Learning as a Process Where Knowledge Is a Product of Transformative Experience - Essay Example

Learning Experience Name: Course: College: Tutor: Date: Learning Experience According to Kolb’s experimental learning theory, learning is a process where knowledge is a product of transformative experience. The theory offers a cyclical structure of learning made up of four stages, which include reflective observation, concrete experience, abstract conceptualization, and experimentation. According to Kolb, experience gets translated through reflection to concepts, which build up as guides for active experimentation, as well as the choice of fresh experiences. In the concrete experience stage, a learner intensely experiences an activity. In the reflective observation stage, the learner consciously reflects on the experience. The abstract conceptualization stage allows a learner to attempt conceptualizing a model of what is observed. In the active experimentation stage, the learner plans on how to test a theory or model for the coming experience (Seel, 2011). In Carl Rogers Experiential learning theory, he contrasts learning, that involves the mind only. In this theory, knowledge is achieved through significant, meaningful, experiential learning. In his theory, Rogers notes that significant learning is more than mere accumulation of facts. The learning in Rogers’ theory makes a difference in an individual’s behavior in choosing a future action, hi or her attitude, as well as personality. The learning is ubiquitous as it not only involves the acquisition of knowledge but also, interpreting it with every experience. Thus, Rogers’ experiential learning elements, which include: quality of personal involvement which involve the whole person in both feelings and cognitive aspects; self-initiated learning such as the sense of discovery that comes from within; learning being pervasive which makes the learner different in behavior, attitude, and sometimes the personality of the learner. Another element in Rogers’ significant learning theory, is that the learning gets evaluated by the learner, to establish if he or she meets her needs, if it points towards what the person wants to know and whether the progress illuminates the individual’s area of ignorance he or she is experiencing (Seel, 2011). The Holistic learning theory is based on a premise that an individual personality consists of the intellect, emotions, body impulses, intuition and imagination elements that require activation for learning to be effective. This approach to learning predominantly seeks to engage all aspects of the learner. The underlying principle of this approach is that complex organisms work effectively when all the components elements are functioning and co-operating effectively. This theory is characterized by its focus on establishing learning through relating to subjects on an individual level. The theory also emphasizes on the relationship between subjects and concepts (Seel, 2011). Being a playmate for a child is never a task but rather, a gift of love to share. For the child’s scuba diving and treasure hunt experience, I used cardboard, old seashells, and maritime signs. For the child’s play, I used a pillow together with bits and pieces of hard and smooth material for her to pick, while covering her eyes. She was to pick one piece at a time and tell whether the piece was soft or hard. In addition, I created my version of the snake-ladder game using old calendar and cardboard, for the child’s play (Mulligan, 2012). My experience as a child’s playmate, I noticed that in play children gain knowledge on how to learn. This is a result of the fact that, play is the best learning relationship for a child. Regardless of age, the best learners are those that are better prepared to handle transformation. As children explore their world, play presents them the fundamental relationships with which to gain basic feelings, thoughts and capabilities of absorbing and adapting to the ever- changing world around them. A child that explores many play resources has many enduring advantages. Through the different play resources, the child developed universal learning skill. The play maximized her potential through increased creativity and imagination. In addition, the play promoted joy essential for self esteem and health. Moreover, playing promoted self-sustained learning based on her natural love of learning and playful engagement. Playing for the child created the basic trust in the world (Hughes, 2009). Since later stages of learning are built on earlier ones, it is essential that earliest ones be allowed to be firm and extensive, prior to a child’s move to the next. Qualities of creativity, imagination, and trust are better developed in early childhood play. Allowing adequate time for establishing these skills, a child gets a better preparation necessary for acquiring the later, more sophisticated skills. Through play, the learning process becomes self-sustained as the natural love for learning is preserved and strengthened. The influence of play in children enhances self-esteem as well as interpersonal relationships. Also through play, children gain the skill of compassion and sharing (Nancy, Nordling, and Cochran, 2010). There exist two approaches regarding early literacy. These approaches differ from earlier notions about literacy that based on the perception of reading “readiness”. The “readiness” approach represents the traditional outlook on literacy based on book reading and writing, as opposed to a wider view. This approach overlooked children experiences and emphasized on skill development. The two approaches in early literacy are emergent literacy concept and literacy concept as a social practice. Emergent literacy is the abilities and knowledge children demonstrate prior to being conventional readers and writers. The drawback for this approach is its emphasis on the individual child’s development, which puts some groups of children at risk of low literacy (Whitehead and Makin, 2003). Literacy refers to how things are done, which is an essential part of social practice. Children are lively, involved students from birth. Through literacy as social practice, children build knowledge via social interactions at home, communities, and their childhood settings. In planning learning experiences for children, strategies such as borrowing some ideas from different age groups and matching the developmental requirements of the children age group, is essential. In addition, observing children identify their interests as well as their developmental skills, helps create an environment that supports them. This provides children with enough space to move around, multiple objects, and places in both single and parallel play. This way, children avoid waiting for turns and giving out equipment and play (Whitehead and Makin, 2003). Another strategy is allowing children to have the opportunity of being independent and do things for themselves. Also, in planning and implementing appropriate age learning experience for children, a teacher should consider each child’s development through reviewing the child observation records. Therefore, a teacher gives a careful thought to each child’s needs and taking the benefit of “teachable moments” when present. Learning experience plans incorporate activities such as stories, outdoor games, and even art projects. These activities focus on the child’s personal and social development, creative expression and cognitive development (Hughes, 2009). As well, providing time and encouragement to children is a strategy for developing children emerging skills and positive self-sense. This ensures children have numerous opportunities for engaging in fun activities that challenge their creativity that results in achieving their personal best. Therefore, goals and plans in planning and implementing learning experiences get tailored to meet the needs, strengths, and interests of individual children. In addition, children get encouraged to participate actively in education and freely explore materials; thus, unstructured play is essential in this process. A vital strategy is ensuring that materials are concrete, real, and appropriate to the children. A teacher’s role is to prepare the child’s environment with fascinating and challenging activity choices. The teacher has the responsibility of encouraging children to initiate and control their activities (Nancy, Nordling, and Cochran, 2010). In planning the learning experience, teachers must consider that children learn best they have the chance of exploring freely, using their senses, work with children and adults, manipulate real objects, and build on past knowledge and experiences. In setting up the learning experience environment, teachers have to incorporate principles that provide appropriate spaces for display, space for encouraging play that extends with time, and proximity for linked learning centers to accommodate specific needs and special uses (Wellhousen and Crowther, 2004). As children grow, they exercise their aesthetic senses. Appropriate way of engaging a child is through her work, play, conversation, and authenticating experience. Conversations engage the child in talking about her work, focusing on the language details. By viewing child’s work of art, adults serve as role models for children with rich language that describes aesthetic qualities in work of art. Authenticating the experience guides children to related art activities. In this process, children develop perceptual discernment. Aesthetic experiences for children get chosen according to a child’s interest and level of understanding. Aesthetic sensibility in children is vital as it improves the quality of learning and encourages creative process (Whitehead and Makin, 2003). Aesthetic sensibility in children helps them be more responsive to problems because of having more insight in their world. This makes children helpful to other children and adults. Aesthetic sensibility in children helps them self-learners, as they are sensitive to gaps in their understanding. Through aesthetic sensibility, children have more exciting life as a result of their capacity to accommodate curiosity and surprise. Additionally, children become tolerant by learning that there exist diverse ways of doing things. Aesthetic sensibility helps children to be independent because they are open to their thoughts in addition to, being able to deal with complexity better because they do not anticipate finding one best answer. In children, appreciation of art takes many forms such as appreciating the beauty of nature or qualities of a work of art. (Mayesky, 2011). In planning and implementing childhood activities, it is vital to understand numerous intelligences in order to meet the needs if an individual child. Recognizing multiple intelligences helps children improve their strengths. An emphasis on multiple intelligence helps children discover areas they are skilled in and focus on them regardless of disability. To casual observers, children learning experiences may appear as play, yet this learning is crucial because it is self-initiated, ongoing, and transportable to other learning situations (Hughes, 2009). Children learn in environments that offer them the opportunity to explore, discover, and play. For any child development program, play is essential as it ties to the child’s physical, emotional, mental, and social growth. Through play, children’s muscles develop as well as hand-eye coordination. Children use hours perfecting their abilities in play and increasing difficulty level to make tasks more challenging. For instance, toddlers fall and get up repeatedly. As children gain control of their body, it enhances their self-concept. When a child utilizes her last strength to accomplish a task, she gains a better sense of herself. When children engage in physical activities, they gain strength. This helps children become more adept and adventurous as well as learning to take reasonable risks in order to test their strength (Wellhousen and Crowther, 2004). A key to the quality of a child’s mental health is the way they perceive themselves. Through creative play, children develop positive self-concept. Play offers excellent avenues because there is no right or wrong answer in play. Therefore, children learn to perceive themselves as valuable human beings through creative play. As well, in creative play, children learn to express and understand their emotions. Creative play also offers a child the opportunity of mastering her environment. A play is a safe way for children to test the expression of feelings. In play, children create instances valuable to them and elaborate on incidents that have significant meanings. Children gain social skills by relating to others through play. As children become more proficient in social relationship, they learn how to deal with several individuals simultaneously. As children play as one, they learn together. Development of common interests and ambitions take place in children during creative play (Mayesky, 2011). Play for adults may be what they do after work to, relax; however, for children play is all they do all day thus playing is living and living is playing to children. Young children never distinguish play from learning or work, as they are playful by nature. Therefore, it could be argued that play is central to child development that it be included in every definition of childhood. Play in children improves the physical health through building active and healthy bodies. Play in child development is vital as it contributes to the healthy growth of the brain in addition to, developing emotional and social ties within the family. Therefore, play is an ordinary tool for children to develop their resilience (Mulligan, 2012). References Hughes, H. (2009). Children, Play, and Development. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, Inc. Mayesky, M. (2011). Creative Activities for Young Children. Albany: Delmar/Thomson Learning. Mulligan, D. (2012) The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bond: Focus on Children in Poverty. Retrieved 3 August , 2012. From http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/129/1/e204.full Nancy, C., Nordling, W., and Cochran, J. (2010). Child-centered play therapy : a practical guide to developing therapeutic relationships with children. Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons. Seel N. (2011) Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning. Springer. Wellhousen, K. and Crowther, I. (2004) Creating Effective Learning Environments. Clifton Park: Thomson Delmar Learning. Whitehead, M. and Makin L. (2003) How to Develop Children's Early Literacy: A Guide for Professional Carers and Educators. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, Inc. Read More

My experience as a child’s playmate, I noticed that in play children gain knowledge on how to learn. This is a result of the fact that, play is the best learning relationship for a child. Regardless of age, the best learners are those that are better prepared to handle transformation. As children explore their world, play presents them the fundamental relationships with which to gain basic feelings, thoughts and capabilities of absorbing and adapting to the ever- changing world around them. A child that explores many play resources has many enduring advantages.

Through the different play resources, the child developed universal learning skill. The play maximized her potential through increased creativity and imagination. In addition, the play promoted joy essential for self esteem and health. Moreover, playing promoted self-sustained learning based on her natural love of learning and playful engagement. Playing for the child created the basic trust in the world (Hughes, 2009). Since later stages of learning are built on earlier ones, it is essential that earliest ones be allowed to be firm and extensive, prior to a child’s move to the next.

Qualities of creativity, imagination, and trust are better developed in early childhood play. Allowing adequate time for establishing these skills, a child gets a better preparation necessary for acquiring the later, more sophisticated skills. Through play, the learning process becomes self-sustained as the natural love for learning is preserved and strengthened. The influence of play in children enhances self-esteem as well as interpersonal relationships. Also through play, children gain the skill of compassion and sharing (Nancy, Nordling, and Cochran, 2010).

There exist two approaches regarding early literacy. These approaches differ from earlier notions about literacy that based on the perception of reading “readiness”. The “readiness” approach represents the traditional outlook on literacy based on book reading and writing, as opposed to a wider view. This approach overlooked children experiences and emphasized on skill development. The two approaches in early literacy are emergent literacy concept and literacy concept as a social practice.

Emergent literacy is the abilities and knowledge children demonstrate prior to being conventional readers and writers. The drawback for this approach is its emphasis on the individual child’s development, which puts some groups of children at risk of low literacy (Whitehead and Makin, 2003). Literacy refers to how things are done, which is an essential part of social practice. Children are lively, involved students from birth. Through literacy as social practice, children build knowledge via social interactions at home, communities, and their childhood settings.

In planning learning experiences for children, strategies such as borrowing some ideas from different age groups and matching the developmental requirements of the children age group, is essential. In addition, observing children identify their interests as well as their developmental skills, helps create an environment that supports them. This provides children with enough space to move around, multiple objects, and places in both single and parallel play. This way, children avoid waiting for turns and giving out equipment and play (Whitehead and Makin, 2003).

Another strategy is allowing children to have the opportunity of being independent and do things for themselves. Also, in planning and implementing appropriate age learning experience for children, a teacher should consider each child’s development through reviewing the child observation records. Therefore, a teacher gives a careful thought to each child’s needs and taking the benefit of “teachable moments” when present. Learning experience plans incorporate activities such as stories, outdoor games, and even art projects.

These activities focus on the child’s personal and social development, creative expression and cognitive development (Hughes, 2009).

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