DALE’S CONE OF EXPERIENCE: Interpretation, Implication to the Teaching-Learning

Process , and Application to Actual Teaching

In my undergraduate years, I often encountered and heard the concept of “learning by
doing”. Actually, I don’t seem to recall if any of my undergraduate courses had a thorough
discussion about Edgar Dale’s Cone of Experience. Through this module, I was reintroduced
to the concept of experiential learning which has a great significance to teaching.

Since the students’ learning experiences are deemed to be likely influenced and strengthened
when they are actively involved in the learning process, teachers also have to appropriately
choose the learning approaches and strategies. Students have to consistently demonstrate
an active participation because it will significantly contribute to increasing the retention of
information.

It’s essential to avoid misconceptions in the interpretation of Dale’s Cone of

Experience. Although it clearly signifies that students’ learn effectively via experiential
learning, it doesn’t mean that teachers will disregard all other types of experiences. In fact, I
think, Edgar Dale simply wants to emphasize the importance of experiential learning. As
such, there should be a balance between concepts, and activities which are representations in
the real context. Instructional methods should be in congruence with the instructional
objectives. Classroom activities based on real-life context will positively contribute to the
students’ in-depth understanding of the subject matter.

This theory implies that teachers need to consider exposure and engagement in real-life
situations. Hands-on experience should follow after introducing the concepts, theories, and
significant details. This way, students could be able to build a connection between the
abstract and concrete experiences. Perhaps it’s notable to say: teachers have to consider
concepts/theories vis-à-vis experiential learning.

As to the actual teaching, varieties of activities have to be in place for careful selection
depending on the students’ learning interests and characteristics. These activities, when
carefully chosen, will enhance the students’ learning. With Dale’s theory, teachers can
incorporate various learning experiences through creating a structure of the lesson. Thus,
this is to maximize the students’ learning potential.

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learning-process-instructional-media-technology-dales-cone-of-experience/