In this paper, we will argue, predominantly using examples tested in the crucible of our own teaching, that there is a place for experiential education in the teaching of advanced theoretical ideas. As experiential educators trained as philosophers of education and working in faculties of education, we regularly encounter students with little or…

Evidence-based practice is an approach that narrowly classifies research results by utilising a hierarchy of evidence. This process renders much available knowledge and experience redundant within its value structure. Currently a dominating ideology across medical and health fields, evidence-based practice is now being promoted in adventure…

Experiential learning is not linear, but is a cyclical interaction with clients. Engage clients by making them feel needed. Focus on what works for them instead of what does not. Help them develop the capacity to author their own beliefs and values. Most importantly, be guided by compassion for others. (Contains 32 references.) (TD)

For true learning to occur, participants in experiential programs must be given the opportunity to explore personally meaningful concepts that come from their own history, context, and feelings. The different stages of experiential learning and the role of the facilitator in connecting experiences to the ongoing life story of each participant are…

Definitions of spirituality do not fit in the standard packaging of science. Holistic education that acknowledges the interconnectedness of mind, body, and spirit is better suited for the exploration of spirituality. Experiential education needs to shift from trying to create spirituality for people, to providing the space and environment for…

Contemporary schooling, particularly high schools, could benefit from a return to the model of Plato's Academy in which ecstatic experience provided a central and informative role in addressing the higher stages of human development. Supplementing traditional curricula with integral practices that address body, mind, and spirit, and reviving the…

A conceptual analysis of spirituality reveals "the sacred" to be fundamental to understanding spirituality, discusses the two notions of broad and specific spirituality, considers modes of human consciousness and functioning that make spiritual experience possible, and alerts experiential educators of the implications of venturing into spiritual…

A veteran adventure educator offers pearls of wisdom: identify those people who want/need to meet, and encourage them to do that; identify something that no one else wants to do, and do it well; failing forward with confidence regularly produces better results than confident discussion; play mitigates fear; a good idea doesn't care who has it; and…

Three curriculum orientations--transmission (back-to-basics), transaction (progressive and experiential), and transformation (holistic)--are reviewed. Basic principles of holistic education could enhance the conceptual foundations of experiential education by privileging forms of consciousness beyond the cognitive, by deepening the notion of…

Our fascination with technology's ability to process information and the resulting glut of information gets in the way of attaining wisdom, the highest level of learning. Information technology may be useful in the administration of experiential education, but is irrelevant to the most important levels of learning. An informationless outdoor…

Experiential education is not just experiential learning, but also a philosophy of education that involves the interaction between learner and teacher and recognizes the larger system-level issues within education. Viewing experiential education as a philosophy allows for its various expressions to argue collectively for educational reform that…

The stories we tell ourselves about nature and human/nature relationships influence which nature experiences we seek out and our interpretations of such experiences. In turn, these experiences reinforce or disrupt our stories. Since nature experiences are interpreted in multiple ways, environmental educators should move away from the linear model…

Aspects of outdoor adventure education such as sport and risk are increasingly commercialized, whereas the core value of connection--to community, the environment, or other people--is being lost. A shift from providing challenge to encouraging exploration may enable programs emphasizing connection to find a home in the "third sector" (nonprofit,…

After a brief critique of behaviorist pedagogical assumptions that learning is something done to learners, constructivist learning theory is presented as a framework for understanding experiential education, in that learning is a process involving the active engagement of learners, who adapt the educative event to fit, and expand, their individual…

Presenting historical and contemporary comments by writers on the city, this article describes four outstanding city learning activities: publication of a newspaper on a city neighborhood; preparation of a neighborhood profile; participation in a city "solo" experience; and participation in a "common learnings" course (interdisciplinary field…