We all agree that education has come a long way, through a series of evolutions amid changing determinants of success. The greatest investment for students and parents to make today is in experiential learning. Simply put, experiential learning means learning by doing and this simple concept is driving a major revolution in global education.
The experiential learning vs traditional classroom learning has intensified over the years. Clearly, the odds are in favour of learning by doing. Today, the two most important factors for students’ future success are global exposure and practical learning experiences.
I must mention, I don’t mean to look down upon traditional classroom learning in any way. However, it is only prudent to talk about its downsides or the few constraints in the context of contemporary times. Classroom learning surely shapes knowledge but what about the future-ready skills?
Statistically Speaking
Traditional classroom learning has not produced skills that make students distinct and employable as effectively. This is where experiential learning is emerging as a game changer in the context of future success. Let me put forth a few statistics to substantiate my argument.
As per Gitnux, more than 80 percent of employers/recruiters give priority to candidates who have developed strong soft skills through immersive learning.
As per Riipen, various surveys suggest that students have high expectations of real-time learning from their courses.
As per Wifi Talents, more than 75% students with experiential learning showcased far greater retention than students who completely relied on traditional classroom learning.
As I said, the experiential learning vs traditional classroom learning debate is highly inclined in favor of experiential learning. Going forward, let’s delve deeper into the real benefits of experiential learning for students’ success.
How Experiential Learning Gives Students an Edge
Offers practical exposure
Students may not learn about thermodynamics or drones simply by reading from textbooks. What will make their learning comprehensive is when they see the real-world applications of these concepts. For instance, visiting a small-scale factory to witness the concepts of thermodynamics in action will help students understand and retain far better than textbooks.
This is the kind of practical exposure students need to enhance academic understanding and critical thinking. Having said that, experiential learning offers practical exposure that classroom learning often lacks.
We can take another field to understand the same. Let’s say a student is interested in choosing psychology as their major at the university. Now, if the student shadows a psychologist for even one week to acquire experiential learning, the exposure will be invaluable. The student will understand the implications of psychological theories and concepts far better in comparison to classroom learning.
The practical exposure that experiential learning brings to the table is something that students can leverage all their lives in different ways.
Offers room for skill enhancement
Immersive learning can transpire in different ways. From peer mentoring sessions on AI or a professional internship to attending a summer school, there’s experiential learning in everything. Basically, anything that you choose to do beyond the classroom counts as a practical learning experience.
Now, one great thing about immersive learning is that not only does your conceptual knowledge grow, but your skills, too. Practical learning experiences offer direct or indirect value to a wide range of skills. These include your leadership skills, emotional intelligence, professional courtesy, conflict resolution, critical thinking and so on.
Moreover, the scope of skill enhancement is not limited to soft skills. Experiential learning opportunities like MOOCs, internships, and international educational tours also lead to the effective development of hard skills. For instance, if you take an online course in programming, your coding skills and other relevant hard skills will also grow.
I am sorry to say, but traditional classroom learning can never offer a considerable scope of skill development. For instance, reading about accountancy from books will only help you get theoretical knowledge. However, interning for two weeks at an accounting firm will give you the opportunity to enhance both soft skills and hard skills.
To explain, you will learn the real-world applications of accounting principles and develop the core accounting skills. Besides, you will also get to work on skills like effective decision making, teamwork and critical thinking.
Leads to an early sense of professional development
Internships or job shadowing experiences give students early access to professional development. When students get to witness and work with professionals and industry experts, they get a first-hand learning experience. This is exactly what the purpose of experiential learning is after all.
Now, you compare two students from the same class with the same academic grades. One has a 3-week internship experience in, let’s say, corporate finance, while the other has no such learning experience. The former has witnessed what the actual professional world looks like, while the latter can only imagine.
Who do you think is more future-ready out of the two? Who do you think will be more favored in future internship or employment opportunities at their disposal? You and I both know the answers! This is how experiential learning prepares students for the future and the benefits are visible in terms of students’ holistic development.
Enhances Self-Confidence
As I see it, a student’s self-confidence is a highly important factor for future success. On one hand, we have a student who is not the most meritorious when it comes to grades but has enormous self-confidence. On the other hand, there is a class topper who is always subsumed in self-doubt.
Who do you think will do better in the real test of life? I will put my money on the former student without even thinking twice. Self-confidence can take you places, even if your merit isn’t the most exceptional. Having said that, how can students develop a strong sense of self-confidence?
The answer again is experiential learning. Traditional classroom learning gives you knowledge but not the confidence to fight adversities. Higher grades give you a sense of accomplishment but not the confidence to win outside the classroom. Experiential learning gives you the confidence to navigate challenges with poise.
I am going to give you various examples of how experiential learning can add significantly to an individual’s confidence.
A student with a realistic internship experience will have better critical thinking and problem-solving skills. This individual will have much higher confidence in navigating challenges in a group project at school than other team members.
Let’s say a student has been on an international academic tour previously and has done various online courses in AI and prompt engineering. Now, this student will begin his AI engineering journey overseas with much greater confidence than other international students in his class.
A student with leadership experiences and participation in events like MUNs, Round Square Conference, Olympiads and so on will have a better skillset than peers. This skillset will give this student a great sense of confidence to thrive even in adverse situations.
Such is the magic of experiential learning. There is no substitute for experiential learning in a world where classroom learning may not be sufficient for future success. Like I said in the beginning, global exposure and immersive learning are the two factors that will give students and parents the highest ROI in terms of investment in education. The future belongs to those who will go beyond classroom learning to acquire unique global exposure and experiential learning.
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