Incorporating Experiential Learning in Training

How to Get the Most out of Games and Simulations as Learning Tools

May 19, 2009

Trainers frequently proclaim the superiority of experiential learning tools such as games and simulations over all other methods.

However, trainees often resist such methods, and evaluation is inconclusive as to whether the methods are truly better. Moreover, such programs are complicated and sometimes difficult to plan and carry out, leading time-pressed trainers to opt for a quick lecture instead.

In order to get the most value from time devoted to training, it is important first to establish the objectives of the training program. Once the objectives are clarified, techniques can be chosen to deliver the content intended to meet them. At this stage, trainers should carefully consider the advantages and disadvantages of using experiential methods.

Structure of Experiential Learning Tools

Experiential learning consists of a task followed by discussion and debriefing. The task may consist of a game, small group discussion, skill practice, role play or any activity that all can participate in and learn from. The debriefing that follows the task is the more important portion of the lesson, and should last at least twice as long as the task itself.

During an experiential task, learners may become aware of various aspects of their own or others’ performance, but the awareness is not necessarily translated into learning unless it is brought out into the open, studied and analyzed. The translation of awareness into learning is the focus of the debriefing period [1].

Emotional Involvement in Training

The strength of experiential learning tools is their potential to involve trainees more deeply in subject matter, leading them to make a more serious commitment to practice and learn the skills in question. Particularly in the area of “soft” or communication skills, experiential learning allows participants to try out new behavior in a setting where they can observe the results and rewards of using new skills.

Timing and Scheduling of Training

Using a complicated simulation can take several hours to several days. Trainers should plan carefully to make sure the time allocated is sufficient, and that all necessary material will be covered. Generally, it is better to have too few activities planned rather than too many. A trainer can always have a backup activity to add if time is available, but it is hard to cut a carefully planned module because time is running out.

Composition of the Trainees’ Group

For in-service training programs, the relative status of the participants can become an issue, particularly if using games or other activities where someone may feel “foolish” or put on the spot. Such programs are often much easier to plan if all the trainees are at about the same level in the organization.

Similarly, in multicultural groups, different members may have differing attitudes and responses to being asked to participate in experiential training activities. Those from a culture where formality is valued may not appreciate the apparently chaotic nature of this type of learning without extra encouragement.

Motivation for Learning

Trainees who perceive that the program will help them in some substantive way are more likely to participate willingly in the trainer’s prepared program, while those who are only attending because required to may take a more skeptical or non-participating stance. Whenever possible, trainers should determine in advance what the attitudes of the trainees are likely to be and how motivated they will be to participate.

Experiential Learning Tools Can Enhance Training Programs

Games and simulations can make a valuable addition to an in-service training program if they are used thoughtfully and well-planned. Once a trainer has determined the goals and objectives of the program, the use of experiential learning tools should be considered within that context. Given the structure of experiential learning, with its extensive reliance on post-activity reflection and analysis, as well as the power of emotional involvement in learning that experiential learning can harness, a trainer can incorporate such activities with some confidence.

If the time schedule is well-planned, group composition taken into account, and the trainees’ personal goals and motivations for participation made an integral part of the planning process, experiential learning can make a memorable contribution to a trainer’s portfolio of training tools.

[1] Geyer, Nancy B. Designing Structured Experiential Learning. Washington DC: Mid-Atlantic Training Committee, Inc. 1975.

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