Kolb's Experiential Learning Model
Kolb's Experiential Learning Model, developed by psychologist David A. Kolb in 1976, emphasizes the process of learning through experience. This model is rooted in the belief that effective learning occurs via a cyclical four-step process: Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualization, and Active Experimentation. Individuals process their experiences uniquely, resulting in four distinct learning styles: Divergers (imaginative learners who value experience and reflection), Assimilators (who favor reflective observation and logic), Convergers (practical learners who synthesize experience and theory), and Accommodators (hands-on learners who embrace action and experience).
Kolb's Learning Style Inventory has been widely utilized in various fields, including education, organizational development, and the arts, to assess and adapt to individual learning preferences. The model has undergone revisions, notably in 1985 and 2011, to enhance its clarity and applicability. Kolb believes that learning styles are flexible and can be developed over time, urging learners to continuously reassess their approaches to education. His work is influenced by the ideas of John Dewey and incorporates the concept of metacognition, recognizing the importance of understanding one's own learning processes. Overall, Kolb's model serves as a framework for fostering deeper engagement and connection in the learning experience.
Kolb's Experiential Learning Model
Psychologist David A. Kolb (1939–) used existing theories on experiential theory to create his Learning Style Inventory (LSI) in 1976 as an interdisciplinary tool for measuring the learning styles of students in secondary education and higher education. Kolb was particularly influenced by the ideas of educator John Dewey (1859–1952), who is considered a pioneer in the field of experiential learning theory. Kolb believes that learning takes place over the course of a lifetime, and his models are based on the concept that individuals use a combination of experience, reflection, observation, and action as they process information and determine actions. He contends that the ideal learner is one who is able to combine different learning styles. Employing experiential learning theories, which suggest that individuals learn best according to their own experiences, LSI has been widely used to test students in a variety of diverse fields, including career guidance, counseling, organizational development, medicine, engineering, dance, art, and yoga. Kolb’s models have been revised and improved several times, most notably in 1985 and 2011.
Background
In general, experiential learning theories (ELT), which originated in 1890 with William James (1842–1910), a physician, philosopher, and psychologist, have been based on the understanding that learning involves experience, reflecting, thinking, and acting. John Dewey is considered the most significant influence on educational reforms that took place in the United States during the Progressive Era of the 1920s and 1930s. Dewey began with the ELT-based concept that learning from experience is preferable to learning by listening to teachers or reading from books. Dewey argued that authoritarian methods common in education at the time had led students to distance themselves from the educational process because they believed that it was irrelevant to their own lives. As an advocate of educational reform, Dewey suggested that educators should take advantage of the fact that students were all distinct individuals who brought their own learning styles to the classroom. He believed that educating students according to experiential learning theories would produce students who felt connected to what they learned and would lead to the creation of a more democratic society in which individuals desired to become good citizens.
Various ELT theorists have identified personality, education, culture, and individual preferences as major influences on learning styles. Some theorists believe that learning styles are fixed, while others insist that learning styles change over an individual’s lifespan. Kolb has come to the conclusion that learning styles are flexible, and he believes that individuals can learn to use learning styles other than those that develop naturally. Trained as a psychologist, David Kolb was a professor of organizational behavior within the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University before his retirement in 1976. Kolb coined the term "learning style" in the 1960s when he began examining the difference in learning that was based on experience as distinct from that which was derived cognitively. While more than one hundred learning styles have been developed, Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model has remained popular and is still widely used. That longevity is in large part due to Kolb’s willingness to learn from his own mistakes and his ability to take advantage of new knowledge and educational trends.
Overview
Kolb’s first experiential learning model in 1976 employed nine rows of one-word adjectives, and test takers were instructed to choose words from each list that best described their learning styles. The results were ranked from four to one, with four being the most preferred and one being the least preferred. While the model became a popular learning assessment tool, critics insisted that the ipsative design that forced students to make particular choices resulted in skewed results. Kolb and his colleagues revised ISL in 1985, publishing Learning Style Inventory 1985, and that version, which provided explicit instructions and simplified scoring, became even more popular. ISL 1985 used twelve items instead of nine and employed sentence completion in four columns.
Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model is based on the belief that learning occurs as part of a four-step process that involves both a concrete-abstract dimension and a reflective-active dimension. Individual preferences are responsible for the order in which those steps may occur. The Concrete Experience (CE) Dimension employs experience, while the Abstract Conceptualization (AC) Dimension is based on rationality and logic. The Reflective Observation (RO) Dimension looks at information from different perspectives, and the Active Experimental (AK) Dimension is dependent on hands-on learning. Through the four-step process, learners process their experience through observation and reflection. They then assimilate that information to arrive at possible reactions before deciding on a course of action. Kolb identifies four types of learners: divergers, assimilators, convergers, and accommodators. Divergers are generally imaginative individuals who employ concrete experience and reflective observation as they learn. Assimilators use reflective observation and abstract conceptualization as well as inductive reasoning. Convergers are likely to be practical individuals who use both concrete experience and abstract conceptualization during the learning process. Accommodators are active learners who use concrete experience and abstract conceptualization.
In 2011, Kolb released Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory 4.0. The new model employs nine styles that are based on the original four learning style models. The Initiating Style allows for immediate use of situations based on similar experiences. The Experiencing Style involves using experience to develop greater understanding of a subject or situation. The Imagining Style employs a combination of observation, reflection, and experience to arrive at a new understanding of the subject. The Analyzing Style uses reflection to examine relevant ideas. The Thinking Style employs reasoning and logic. The Deciding Style forms theories and models to determine action. The Acting Style depends on the integration of people and tasks to achieve goals. The Balancing Style examines all sides of an issue.
David Kolb’s work has been influenced by that of developmental psychologist John Flavell. Flavell was one of the founders of the theory of metacognition, which is based on the concept that individuals learn by developing knowledge of themselves and others by understanding what is involved in particular tasks and by identifying what strategies are useful for particular situations. Kolb believes that metacognition can be used to improve on natural learning styles. He suggests that experience should always be the basis for learning and that individuals should focus on long-term rather than on short-term goals. He contends that it is important to learn from both successes and failures. Since learning styles may be expanded over time to include different styles of learning, Kolb maintains that it is important to regularly reassess one’s own learning styles.
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