1. Confucius quote (from around 450 BC):
Tell me, and I will forget.
Show me, and I may remember.
Involve me, and I will understand

2.  To make experiential learning effective the learning
wheel is used. This is a cyclic process of setting
goals, followed by thinking, planning, experimenting and
decision making , followed by action, followed by
observing, reflecting & reviewing, followed by a bit more
thinking, decision making and sometimes adjusting
goals, followed by more action and so on.

3.  Simply that the approach to experiential learning
utilizes participants own experience and their own
reflection about that experience, rather than lecture
and theory as the means of generating understanding
and transferring skills and knowledge.

4.  Trainers will be the first to expound the virtues of experiential
learning but so often experiential learning is thought to be
about team building or outdoor pursuits. While experiential
learning may have team building as a learning goal and outdoor
activities as a learning method, experiential learning is much
more than that.
 So what is experiential learning? You could say that experiential
learning is a learner centered approach which starts with the
premise that people learn best from experience.
 Others might simply say that experiential learning is: learning-
by-doing.

5.  When participants use experiential learning it is they
that are doing something and discover what it is like, how
it made them feel, what it meant to them, i.e. experiential
learning is their experience and no one else's.
 Therefore experiential learning is particularly effective due
to its holistic approach of addressing cognitive, emotional
and the physical aspect of the learner.
 In this way experiential learning is a process that cultivates
learning self-sufficiency.

6.  Taking an holistic approach experiential learning incorporates
continuous improvement by repeating the learning wheel over and
over. The experiential learning cycle guides individuals and groups
towards improved performance and high quality outcomes.
 The more learners use the experiential learning cycle the more they
will realize continuous improvement.
 Continuous improvement is said to be a journey without an end. There
is always something new, a different way of doing things but the
experiential learning cycle can be apply over and over regardless of
what change needs to be incorporated into personal or business life.

7.  The experiential learning laboratory is an environment
different from participants usual environment. It takes them
away from the workplace, the home, the familiar environment
and places them into an environment of experimentation.
Therefore experiential learning allows people to be
challenged, to think about and experiment with new
concepts, and to take some risks.
 In this way experiential learning can be as much about reflecting
on setbacks and disappointment as it can be on success. In this
way experiential learning is new, different, and liberates the
learner.

8.  Another interesting thought about the experiential
learning journey is that experiential learning is felt by
many to be 'a reward' or a gift in and of itself, because
of it's own intrinsic value and vitality as a learning tool.
 Because of all of this, experiential learning is
enduring, which is why it has such a powerful effect on
people and why it is used so effectively as a learning
tool in professional, educational and corporate
environments.

9.  Used responsibly and professionally, experiential
learning can be profound, exciting, engaging,
challenging, and yet caring. While experiential
learning is a means to an end for achieving desired
learning goals it provides an extra 'something' that is
not achieved in more traditional forms of learning
primarily because experiential learning is both brain,
mind, body, heart and soul friendly!

10.  Every person has comfort zones within which they operate
yet experiential learning often takes place outside of this
zone. While one could say that the key to personal growth
and increasing success in nearly every endeavor is the
willingness to step outside of one's comfort zone, the way
that experiential learning delivers freedom of choice and
risks means that learners remain in control of the learning
process.

11.  Why? because if experiential learning placed people in
situations of great discomfort then learners would be pre-
occupied with comfort reinstatement rather than experiential
learning . The thing therefore about experiential learning is that
whilst stretched and challenged experiential learning will not
place learners in a position of great discomfort. Consequently
everyone enjoys the feeling that experiential learning generates
for they know that their experimentations resulted in success.

12.  Experiential learning recognizes that people learn best
from their own experiences and their own reviews
 Experiential learning subscribes to the notion that what
people do is more important than what they know
 Experiential learning renders behaviors and attitudes
visible and thereby can become acknowledged and then
addressed
 Experiential learning is built on the premise that it is not
enough to explain to people what to do, they must be
shown how to actually do it and then how to improve it

13.  Experiential learning moves beyond knowledge and into
skill by generating a learning experience - the more
experience the greater the skill
 Experiential learning gets to grips with the most
important aspect of training and that is to achieve change
in behavior and attitude
 Experiential learning understands that to be
remembered over a long period of time the learning
process should be enjoyable, motivating and rewarding

14.  Experiential learning respects the individuals ideas and choices
 Experiential learning gives the individual the right to 'confront'
difficult situations with the view to there resolution
 Experiential learning provides opportunity to take on challenge in an
atmosphere of support and caring (the challenge may be intellectual,
emotional, physical, mental, or all four)
 Experiential learning generates space and time to stand back and
reflect when pressures or doubts become too strong
 Experiential learning cultivates a realization that the attempt at
doing something new or different is more significant than the result
 Experiential learning produces an awareness that effective learning
requires small controlled steps outside comfort zones

15.  The design of experiential learning modules ensures that they
offer challenges of a mental, emotional, intellectual and physical
nature to the group - it is therefore an holistic approach. Just like
life! In order to achieve positive outcomes, the learner must work
to plan, participate, problem solve, make decisions and consider
the role of leadership when appropriate. Other components of
an experiential learning module explore
feelings, trust, feedback, listening, effective
questioning, communication between generations and levels of
management, risk taking, reflection and review.

16.  A better understanding of the learners life challenges
 A clear rationale and methodology that allows the learner to
overcome these challenges
 An Experiential Learning experience will assist the learner with
achieving true change (Cognitive Change)
 Lessons learned by “Doing” will be retained and will therefore be
accessible by the learner for a “Lifetime”
 The learner will see improvements in :
Self Esteem, Self Confidence, Awareness, Productivity,
Personal Relationships, Goal Achievement, Life Style Choices
and Self Management Ability.