Experiential Learning (EL) is a spectrum of activities where students practice, receive feedback, and can reflect on a learning task that mirrors what they will do with their learning after graduation.
In EL, students’ knowledge is accompanied by competency in applying the knowledge skillfully. The four essential elements of EL are:
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Doing: Students apply their knowledge by doing (active learning) in a situation with some unpredictable factors that require student decision-making.
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Context: The application occurs in an authentic context, where students need to make decisions about what is important and the best path forward. This may include an authentic problem, a real client whom students will help, or an audience beyond the class.
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Feedback: Students get information about how well they are learning as the learning occurs, and adjust their thinking, actions etc. in response as they learn.
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Reflection: Students consider the success of their approaches, generalizing what worked and considering how to improve as they learn.
It is possible for students to have an experience but not to engage in experiential learning. Considering the role of context, feedback, and reflection can distinguish helpful active learning from activities realted to EL.
How do you know when you need Experiential Learning?
EL is not a new approach to teaching, but in recent years has become increasingly common in higher education. It is an engaging approach to teaching and learning that can be extremely beneficial for students, especially as they start their careers. Due to practical limitations, EL can't always be used, which leads to the question: When should you use EL?
Some skills taught in university courses are critical for students to perform successfully in their careers after graduation. These skills should be taught using EL. To identify these skills, you should review your program level outcomes, connect with recent graduates, talk to your disciplinary community, and/or reflect on the core skills of your discipline.
Many processes require practice, feedback, and iteration to learn. If these processes are important for students to master, then you should use EL. Within EL, students perform activities, receive feedback, and complete facilitated reflection. The reflection stage moves them through a process of considering what they did, how it went, and what they’ll do differently next time. As a result, they are prepared to do better the next time they practice the process. The best EL implementations provide multiple opportunities for students to practice until they reach mastery.
Students often identify a gap between what they learn in the classroom (i.e., what they know) and what they are expected to do (i.e. to demonstrate their learning). They may feel like they understand what they’ve been learning and may even do well on an exam, but when they go to apply the learning in an authentic context, they struggle. If you’ve noticed this happening, you have a great opportunity to integrate EL into your course. EL provides students with the opportunity to practice and apply their learning in authentic contexts and navigate authentic variables they will likely encounter. The authentic context could be a complex work placement, but it doesn’t need to be. There are more accessible ways to provide an authentic context to all students, such as role plays, simulations, case studies, laboratories, or *short-term projects with external partners (*Riipen).
Types of EL
Experiential Learning occurs in the intersection between the disciplinary domain and the context of the experience.
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Domain refers to the types of disciplinary praxis (thinking and practice combined) that underly disciplinary competency.
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Context, the place where the EL occurs, shapes the types of experiences and their relative complexity.
Examples connected to Indigenization, internationalization, and sustainability are indicated in bold with an astericks*, recognizing that all experiential learning helps work towards better ways of knowing, doing, and being for people, planet, and prosperity.
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Work or entrepreneurship |
Research |
Problem or project |
Community-engaged or service |
Creative |
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In class |
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In |
Skills lab |
Creating a prototype or solution |
Create an artefact (sculpture, improv) Language lab* |
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In workplace, community |
Design challenge with industrial commercial institutional partners |
Gallery, exhibit, performance |
* Indicates the example is connected to Indigenization, internationalization, and/or sustainability.
EL in your course
Experiential Learning resources:
Get help with:
- Designing EL in your course - Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning
- Placements - Career Services
Curricular programming
Hands-on experiential learning opportunities like research, volunteering, summer and part-time jobs, study abroad, and internships all complement students’ in-class university experience and are great ways to develop professional skills.
RBC Learn to Work, Work to Learn program is a part of RBC Future Launch, helps students develop necessary skills to enter the workforce and enhance opportunities to advance in their career. With a primary focus on developing skills in networking, communication, negotiation, professionalism and critical thinking; students are given the opportunity to network and gain insight from employers in their industry of interest.
Career Services in partnership with the College of Agriculture and Bioresources and the College of Kinesiology provide a skills-focused learning course for students before, during and after summer work experience under the shared guidance of industry mentors and faculty facilitators. Built around the summer experience and offered throughout the academic year are numerous employment workshops, seminars and industry networking events to enhance student learning through professional practice and direct mentorship.
For more information, contact Career Services
Riipen is available to be used by faculty and instructors in any course looking to incorporate experiential learning via work-integrated learning, community-engaged learning, placements, internships, or practica. It can be used to streamline existing partnerships and to find new ones locally, nationally, and internationally. It provides an all-in-one platform for connecting, communicating, sharing documents, and managing deadlines between stakeholders (instructors, students, and community/industry partners).
For more information, contact Career Services.
Future Skills Innovation Network (FUSION) is a part of the federally funded Future Skills Centre (FSC), is a national network of six Canadian universities focused on exploring innovative and inclusive experiential learning approaches to foster skill development and prepare university students to join a rapidly evolving world of work. The FUSION Skill-Development Curriculum is an interactive and engaging 10-hour online, self-study curriculum designed to wraparound and complement a student’s existing experiential learning opportunity (e.g., internship, student leadership role, research project, part-time job, volunteer placement, or summer work term). The FUSION curriculum focuses on helping students enhance skills across three critical 21st century skill domains: Metacognition, Problem Solving, and Communication.
For more information, contact Career Services.
Funding
The Teaching and Learning Innovation Fund is a strategic fund intended to provide academic units with support for program level curriculum, assessment or instructional change initiatives and projects including experiential learning.
Get Help
Email the details of your project and/or questions to be connected with the appropriate supports from the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning, Career Services, or another group depending on the nature of your request.
Experiential Learning blog
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