From University to Workplace Assessing Experiential Learning
المؤلف:
Kevin O Toole
المصدر:
Enhancing Teaching and Learning through Assessment
الجزء والصفحة:
P371-C31
2025-08-07
456
From University to Workplace: Assessing Experiential Learning
A broad definition of experiential learning is quite simple in that 'there is nothing more obvious than saying that people learn form experience' (Evans, 1994). In this sense experiential learning is the knowledge and skills acquired through life and work that are not credentialed in a formal educational sense (Evans, 1994). At the same time however, experiential learning is not merely a collection of experiences. There is a further process where the learning begins with the experience but is followed by reflection, discussion, analysis and evaluation of that experience (Wight, 1970). Experience in and of itself is not learning unless there is some reflection upon how the experience fits within a more general framework of an individual's knowledge (Kolb, 1984). For Evans it is the systematic reflection upon experience that constitutes the learning process (Evans, 1994).
Experiential learning then is used to test out our values, ideas and assumptions rather than passively accepting the practical outcomes of repetitive practice (Watkins & Marsick, 1993). It is an active exploration whereby learning can occur at both the practical and the conceptual level. Experiential learning is not the same as discovery learning since teachers must carefully design the processes of learning (Gibbs, 1987). However for experiential learning to take place it is incumbent upon learners to reflect upon their experience in a critical way such that conceptual skills become an important part of learning the practical applications of knowledge. It is the emphasis on critical reflection that is central to experiential leaning where there is a recognition, a judgement and a justification of a person's ideas and actions (Brookfield, 1987). For Mezirow 'learning is understood as the process of using a prior interpretation to construe a new or revised interpretation of the meaning of one's experience in order to guide future action' (Mezirow, 1996).
There may be a number of reasons for using experiential learning within the more formal educational system such using it as a means to promote the growth and development of individuals or for empowering individuals by developing their self-confidence or giving them greater access to and participation in other forms of knowledge (Evans, 1994). However it is most often used as a teaching technique for practical activities such as field work or work placements.
The approach focuses on the notion of experiential learning as a practical activity especially in what has been termed 'work-based learning' (Brown et al., 1997). Put simply work-based learning can be defined as a 'special form of experiential learning in which the students can develop as part of their course, a range of social skills, academic and technical knowledge and expertise in the work place' (Brown et al., 1997). Generally work place learning requires some type of student placement in an organization external to the formal learning institutions of schools and universities. Such placements involve some partial training arrangement within a minimum period of time. Generally, work placements have specific outcomes attached to them for student skill development and on completion of the placement students should have acquired new skills and have a broader knowledge base. In most instances the placement is meant to help them in their future career.
An important issue for workplace learning however, is assessment, especially in workplaces that do not have explicit professional criteria established to judge the performance of students. We report on a process of assessment used for public policy internships in one Australian University. The argument is that assessment in this type of experiential learning requires an evaluation process that involves students, workplace supervisors and academic supervisors. This means that before students embark upon a policy internship, they need to understand how to critically analyze their work. Secondly, once they understand the processes involved in this critical analysis, they need to know how to apply it to specific tasks in the workplace. Finally, they need to discuss how to negotiate these tasks in different workplaces and how to produce the criteria by which they will be assessed.
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