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Running Head: EXPERIENCE AND EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

The Impact of Life Experience and Experiential Learning on Adult Learners

Kari Schlemmer Sutlovich

Western Washington University

EXPERIENCE AND EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING 2

The Impact of Life Experience and Experiential Learning on Adult Learners

“The trouble with being a parent is that by the time you are experienced; you are

unemployed” (author unknown). I am a parent. I am a mom to a very busy, almost 3 year old,

little boy. I have seen other children grow up and experience many things, but nothing is more

fascinating than watching my own son as he grows physically, mentally, and emotionally. As I

reflect on my day and the interactions with my son, I am continually amazed at the new things

that he has learned and the experiences that he shares with me about his day.

For example, this morning he said to me, “Mommy, it’s stormy outside.” I responded,

“How do you know it is stormy outside?” He responded with, “Because it is windy and dark

outside.” Sure enough, it was a bit stormy outside. However, I have not taught him this word, so

I began to wonder, how did he discover this word and how did he manage to use it in the correct

context? Again, remember, he is not even 3 years old, so he has not yet gone to formal school.

In addition to watching my son grow, I also love to people watch. People are fascinating

creatures. The way they move, talk, interact, and make decisions…everything about people is

captivating. I am lucky in the fact that I have a group of students (dis-engaged young adults) that

I get to continually observe. Every day I get to watch my students as they experience life. Some

of them are open enough to share their daily life decisions with me and my staff and other days

they are more reserved and keep their personal lives to themselves. The decisions they make

(both good and bad) and why they make those decisions are an interesting process to observe and

inquire about. Often times I find that they don’t want to discuss, reflect or accept responsibility

for their actions, but I remind them that learning from these experiences will shape their future. If

they reflect upon the experience, they will learn from it. “Learning is important because no one is


born with the ability to function competently as an adult in society” (Bransford, J.D., Brown,

A.L., Cocking, R.R., Donovan, S.M., Pellegrino, J.W., [2000], pg. 51)

I share the examples of my son and the examples of my students to demonstrate that there

is a vast array of experiences that have shaped the lives of these youth. The experiences that they

have as youth create the foundation of learning that they will carry with them into adulthood.

The idea that experiences across the lifespan impact student learning, especially in our adult

years, is solidified by Merriam, Caffarella, and Baumgartner (2007) when they quoted Malcolm

Knowles (1989) with, “adults come into an educational activity with both a greater volume and a

different quality of experience from youth.” The more I think about the experiences that I have

had across my 30 year life span, the more I am entranced by the “what if” thoughts about my

own life. I continually wonder about how to use these experiences in my future. In addition to

my own self-reflection, I ponder the concept of how experiential learning and personal reflection

can enhance the lives of my students.

In a recent discussion with my peers about education, I was enlightened by the concept that

there is more than one form of education. In its most obvious form, I have always thought of

education as a formal process. Never before had I put much thought into the nonformal and

informal learning opportunities that we experience. The stories that I shared previously about my

son and my students are examples of informal learning opportunities. Merriam, Caffarella, and

Baumgartner (2007) provide great definitions of these various forms of learning:

Formal learning takes place in institutions and leads to degrees or some form of credit.

Nonformal learning occurs outside of educational institutions such as community

organizations or cultural institutions such as museums and libraries.

Informal learning refers to every day experiences from which we learn something.


The more I contemplate these methods of learning, the more I am convinced that adult learners

can find their life experiences intertwined with these three methods of learning. Experience

becomes “the adult learner’s living textbook” (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007).

In addition Merriam(et. all) provide supporting information from Malcolm Knowles

demonstrating that he had observed that adults will define themselves by their previous

experiences as well as external factors like family, community, spouses, etc. Knowles spent his

career attempting to translate goals and create theoretical framework for adult education because

he understood that adults would require a unique process from that of teaching children. Elias

and Merriam (2005) remind us that Knowles popularized the term andragogy; the art and science

of helping adults learn (which in contrast is pedagogy, the education of teaching children).

Knowles developed several assumptions about andragogy; one of which is that adults define him

or herself in terms of the accumulation of a unique set of life experiences (Elias and Merriam,

2005, pg. 133). This unique set of life experiences impacts individual learner need and interest

and will ultimately impact the adult learners’ motivation to learn. This vast array of life factors

that contribute to our experiences really appears to show up across the variety of learning

environments (formal, informal and nonformal).

In an effort to put some formality to experience and learning, Fenwick (2003), as cited by

Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner (2007) explains that there are five main perspectives when

evaluating experience and learning. The five main perspectives are:

1. Reflecting on concrete experience (constructivist theory of learning). This theory

focuses on “reflection on experience”. People reflect on experiences that they have and

construct new knowledge out of these reflections. Total focus is placed on the learners

processes of learning as a result of previous experiences.


2. Participating in a community of practice (situative theory of learning). This theory

embodies the concept that knowing and doing are intertwined. Participation is a goal of

this perspective.

3. Getting in touch with unconscious desires and fears (psychoanalytic theory of

learning). The unconscious (and our desires) interferes with conscious experiences in

this theory of learning. If we have conflicting desires, our learning experience could be

compromised.

4. Resisting dominant social norms of experience (critical cultural theory). This theory

“seeks to transform existing social orders, by critically questioning and resisting

dominant norms of experience.” (Fenwick, (2003) pg 38).

5. Exploring ecological relationships between cognition and the environment (Complexity

theory applied to learning). The focus in this theory is not on the experience but on the

relationships that bind together all of our systems (like, consciousness, identity, actions,

interactions, objects, etc).

In reading about these five main perspectives, of particular interest to me is the concept

of situated learning experiences. Meyers (2011) describes situated learning as a mode of teaching

that immerses students in the actual setting to practice the skills and concepts that were explained

in the curriculum. Merriam, Caffarella, and Baumgartner (2007) break down the basic frame

work of the situative learning theory:

1. The formal education process includes getting the learner involved in a community of

practice. Arrange situations where the learner can participate. Give participants assistance

when they get stuck

2. Use service learning activities (volunteer work)

3. Apprenticeships and internships are a primary source of experiential learning

opportunities.


Clark, Threeton, & Ewing (2010) evaluated several experiential learning models and found

evidence that with adult learners if “the learning concepts are reinforced, the learner will transfer

the learning beyond the formal education setting” (pg. 50).

In addition, Merriam (et. all, 2007) summarized Kolb and Kolb’s (2005) 6 general

propositions of experiential learning theory:

1. Learning is best conceived as a process, not in terms of outcomes

2. Learning is relearning-students’ ideas must be drawn out, discussed and refined

3. Learning requires a resolution of “dialectically opposed modes of adaptation to the

world” in other words “learners must move between opposing modes of reflection and

action and feeling and thinking”

4. Learning is holistic

5. Learning involves interactions between the learner and the environment

6. Learning is constructivist in nature.

Basically in understanding how adult students learn best, I find the concept of situative learning

to be a supportive approach to learning because students can take their new knowledge and apply

it in a real life setting. This process is important to ensure successful transfer of learning from

classroom to life.

For this current academic year, several of my students applied and were accepted to be a

part of YouthBuild USA. There is a non-profit organization in this community that was awarded

a full YouthBuild USA grant. This opportunity allowed 28 dis-engaged students to come back to

school to work on their high school diploma or general equivalency diploma (GED) and to

physically work on building a home for a low-income family. Throughout the week students

must be in school 50% of the time, work on building the home 40% of the time and then

participate in community service for the remaining 10% of their time for that week. I have 6


students actively participating in this experience and when I check in with them, they continually

tell me how difficult it is to manage school and “work” but that they are grateful for the learning

opportunity and that they are enjoying the hands-on building experience. They appreciate the

ability to learn about home building in a classroom environment and then to put the knowledge

into practice. Several of them will be applying for carpentry apprenticeships upon completion of

the house project and completion of their high school diploma because the opportunity to “try”

their hand at carpentry (in a lab setting with supportive instructors) before being put in an

independent live situation has developed a confidence in a skill for them that they did not know

was possible.

Additional support for situated learning experiences comes across in a variety of recent

research studies. In a recent literature review, I was able to find an abundance of research on the

benefits of experiential learning in formal educational settings. Havard, Morgan, and Patrick

(2010) created an authentic learning opportunity for graduate level students to pair the university

coursework with the reality of the K-12 workplace. Students were given a real life leadership

role in the K-12 system to develop their professional skills while still finishing their academic

studies. This concept was new to Auburn University and the partnering school district as

typically administrative internships were conducted upon completion of all academic

coursework. In an attempt to link theory with practice, Havard (et. all) remind us that “a

principal’s life is so fraught with reacting to crisis and changing demands that it makes learning

on the job an unproductive and stressful existence for these school leaders” (pg. 463). Therefore,

if they can experience on-the-job training while not officially in that capacity and pair it with

formal instruction (for guidance), their ability to transfer their newly acquired skills and

knowledge will be more successful because of the experiential learning opportunity.


Additional support for experiential learning opportunities is provided by, McClellan and

Hyle (2012). They write about an opportunity where doctoral students were allowed to conduct

qualitative research in a foreign context. They designed a seminar course that allowed 16

students to take a cruise, to a foreign land, to collect data in an unfamiliar context. This

unfamiliar context pushed the students to explore their reflective abilities regarding this

experience. The instructors assisted the reflective learning process using Kolb’s (1984) stages of

experience, reflection, conceptualization, and application. McClellan and Hyle credit Giddens,

1991, Heneveld, 1988, and Schofield & Caragata, 1999, with the idea that adults learn best when

engaged in individual-centered, multisensory, experiential, and collaborative lesson. Basically,

this doctoral course was collaboratively re-designed to be a perfect blend of traditional classroom

lecture in a non-traditional, foreign, and experiential learning environment. McClellan and Hyle

report that in their reflective journals, students wrote about their initial struggles and about how

the course had initiated personal growth and confidence as a researcher. Overall, the faculty and

the students felt this was a beneficial learning experience for everyone involved.

In the previous example, I briefly mentioned Kolb. David Kolb is a name that you will

probably hear when individuals are researching or discussing experiential learning theories

because he has spent the majority of his career exploring experiential learning theories. Green &

Ballard (2010) explain that “experiential learning theorist, Kolb (1984) asserts that simply

acquiring or transmitting content does not transform an individual; rather, transformation occurs

as he or she interfaces with content within an experience and later reflects on concepts learned”

(pg. 15). Kolb’s learning cycle is often referenced in research articles about experiential

learning. The four levels of the interactive experiential learning cycle include:


Reflective Observation (watching)

Abstract conceptualization (thinking)

Active experimentation (doing)

Concrete experience (feeling).

Kolb encourages individuals to process their experiences throughout the four levels of the

experiential learning cycle, but admits that there is no certain order. Some individuals may

choose to start at active experimentation while others may start at abstract conceptualization.

Overall, if individuals process their experiences thru all four stages of the learning cycle, they

should feel confident in the outcome of their ability to synthesize the knowledge that they have

gained from this reflective process.

Merriam, Caffarella, and Baumgartner (2007) remind us that John Dewey (1938) had once

shared the idea that “all genuine education comes about through experience.” However, do not

let this be confused with “all experiences are genuinely educative.” “Dewey defined education as

the reconstruction and reorganization of experience that increases our ability to direct the course

of subsequent experience” (Elias & Merriam, 2005, pg. 62). Merriam (et. all) also provide

information from Jarvis (2001) as he critiques the Kolb model and reminds us that experience

and reflection do not happen in a vacuum. Jarvis attempts to simplify the process of learning

from experiences by indicated that there are simply two types of learning:

1. Nonreflective learning is the process of remembering an experience and simply

repeating it

2. Reflective learning involves thinking about the experience and changing future

behaviors accordingly.

Instead of trying to complicate experiential learning theories, Dewey and Jarvis provide us

with a fairly basic concept. This concept serves as a good reminder that if adult learners want to


ensure a change in behavior, they must reflect upon their previous experiences. “Several

philosophical traditions (progressive, humanist, and radical philosophies) emphasize the

importance of the need for learners to develop the ability to reflect critically on experiences to

build new learning” (Elias and Merriam, 2004, as cited by Green and Ballard, 2010, pg. 12). Let

us keep in mind that this reflection process will look different depending on the lens in which the

experience is evaluated.

In recent conversations I was reminded of the fact that educational theories and learning

environments can be viewed thru a variety of lenses. As I became familiar with these different

learning environments, I was struck by the repetitious theme of experience that continued to

emerge. For example, with embodied, spiritual, and narrative learning Merriam, Caffarella, and

Baumgartner (2007) remind the reader that embodied learning happens because “we can think

only with what we know ‘in our bones’” (pg. 194). Thus implying that the experiences that we

have had are within our physical body and subsequent experiences will be built upon the

existing framework. They also remind us that with intelligence and aging theories of learning, it

is difficult to find one agreed upon definition for intelligence in regards to learning. However, in

general, the theorists most often view intelligence as a combination of biological, psychological,

social and cultural, life experiences and environmental factors (pg. 373). Also, if someone was

to view learning thru a non-western lens, they would probably find more informal learning

emphasized and would place more emphasis on learning experiences such as storytelling,

poetry, dreams, meditation, and ceremonies (pg. 238). All of these culturally diverse

opportunities are experiences that any individual could experience and reflect upon instead of

simply having knowledge bestowed upon them. Grounding or connecting the knowledge to a

familiar life process will help learners to retain the newly acquired information and transfer it to


their own life. John Shook (2008), as quoted by Merriam-Webster (online), said “Human

experience is the ultimate source and justification for all knowledge.”

It is with that quote by Shook that I begin to sit back and think about my day. I start to

wonder why I am exhausted…physically, mentally, and emotionally. What happened today that

wore me out? Was it one event or the collection of events that have exhausted me? As I explore

this idea, I am reminded of the many hats that I wear. I am a mom, a wife, a daughter, an aunt, a

friend, an advocate, a professional education program manager, an advisory board member, and

a graduate student. These are all roles that I played thought out today that merge together to

become my life experiences. Every one of these experiences today has impacted my mood and

my energy today, but in reality has impacted my life in general. Every decision I make,

regardless if it was a reflective or non-reflective experience, about how and where to spend my

time, impacts my future. As I have gotten older I have realized the importance of reflecting upon

these daily experiences.

In addition to my own personal self-reflection, I begin to think about my son and the

students that I have had interactions with. I wonder what type of experiences they are thinking

about and if anyone is encouraging them to reflect upon those experiences. I begin to wonder if

as an education system, we are doing everything possible to help our students to be resilient

learners. Are there possible genetic or biological differences in students that impact their

learning? Or are their educational experiences impacted by the environment in which they are

living? Bonomo (2010) writes about the different learning needs of boys and girls. Should boys

and girls be in integrated classrooms or should they be separate based on their unique

educational needs and the way they learn and process information? Are there things that we


should be doing for children in their elementary years that will ultimately impact their learning

processes as they become adult learners?

Overall, the experiences that children have will build the foundation of how they view

their future learning opportunities. The experiences that students have during their adolescent

years will build on their childhood experiences. Of course, it is my hope that the experiences that

those adolescents have will in turn positively impact the learning opportunities that adult learners

immerse themselves in. In particular I hope that my students (dis-engaged young adults) begin to

find ways to be reflective of their life experiences and their educational journey; especially as

they become adult learners. The experiences that they have will be both positive and negative,

but both experiences deserve reflection. Bransford, et. all (2000) said “Educators hope that

students will transfer learning from one problem to another within a course, from one year in

school to another, between school and home, and from school to workplace.” With that said, it is

my belief that adult learners should embrace their life experiences, try to participate in

experiential learning if the opportunity arises, realize that they are learning from their

experiences and understand that this learning and reflecting process is invaluable.


References

Bonomo, V. (2010). Gender Matters in Elementary Education: Research-based strategies to meet

the distinctive learning needs of boys and girls. Educational Horizons, 88(4), 257-264.

Bransford, J.D., Brown, A.L., Cocking, R.R., Donovan, S.M., & Pellegrino, J.W. (Eds.). (2000).

How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. Washington, DC: National

Academy Press.

Clark, R.W., Threeton, M.D., & Ewing, J.C. (2010). The Potential of Experiential learning

Models and Practices in Career and Technical Education & Career and Technical Teacher

Education. Journal of Career and Technical Education, 25(2), 46-62.

Elias, J.L. & Merriam, S.B. (2005). Philosophical Foundations of Adult Education, Third

Edition. Malabar: Kreiger Publishing Company.

Green, G. & Ballard, G.H. (2010). No Substitute for Experience: Transforming Teacher

Preparation with Experiential and Adult Learning Practices. SRATE Journal, 20(1), 12-20.

Havard, T.S., Morgan, J., & Patrick, L. (2010). Special Issue: Providing Authentic Leadership

Opportunities through Collaboratively Developed Internships: A University-School

District Partnership Initiative. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 5 (12.6),

460-480.

McClellan, R. & Hyle, A.E. (2012). Experiential learning: Dissolving Classroom and Research

Borders. Journal of Experiential Education, 35(1), 238-252.

Merriam, S.B., Caffarella, R.S., & Baumgartner, L.M. (2007). Learning in adulthood: A

comprehensive guide, 3rd edition. San Francisco: Jossey Boss.

Merriam-Webster (n.d.). Experience. Retrieved March 13, 2013.

http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/experience

Meyers, S. (2011). Life skills training through situated learning experiences: an alternative

instructional model. International Journal of Special Education. 26(3), 142-149.

http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/experience

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