EdSight

David Allen Kolb was born on December 12, 1939, in Moline, Illinois, in what he described as a “small midwestern farm town.” Partly due to the influence of his mother, Kolb developed an interest in learning and ideas from an early age, standing out among his peers who did not seem very interested in education at the time. His first encounter with experiential learning occurred in the 6th grade when his teacher organized a United Nations forum simulation where students picked countries to represent—an experience that remains vivid in his memory despite occurring roughly 70 years ago. Initially wanting to become a minister, Kolb later developed doubts about organized religion, particularly disturbed by indoctrination practices, but never lost his desire to help people and eventually decided that psychology was a means to accomplish that goal.

Kolb earned his BA from Knox College in 1961 with a degree in psychology, philosophy, and religion, followed by his MA and Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1964 and 1967, respectively, in social psychology. In 1965, he began working as an Assistant Professor of Organizational Psychology and Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Sloan School of Management, where he was promoted to Associate Professor in 1970. During his time at MIT, Kolb developed an interest in finding the “best fit” for individual learners, which eventually blossomed into his theory of experiential learning. In 1976, he joined the faculty at Case Western Reserve University as a Professor of Organizational Behavior in the Weatherhead School of Management, where he is currently Emeritus Professor.

Kolb is the founder and chairman of Experience-Based Learning Systems (EBLS), an organization he established in 1980 to advance research and practice on experiential learning. He is best known for developing the Experiential Learning Model (ELM) in the early 1970s with Ron Fry, composed of four elements: concrete experience, observation and reflection on that experience, formation of abstract concepts based upon the reflection, and testing the new concepts. His Learning Style Inventory (LSI) has become one of the most widely used tools for assessing learning preferences in education and organizational development. Throughout his career, Kolb has received several research awards and four honorary degrees recognizing his contributions to experiential learning in higher education.

Critique: https://reviewing.co.uk/research/experiential.learning.htm