Inside Out: Outside In

I chose Dr. Zachary Oliver’s book (2010), Falling but Fulfilled: Reflections on Multiple Intelligences for my selected book for this exercise.  My first chosen quotation for reflection is: “As with any research into human beings, the truths we discover always seem most rich as we look both into our own experience and then look for acknowledgment from the experience in the world” (Oliver, 2010, pp. 9-10).

My reflection of this quote begins with the experience of oneself and of our fellow human beings.  When I think about finding out the truth from experience, experiential learning comes to mind.  In a landmark book on experiential learning as titled Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development, Kolb (1984) defined experiential learning to be “the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience.  Knowledge results from the combination of grasping and transforming experience” (p. 41).  An observable key strength of experiential learning is its effectiveness given the context of Bloom’s taxonomy. 

In a number of our doctoral courses, Dr. Oliver has discussed Bloom’s taxonomy to be the process of moving from lower order to higher order learning.  Lower order learning involves (a) knowledge acquisition and memory retention, (b) comprehension, and (c) application.  Higher order learning involves (a) analysis, (b) synthesis, and (c) evaluation.  Notably, synthesis results from multiple loops of lower order learning and analysis along with the reflection of application.  In other words, evaluation occurs almost simultaneously with synthesis and involves multiple syntheses.

In a book as titled as Mastering Business in Asia: Supply Chain Management, Kim (2005) addressed how Bloom's taxonomy relates to experiential learning.  Kim contended that multiple experiential learning loops enable a system (e.g., supply chain, firm) to avert past misgivings as these kinds of learning approaches further enhance a system’s processes.  In other words, Kim pointed out that evaluation to overcome the potentiality of failure involves multiple and repetitious experiential learning processes.  Thus, the power of evaluation is contextual on experiential learning, especially multiple loops of learning opportunity.  Notably, Dr. Oliver explained that a research effort is relative to the analysis in Bloom’s taxonomy.  Only multiple research efforts on a given research question or phenomenon can yield an actual evaluation… This is most certainly a hint to my last area of reflection for the selected quotation.

The part on seeking the truth from Dr. Oliver’s aforementioned quote is relative to scientific research.  The term epistemology relative toward understanding the nature of knowledge comes to mind when I think about research.  From what I continue to learn in these doctoral courses, inquiry in “contributing to the body of knowledge” in a particular field or scholarly discipline (e.g., social science) is relative to a research effort.  Furthermore, a research effort involves ascertaining truth by methodically pursuing a research question.  An example of a research question is: Do graduate students perceive themselves to be experiential learners?

Well, the somewhat detailed reflection and explanation of experiential learning and research is quite a “mouthful” to swallow in terms of knowledge acquisition.  Rather than merely seeking knowledge (i.e., knowledge acquisition), the key point to Dr. Oliver’s aforementioned quotation is about understanding the deeper meaning of the truths from experience-based learning, whether it be from oneself or others.  In other words, truth is best learned by numerous life experiences, which enables reflection so that one can understand the deeper meaning of life and the information from one’s surroundings.

Michelle Harada