URDANETA

College of Teacher Education

CITYUNIVERSITY
Owned and operated by the City Government of Urdaneta

EDGAR DALE’S
CONE OF
EXPERIENCE

A Written Report by:

JUSTINE MAE SIMBE

ANGELIKA NARDO
ISRAEL JUDE MANANSALA
ROSELLE CRUZ

E207
1st Semester A.Y. 2022-2023
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 URDANETA
College of Teacher Education
CITYUNIVERSITY
Owned and operated by the City Government of Urdaneta

EDGAR DALE’S CONE OF EXPERIENCE

INTRODUCTION

The Cone of Experience is a graphic device introduced by Edgar

Dale (1946) in his textbook on audiovisual techniques in education to
summarize Dale's categorization system for the many sorts of
mediated learning experiences. The organizational idea of the Cone
was a movement from tangible/concrete to abstract experiences (the
bottom to the top of the cone). Direct, Purposeful Experiences;
Contrived Experiences; Dramatic Participation; Demonstrations; Field
Trips; Exhibits; Motion Pictures; Radio-Recordings-Still Pictures; Visual
Symbols; and Verbal Symbols are the original designations for Dale's
10 categories.

According to one theory on the selection and use of teaching

approaches, the more senses involved in the learning process, the
greater and more effective the learning will be. However, this does not
mean that only tactile experience should be used to communicate
knowledge to students. The experiences in each stage can be
combined and are linked to each other. This means that a balance
must be found between concrete and abstract experiences to meet
each learner's needs in all areas of development and help them grow
as a whole.

CONCEPT
EXPLORATION

Moving toward the Cone's pinnacle from direct, purposeful

experiences to verbal symbols, the degree of abstraction gradually
increases. As a result, learners become spectators rather than
participants (Seels, 1997). The bottom of the Cone represented a
"purposeful experience that is seen, handled, tasted, touched, felt, and
smelled" (Dale, 1954, p. 42). At the summit of the Cone, however,
vocal symbols (i.e., words) and messages are very abstract. They do
not physically resemble things or concepts.

Dale (1969) argued that the broad base of the Cone represented the
significance of direct experience for successful communication and
learning. Particularly for young children, actual and tangible
experiences are required as the basis for their permanent learning.
The historical significance of Dale's Cone stems from its effort to tie
media to psychological theory (Seels, 1997), and the Cone has
subsequently influenced several media selection standards. For
example, under the influence of Dale, Briggs (1972) outlined broad
guidelines for media selection based on the age of learners, the kind of
learners, and the type of work.
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College of Teacher Education
CITYUNIVERSITY
Owned and operated by the City Government of Urdaneta

In the last edition of Audiovisual Methods in Teaching (1969), Dale

integrated Bruner’s (1966) three modes of learning into the Cone by
categorizing learning experiences into three modes: enactive (i.e.,
learning by doing), iconic (i.e., learning through observation), and
symbolic experience (i.e., learning through abstraction).

Figure 1. Cone of Experience

1. Direct purposeful experiences - Direct purposeful experiences

simply refer to hands-on learning or practice of a real thing. It’s
located at the base of the Cone of Experience, which means that it
gives the most concrete, tangible learning experience. That’s to
say that at this level, learners are actively participating in an
activity, allowing them to make use of all their senses in the
learning process.

2. Contrived experiences - Contrived experiences are edited or

imitated versions of reality, like mock-ups, simulations,
gamification, and models. As some concepts are too complex, this
kind of learning experience makes it easier to visualize and
understand a subject. In some cases, it also makes teaching a lot
more flexible as these representative models can be easily
manipulated or operated for educational purposes.

3. Dramatized experiences - Dramatized experiences are

recreated situations where learners can directly participate, such
as role-plays, that are based on real-life happenings. Through this
activity, learners can immerse themselves in a situation even if
it’s not the real thing yet. This also gives them the opportunity to
safely fail in a recreated experience.
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College of Teacher Education
CITYUNIVERSITY
Owned and operated by the City Government of Urdaneta

4. Demonstrations - Demonstrations are visual explanations of how

something works. It also works as a visual guide on how to do
something. Typically, this medium of instruction is used when
there are logistic limitations for a hands-on learning activity for
everyone. In essence, learners learn from observing someone else
do an activity.

5. Study trips/Field trips - Study trips are where learners have

the opportunity to observe different objects, situations, activities,
and other related information in a real-world setting. It’s a level
that gives learners a feast of real sights and sounds.

6. Exhibits - Exhibits are meaningful displays with limited handling.

This means that sometimes exhibits can be restricted to
observation only. Meanwhile, other kinds of exhibits are designed
to be interactive, which encourages direct participation and the
use of a range of senses from learners. This makes it the first
level in the Cone of Experience that moves away from
abstractness, unlike the previous levels.

7. Motion Pictures and Educational Television - Recent

publications combine motion pictures and educational television
on the same level as they are similar mediums. But, in the
original model, they were counted as separate levels. These levels
are all about learning videos and animations where both visual
and auditory senses are being used.

8. Recordings, radio, and still pictures - This level simply refers

to photographs and audio recordings like podcasts. While this
level is less abstract, learners are still merely observers. This level
also debunks the misconception that auditory media is better than
visual media since photos and audio are put together at the same
level.

9. Visual symbols - Visual symbols are graphic representations of

concepts, which include charts, diagrams, infographics, graphs,
flowcharts, and the like. They are used to help make concepts
easier for our brains to understand and interpret concepts.

10. Verbal symbols - Verbal symbols refer to texts or words, like

terminologies, rules, formulas, and other similar concepts. It’s
located at the peak of the cone, which means that this is the most
abstract learning experience as they don’t give any visual
representation of a subject.
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College of Teacher Education
CITYUNIVERSITY
Owned and operated by the City Government of Urdaneta

SUMMARY

Cone of Experience - A model that represents the relative

effectiveness of various types of learning and communication.
Direct Purposeful Experience – “First hand experiences”, have
direct participation in the outcome.
Contrived Experiences – Representations such as models,
miniatures or mock ups are used.
Dramatized Experiences – These are commonly used as activities
that allows students to actively participate in a reconstructed
experience.
Demonstrations – It is an actual execution of a procedure or a
process.
Study Trips – These are actual visits to certain locations to observe a
situation or a case which may not be available inside the classroom.
Exhibits - These are displays of models such as pictures, artifacts,
posters, among others that provide the message or information.
Television and Motion Picture - This technology equipment provide
a two- dimensional reconstruction of a reality.
Still Pictures, Recording, Radio - Still are pictures or images.
Together in this category are the audio – recorded materials or
information broadcast through the radio.
Visual Symbols - This are more abstract representation of concept or
the information.
Verbal Symbols - This category appears to be the most abstract
because they may not exactly look like the concept or object, they
represent but are symbols, word, codes, or formulae.

REFERENCES

Anderson, H. M. (2021). E dale’s cone of experience T - queen's U.

Dale's Cone of Experience. Retrieved December 17, 2022, from
https://tinyurl.com/mwsnu9tb

Bariuad, S. (2022, September 29). The cone of experience. EdApp

Microlearning Blog. Retrieved December 18, 2022, from
https://tinyurl.com/5n8by6vtLee, S. J., &

Dange, J. K. (2015). Learning and experiences: A step model -

TOJNED. Learning and Experiences: A Step model. Retrieved
December 18, 2022, from https://tinyurl.com/mvay7su6

Lee, S. J., & Reeves, T. C. (1970, January 1). Edgar Dale and the cone
of experience. Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design
Technology. Retrieved December 18, 2022, from
https://tinyurl.com/2s3v3c9c
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 URDANETA
College of Teacher Education
CITYUNIVERSITY
Owned and operated by the City Government of Urdaneta

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