David Kolb

Experiential Learning
 Background
 Classical conditioning could not explain what
Piaget observed (children go through stages of
development unrelated to external stimuli)
 Cognitive theorists (Bloom) dealt with
hierarchical nature of knowledge
 Humanists (Maslow) concentrated on the affect
domain (learners take control of their own
processes)
 Mezirow and Freire (early 1980’s) found that the
“heart of learning lies in the way we process
experience and our critical reflection of
experience; learning is a cycle
 Kolb…
 Further defined the concept of
reflection
 2 separate learning activities—
perceiving and processing
“Learning is the process whereby
knowledge is created through the
transformation of experience.”

 Concrete experience (“DO”)

 Reflective observation (“OBSERVE”)

 Abstract conceptualization (“THINK”)

 Active experimentation (“PLAN”)

 Learning styles
 Assimilators—sound logical theories
 Convergers—practical applications of
concepts and theories
 Accommodators—”hands on”
experiences
 Divergers—allowed to observe and
collect a wide range of information
Experiential Learning
and
The World of
 Diverger
 Emphasizes the
innovative and
imaginative approach
to doing things
 Views concrete
situations from many
perspectives and
adapts by observation
rather than by action
 Interested in people
and tends to be
feeling-oriented
 Assimilator
 Pulls a number of different
observations and thoughts
into an integrated whole
 likes to reason inductively
and create models and
theories
 Likes to design projects
and experiments
 Characteristic of basic
sciences and math rather
than applied sciences
 Enjoys research and
planning
 Converger
 Emphasizes the
practical application of
ideas and solving
problems
 Likes decision-making,
problem-solving, and
the practical
application of ideas
 Prefers technical
problems over
interpersonal issues
 Accommodator
 Uses trial and error
rather than thought
and reflection
 Good at adapting to
changing
circumstances
 Solves problems in an
intuitive, trial-and-
error manner, such as
discovery learning
 Tends to be at ease
with people