A group of 48 first year students of the Architecture Department had an opportunity to visit the agro-tropical home of En.Mazlan Zain in Kg. Kota Giam, Jitra, Kedah as part of their site-study visit in the middle of last semester. The activity was part of an Experiential Learning practice imbedded in the course teaching and learning methodology. By a general definition, ‘Experiential Learning’ includes the experiences that are produced through constant interactions and engagement with the context and learning is an inevitable output of that experiences. Experiential Learning promotes meaningful and deep learning rather than surface or rote learning.
David Kolb, an American educational theorist promoting Experiential Learning suggested that there are four main stages of the experiential learning cycle, which are Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualization and Active Experimentation. This site-study visit was one of the best applications for this learning mode. Experiential Learning is perfect for conducting site-study such as this, as it is vital to experiment, reflect, amend and re-evaluate during a research trip or project.
Different students possess different learning styles and by understanding this it helps instructors to approach teaching and learning in a variety of methods. Experiential Learning improves teamwork, leadership and communication skills. Students involved in different stages or levels of cognitive, psychomotor and affective skills. Some of the learning stages include experiencing, imagining, reflecting, analysing, thinking, deciding, acting, initiating, and balancing.
Selecting the most suitable assessment methods for evaluating Experiential Learning is imperative to ensure the learning objectives stipulated in the course, lesson or activity are achieved. Some of the assessment strategies that can be used are suggested below:
All in all, Experiential Learning can be extremely useful to be applied in teaching and learning. Experiential Learning encourages the idea that learning is a lifelong process and it significantly enhances the traditional learning methods in order to develop critical thinking and soft skills in a meaningful experience.
Dr. Roslina Sharif Pensyarah Kanan |
Date of Input: 04/10/2023 | Updated: 04/10/2023 | uswahhasanah
UNIVERSITI PUTRA MALAYSIA
43400 UPM SERDANG
SELANGOR
tdaafrsb@upm.edu.my