PIZARCHIK, Mary, 2007. The effects of experiential learning: An examination of three styles of experiential education programs and their implications for conventional classrooms. 2007. pdf 
Using methodologies of interviews and observation, this study focuses on three distinctive and successful kinds of experiential education: a summer arts program, an outdoor science program and a wilderness education program. The project applies insights from the programs to the central question of this thesis: How can experiential learning be utilized within the traditional classroom given the constraints of the No Child Left Behind Law and standardized teaching?
The study examines theories of experiential learning and the benefits of such Education.
Today in public education there is a focus on standards and there are few opportunities for experiential learning. Yet, when we send students to non-traditional schools or experiential learning environments, we find they love it.
What is it about an experience that has the power to generate passion or spark Joy for new learning, new discovery? In my own life, I (Mary Pizarchik) recall experiences that are powerful reminders of active learning through experience. When I close my eyes I can see pictures, remember sounds, sensations and even smiles. As a Child, I remember …
What science book could give me the sensation of their [salamanders], moist, clammy, slippery skin against the palm of my hand?
How could I describe the beauty of watching them swim in the bathtub or squiggle like lightning through the mud? This was experiential learning without construct or design; a pure discovery in nature.
It became an art and challenge to catch one and then release it back into its natural home. In my own life, when I experience learning, I have found it to be more alive and joyful. The experiences become part of me.
[…] My mind races back to a ropes course I participated in several years ago. The image is still vivid in my mind as well as the self-knowledge. I had just climbed up a mountain near Santa Rosa, CA. I. remember standing on a platform, the size of a diving board, sticking out from the side of the mountain. Blue sky, […]
A story of the Grand Canyon.
Blue sky, a crisp cool breeze, and the lush valley below beckoned me to step into the unknown. […], flying from a mountain to the valley below into a group of supportive hands?
We love the comfort of the known. It is a place of belonging, of security.
[…] I learned about listening carefully, about being present in the moment and trusting others, just to name a few insights. Some would say I just experienced "experiential learning" in the wilderness. […], this experience became part of my being. It caused me to continue to ponder the elements that make experiential learning different than traditional education.