Experiential learning benefits students’ progress in science and general academic skills

The research team - Emily Ranken, Professor Dominic Wyse, Dr Yana Manyukhina, and Professor Alice Bradbury - conducted a rapid evidence assessment of existing research on the impact of experiential learning pedagogies on children's academic achievement. 

Experiential learning is a way of gaining knowledge, skills and understanding through direct and hands-on experiences. Students learn by actively doing and reflecting, which helps to deepen theoretical understanding and apply knowledge in real-world situations. 

The review analysed the findings of 44 peer-reviewed studies published during the last decade after screening 465 studies for relevance and methodological quality. 

While science and maths performance showed the most significant improvements, outcomes for language and literacy were more mixed.  

The review established further positive effects for general skills in problem-solving, critical thinking, memory and vocabulary development. The authors note that these skills are likely to underpin children’s learning across the curriculum; and learning discoveries that children make through experiential learning may not fall into distinct subject categories.

Experiential learning techniques could therefore be helpful for developing stronger connections between subjects in the curriculum, and for increasing children’s ability to connect what they learn at school with the wider world. 

The results also suggest that experiential learning positively influenced other factors that are important for children’s educational success, namely their levels of motivation, engagement, and sense of agency. 

Experiential learning was especially beneficial for low-achieving students, with some studies showing that these pupils showed greater learning gains than their peers. This may be because experiential learning approaches may support children’s cognitive development and build self-esteem about their learning, thereby improving their learning outcomes.

Based on these findings, the authors say that “experiential learning approaches are likely to be a valuable tool…to promote equitable educational outcomes for all.” 

Several studies in the review noted that teachers perceived a tension between experiential learning and the demands of the formal curriculum. However, when teachers viewed it as complementary instead of taking time away from the formal curriculum, it facilitated meaningful, real-world learning experiences.  

Therefore the researchers recommend integrating experiential learning into the curriculum, particularly for low-achieving students, and to appropriately support teachers to do so. 

Experiential learning approaches could involve incorporating more interactive activities, situated in specific, real-life contexts, and providing opportunities for exploration and experimentation, including outdoor learning as part of curriculum and pedagogy in primary schools. 

The paper is part of Rethinking Curriculum, a curriculum development project led by the Chartered College of Teaching and supported by IOE’s Helen Hamlyn Centre for Pedagogy (0-11 years). The Rethinking Curriculum project’s overarching aim is to equip teachers with the knowledge, resources and confidence to design and deliver a curriculum that is expansive, inspiring and connected to their local communities, to enable them to lead healthy fulfilled lives. 

The paper, titled ‘The effect of experiential learning on academic achievement of children aged 4–14: A rapid evidence assessment’, was published on 17 October in the BERA Curriculum Journal.

Related links 

• Read the full paper: The effect of experiential learning on academic achievement of children aged 4–14: A rapid evidence assessment 
• Rethinking Curriculum project 
• Author UCL profiles: Emily Ranken, Dominic Wyse, Yana Manyukhina, Alice Bradbury. 
• Helen Hamlyn Centre for Pedagogy 
• Department of Learning and Leadership