,proceduresactuallywork whentestedunder laboratoryconditions; toteach studentshowtodesignand/orconductexperiments; toenablestudentstodesignand create objectsorequipmentindifferentphysicalmedia. Animportantpedagogical valueoflaboratoryclassesisthattheyenablestudentstomovefromtheconcrete(observingphenomena)totheabstract(understandingtheprinciplesortheoriesthatarederivedfromtheobservationofphenomena).Anotheristhatthelaboratory introducesstudentstoacriticalculturalaspectofscienceandengineering,thatallideasneedtobetestedinarigorousandparticularmannerforthemtobeconsidered‘true’. Onemajorcriticismoftraditionaleducationallabsorworkshopsisthattheyarelimitedinthekindsofequipmentandexperiencesthatscientists,engineersandtradespeopleneedtoday.Asscientific,engineeringandtradesequipmentbecomesmoresophisticatedandexpensive,itbecomesincreasinglydifficulttoprovidestudentsinschoolsespeciallybutincreasinglynowincollegesanduniversitiesdirectaccesstosuchequipment.Furthermoretraditionalteachinglabsor workshopsarecapitalandlabourintensiveandhencedonotscaleeasily,acriticaldisadvantageinrapidlyexpandingeducationalopportunities. Becauselaboratoryworkissuchanacceptedpartofscienceteaching,itisworthrememberingthatteachingsciencethroughlaboratoryworkisinhistoricaltermsafairlyrecentdevelopment.Inthe1860sneitherOxfordnorCambridgeUniversitywerewillingtoteachempiricalscience.ThomasHuxleythereforedevelopedaprogramattheRoyalSchoolofMines(aconstituentcollegeofwhatisnowImperialCollege,oftheUniversityofLondon)toteachschool-teachershowtoteachscience,includinghowtodesignlaboratoriesforteachingexperimentalsciencetoschoolchildren,amethodthatisstillthemostcommonlyusedtoday,bothinschoolsanduniversities. Atthesametime,scientificandengineeringprogresssincethenineteenthcentury hasresultedinotherformsofscientifictestingandvalidationthattakeplaceoutsideatleastthekindof‘wetlabs’socommoninschoolsanduniversities.Examplesarenuclearaccelerators,nanotechnology,quantummechanicsandspaceexploration.Oftentheonlywaytoobserveorrecordphenomenainsuchcontextsisremotelyordigitally.Itisalsoimportanttobeclearabouttheobjectivesoflab,workshopandstudiowork.Theremaynowbeother,morepractical,moreeconomic,ormorepowerfulwaysofachievingtheseobjectivesthroughtheuseofnewtechnology,suchasremotelabs,simulations,andexperientiallearning.Thesewillbeexaminedinmoredetaillaterinthisbook. 3.6.3.2Problem-basedlearning Theearliestformofsystematisedproblem-basedlearning(PBL)wasdevelopedin1969 byHowardBarrowsandcolleaguesintheSchoolofMedicineatMcMasterUniversityinCanada,fromwhereithasspreadtomanyotheruniversities,collegesandschools.Thisapproachisincreasinglyusedinsubjectdomainswheretheknowledgebaseisrapidlyexpandingandwhereitisimpossibleforstudentstomaster alltheknowledgeinthedomainwithinalimitedperiodofstudy. Workingingroups,studentsidentifywhattheyalreadyknow,whattheyneedtoknow,andhowandwheretoaccessnewinformationthatmayleadtoresolutionoftheproblem.The roleoftheinstructor(usuallycalledatutorinclassicPBL)iscriticalinfacilitatingandguidingthelearningprocess.  UsuallyPBLfollowsastronglysystematisedapproachtosolvingproblems,althoughthedetailedstepsandsequence tendtovarytosomeextent,dependingonthesubjectdomain. Thefollowingisatypicalexample: Figure3.6.3.2(derivedfromGijeselaers,1995) Traditionally,thefirstfivestepswouldbedoneinasmallface-to-faceclasstutorialof20-25students,withthesixthstep requiringeitherindividualorsmallgroup(fourorfivestudents)privatestudy,withatheseventhstepbeingaccomplishedinafullgroupmeetingwiththetutor.However,thisapproachalsolendsitselftoblendedlearninginparticular,wheretheresearchsolutionisdonemainlyonline,althoughsomeinstructorshavemanagedthewholeprocessonline,usingacombinationofsynchronouswebconferencingandasynchronousonlinediscussion. Developingacompleteproblem-basedlearningcurriculumischallenging,asproblemsmustbecarefullychosen,increasingincomplexityanddifficultyoverthecourseofstudy,andproblemsmustbechosensoastocoveralltherequiredcomponentsofthecurriculum.Studentsoftenfindtheproblem-basedlearningapproachchallenging,particularlyintheearlystages,wheretheirfoundationalknowledgebasemaynotbesufficienttosolvesomeoftheproblems.(Theterm‘cognitiveoverload’hasbeenusedtodescribethissituation.)Othersarguethatlecturesprovideaquickerandmorecondensedwaytocoverthesametopics. Assessmentalsohastobecarefullydesigned,especiallyifafinalexamcarriesheavyweightingrading,toensurethat problem-solvingskillsaswellascontentcoveragearemeasured. However,research(seeforinstance,StrobelandvanBarneveld,2009)hasfoundthatproblem-basedlearning isbetterfor long-termretentionofmaterialanddeveloping‘replicable’skills,aswellasforimproving students’attitudestowardslearning. Therearenowmanyvariationsonthe‘pure’PBLapproach,withproblemsbeingsetafterinitialcontenthasbeencovered inmoretraditionalways,suchaslecturesorpriorreading,forinstance. 3.6.3.3Case-basedlearning Withcase-basedteaching,studentsdevelopskillsinanalyticalthinkingandreflectivejudgmentbyreadinganddiscussingcomplex,real-lifescenarios. UniversityofMichiganCentreforResearchonTeachingandLearning Case-basedlearningissometimesconsideredavariationofPBL,whileothersseeitasadesignmodelinitsownright.AswithPBL,case-basedlearningusesaguidedinquirymethod, butusuallyrequiresthestudentstohaveadegreeofpriorknowledgethatcanassistinanalysingthecase.Thereisusuallymoreflexibilityintheapproachtocase-basedlearningcomparedto PBL.Case-basedlearningisparticularlypopularinbusinesseducation,lawschools andclinicalpracticeinmedicine, butcanbeusedinmanyothersubjectdomains. Herreid(2004)provideselevenbasicrulesforcase-basedlearning. Tellsastory. Focusesonaninterest-arousingissue. Setinthepastfiveyears Createsempathywiththecentralcharacters. Includesdirectquotationsfromthecharacters. Relevanttothereader. Musthavepedagogicutility. Conflictprovoking. Decisionforcing. Hasgenerality. Isshort. Usingexamplesfromclinicalpracticeinmedicine,Irby(1994)recommendsfivestepsincase-basedlearning: anchorteachingina(carefullychosen)case; activelyinvolvelearnersindiscussing,analysingandmakingrecommendationsregardingthecase; modelprofessionalthinkingandaction asaninstructorwhendiscussingthecasewithlearners; providedirectionandfeedbacktolearnersintheirdiscussions; createacollaborativelearningenvironmentwhereallviewsarerespected. Case-basedlearningcanbeparticularlyvaluablefordealingwithcomplex,interdisciplinarytopicsorissueswhichhavenoobvious‘rightorwrong’solutions,orwherelearnersneedtoevaluateanddecideoncompeting,alternativeexplanations.Case-basedlearningcanalsoworkwellinbothblendedandfullyonlineenvironments.Marcus,TaylorandEllis(2004)usedthefollowingdesignmodelforacase-basedblendedlearningprojectinveterinaryscience: Figure3.6.3.3Blendedlearningsequenceinvolvingonlinelearningresources,Marcus,TaylorandEllis,2004 Otherconfigurationsareofcoursealsopossible,dependingontherequirementsofthesubject. 3.6.3.4Project-basedlearning Project-basedlearningissimilartocase-basedlearning,buttendstobelongerandbroaderinscope,andwithevenmorestudentautonomy/responsibilityinthesenseofchoosingsub-topics,organisingtheirwork,anddecidingonwhatmethodstousetoconducttheproject.Projectsareusuallybasedaroundrealworldproblems,whichgivestudentsasenseofresponsibilityandownershipin theirlearningactivities. Onceagain,thereareseveralbestpracticesorguidelinesforsuccessfulprojectwork.Forinstance,LarmerandMergendoller(2010)arguethateverygoodprojectshouldmeettwocriteria: studentsmustperceivetheworkaspersonallymeaningful,asataskthatmattersandthattheywanttodowell; ameaningfulprojectfulfillsaneducationalpurpose.  Themaindangerwithproject-basedlearningisthattheprojectcantakeonalifeofitsown,withnotonlystudentsbuttheinstructorlosingfocusonthekey,essentiallearningobjectives,orimportantcontentareasmaynotgetcovered.Thusproject-basedlearningneedscarefuldesignandmonitoringbytheinstructor. 3.6.3.5Inquiry-basedlearning Inquiry-basedlearning(IBL)issimilartoproject-basedlearning,buttheroleoftheteacher/instructor issomewhatdifferent. Inproject-basedlearning,theinstructordecidesthe‘drivingquestion’andplaysamoreactiveroleinguidingthestudentsthroughtheprocess. Ininquiry-basedlearning,thelearnerexploresathemeandchoosesatopicforresearch,developsaplanofresearchandcomestoconclusions,althoughaninstructorisusuallyavailabletoprovidehelpandguidancewhenneeded. BanchiandBell(2008)suggestthattherearedifferentlevelsofinquiry,andstudentsneedtobeginatthefirstlevelandworkthroughtheotherlevelstogetto‘true’or‘open’inquiryasfollows: Figure3.6.3.5Levelsofinquiry-basedlearning,fromBanchiandBell(2008) Itcanbeseenthatthefourthlevelofinquirydescribesthegraduatethesisprocess,althoughproponentsofinquiry-basedlearninghaveadvocateditsvalue atalllevelsofeducation. 3.6.4 Experientiallearninginonlinelearningenvironments Advocatesofexperientiallearningareoftenhighlycriticalofonlinelearning,because,theyargue,itisimpossibletoembedlearninginrealworldexamples.However,thisisanoversimplification,andtherearecontextsinwhichonlinelearningcanbeusedveryeffectivelytosupportordevelopexperientiallearning,inallitsvariations: blendedorflippedlearning:althoughgroupsessionstostartofftheprocess,andtobringaproblemorprojecttoaconclusion,areusuallydoneinaclassroomorlabsetting,studentscanincreasingly conducttheresearchandinformationgatheringbyaccessingresourcesonline,byusingonlinemultimediaresourcestocreatereportsorpresentations,andbycollaboratingonlinethroughgroupprojectworkorthroughcritiqueandevaluationofeachother’swork; fullyonline:increasingly,instructorsarefindingthat experientiallearningcanbeappliedfullyonline,throughacombinationofsynchronoustoolssuchaswebconferencing,asynchronoustoolssuchasdiscussionforumsand/orsocialmediaforgroupwork,e-portfoliosandmultimediaforreporting,andremotelabsforexperimentalwork. Indeed,therearecircumstanceswhereitisimpractical,toodangerous,ortooexpensivetouserealworldexperientiallearning.Onlinelearningcanbeusedtosimulaterealconditionsandtoreducethetimetomasteraskill.Flightsimulatorshavelongbeenusedtotraincommercialpilots,enablingtraineepilots tospendlesstimemasteringfundamentalsonrealaircraft.Commercialflightsimulatorsarestillextremelyexpensivetobuildandoperate,butinrecentyearsthecostsofcreatingrealisticsimulationshasdroppeddramatically. Figure3.6.4Virtualworldbordercrossing,LoyalistCollege,Ontario InstructorsatLoyalistCollegehavecreateda‘virtual’ fullyfunctioningbordercrossing andavirtualcarinSecondLifetotrainCanadianBorderServicesAgents. Eachstudenttakesontheroleofan agent,withhis/heravatarinterviewingtheavatarsofthetravellerswishingtoenterCanada.AllcommunicationisdonebyvoicecommunicationsinSecondLife,withthepeopleplayingthetravellersinaseparateroomfromthestudents. Eachstudentinterviewsthreeorfourtravellersandtheentireclassobservestheinteractionsanddiscussesthesituationsandtheresponses. A secondarysiteforautosearchesfeaturesavirtualcarthatcanbecompletelydismantledsostudentslearnallpossibleplaceswherecontrabandmaybeconcealed.ThislearningisthenreinforcedwithavisittotheautoshopatLoyalistCollegeandthesearchofanactualcar. Thestudentsinthecustomsandimmigrationtrackareassessedontheirinterviewingtechniquesaspartoftheirfinalgrades.StudentsparticipatinginthefirstyearoftheSecondLifebordersimulationachievedagradestandingthatwas28 percent higherthanthepreviousclasswhodidnotutilizeavirtualworld.Thenextclass,usingSecondLife,scoredafurther9percenthigher.Moredetailscanbefound here. StaffintheEmergencyManagementDivisionat theJusticeInstituteofBritishColumbia havedevelopedasimulationtoolcalledPraxis that helpstobringcriticalincidentstolifebyintroducingreal-worldsimulationsintotrainingandexerciseprograms.BecauseparticipantscanaccessPraxis viatheweb,itprovidestheflexibilitytodeliverimmersive,interactiveandscenario-basedtrainingexercisesanytime,anywhere.Atypicalemergencymightbeamajorfireinawarehousecontainingdangerouschemicals.‘Trainee’firstresponders,whowill includefire,policeandparamedicalpersonnel,aswellascityengineersandlocalgovernmentofficials,are‘alerted’ontheirmobilephonesortablets,andhavetorespondinrealtimetoafastdevelopingscenario,‘managed’byaskilledfacilitator,followingprocedurespreviously taughtandalsoavailableontheirmobileequipment.Thewholeprocessisrecordedandfollowedlaterbyaface-to-facedebriefingsession. Onceagain,designmodelsarenotinmostcasesdependentonanyparticularmedium.Thepedagogytransferseasilyacrossdifferentdeliverymethods.Learningbydoingisanimportantmethodfordevelopingmanyoftheskillsneededinadigitalage. 3.6.5 Strengthsandweaknessesofexperientiallearningmodels Howoneevaluatesexperientiallearningdesigns dependspartlyonone’sepistemologicalposition.Constructivistsstronglysupportexperientiallearningmodels,whereasthosewithastrongobjectivistpositionareusuallyhighlyskepticaloftheeffectivenessofthisapproach.Nevertheless,problem-basedlearninginparticularhasprovedtobeverypopularinmanyinstitutionsteachingscienceormedicine,andproject-basedlearningisusedacross manysubjectdomainsandlevelsofeducation.Thereisevidencethatexperientiallearning,whenproperlydesigned,ishighlyengagingforstudentsandleadstobetterlong-termmemory.Proponentsalsoclaimthatitleadstodeeperunderstanding,anddevelopsskillsforadigitalagesuchasproblem-solving,criticalthinking,improvedcommunicationsskills,andknowledgemanagement.Inparticular,itenableslearnerstomanagebetterhighlycomplexsituationsthatcrossdisciplinaryboundaries,andsubjectdomainswheretheboundariesofknowledgearedifficulttomanage. CriticsthoughsuchasKirschner,SwellerandClark(2006)arguethat instructioninexperientiallearningisoften‘unguided’,andpointedtoseveral‘meta-analyses’oftheeffectivenessofproblem-basedlearningthatindicatednodifferenceinproblem-solvingabilities,lowerbasicscienceexamscores,longerstudyhoursforPBLstudents,andthatPBLismorecostly. Theyconclude: Insofarasthereisanyevidencefromcontrolledstudies,italmostuniformlysupportsdirect,stronginstructionalguidanceratherthanconstructivist-basedminimalguidanceduringtheinstructionofnovicetointermediatelearners.Evenwithstudentswithconsiderablepriorknowledge,strongguidancewhenlearningismostoftenfoundtobeequallyeffectiveasunguidedapproaches. Certainly,experientiallearningapproachesrequireconsiderablere-structuringofteachingandagreatdealofdetailedplanningifthecurriculumistobefullycovered.Itusuallymeansextensivere-trainingoffaculty,andcarefulorientationandpreparationofstudents. IwouldalsoagreewithKirschneretal.thatjustgivingstudentstaskstodoinrealworldsituationswithoutguidanceandsupportislikelytobeineffective. However,manyformsofexperientiallearningcananddohavestrongguidancefrominstructors,andonehastobeverycarefulwhencomparingmatchedgroupsthatthetestsofknowledgeincludemeasurementoftheskillsthatareclaimedtobedevelopedbyexperientiallearning,andarenotjustbasedonthesameassessmentsasfortraditionalmethods,whichoftenhaveaheavybiastowardsmemorisationandcomprehension. Onbalancethen,Iwouldsupporttheuseofexperientiallearningfordevelopingtheknowledgeandskillsneededinadigitalage,butasalways, itneedstobedonewell,followingbestpractices associatedwiththedesignmodels. Activity3.6Assessingexperientialdesignmodels 1.Ifyouhaveexperienceswithexperientiallearning,whatworkedwellandwhatdidn’t? 2.Arethedifferencesbetweenproblem-basedlearning,case-basedlearning,project-basedlearningandinquiry-basedlearningsignificant,oraretheyreallyjustminor variationson thesamedesignmodel? 3.Doyouhaveapreferenceforanyoneofthemodels?Ifso,why? 4.Doyouagreethatexperientiallearningcanbedonejustaswellonlineasinclassrooms orinthefield?Ifnot,whatisthe‘uniqueness’ofdoingitface-to-facethatcannotbereplicatedonline?Canyougiveanexample? 5.Kirschner,SwellerandClark’spaperisapowerfulcondemnationofPBL.Readitinfull,thendecidewhetherornotyousharetheirconclusion,andifnot,whynot. References Banchi,H.,and Bell,R.(2008).TheManyLevelsofInquiry ScienceandChildren,Vol.46, No.2 Dewey,J.(1938).Experience&Education.NewYork,NY:KappaDeltaPi Gijselaers,W.,(1995) ‘Perspectivesonproblem-basedlearning’inGijselaers,W,Tempelaar,D,Keizer,P,Blommaert,J,Bernard,E&Kapser,H(eds)EducationalInnovationinEconomicsandBusinessAdministration:TheCaseofProblem-BasedLearning.Dordrecht,Kluwer. Herreid,C.F.(2007).Startwithastory:Thecasestudymethodofteachingcollegescience.ArlingtonVA:NSTAPress. Irby,D.(1994)Threeexemplary modelsofcase-basedteachingAcademicMedicine,Vol.69,No.12 Kirshner,P.,Sweller,J.amdClark,R.(2006) WhyMinimalGuidanceDuringInstructionDoesNotWork:AnAnalysisoftheFailureofConstructivist,Discovery,Problem-Based,Experiential,andInquiry-BasedTeaching EducationalPsychologist,Vo.41,No.2 Kolb.D.(1984)ExperientialLearning:ExperienceasthesourceoflearninganddevelopmentEnglewoodCliffsNJ:PrenticeHall Larmer,J.andMergendoller,J.(2010)Sevenessentialsforproject-basedlearningEducationalLeadership,Vol.68,No.1 Marcus,G.Taylor,R.andEllis,R.(2004)Implicationsforthedesignofonlinecase-basedlearningactivitiesbasedonthestudentblendedlearningexperience:Perth,Australia:ProceedingsoftheACSCILITEconference,2004 Moon,J.A.(2004)AHandbookofReflectiveandExperientialLearning:TheoryandPracticeNewYork:Routledge Strobel,J.,&vanBarneveld,A.(2009).WhenisPBLMoreEffective?AMeta-synthesisofMeta-analysesComparingPBLtoConventionalClassrooms.InterdisciplinaryJournalofProblem-basedLearning,Vol.3,No.1 Previous:3.5Apprenticeship:learningbydoing(1) Next:3.7Thenurturingandsocialreformmodelsofteaching:learningbyfeeling Backtotop License TeachinginaDigitalAgebyAnthonyWilliam(Tony)BatesislicensedunderaCreativeCommonsAttribution-NonCommercial4.0InternationalLicense,exceptwhereotherwisenoted. 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