Experiential Learning Essay One
Purpose
Write an about a subject related to your personal life experiences growing up playing team sports, American Football
Instructions
1. Write an experiential learning essay that is 8-10 pages in length (minimum length is 8 pages). Use the three-part structure below to format your essay:
• Introduction (1 to 1-1/2 pages). The following terms refer to S-T-A-R-C-H Introduction in Week Five. Please review that article for details.
o hook
o thesis
o subtopics
o credentials
o relevance
• Body (6 to 8 pages)
o Paragraphs should support and develop your thesis and subtopics. You should explain what your college-level competencies and understanding (i.e., your knowledge and skills) resulting from your life
experiences outside of the classroom. Your major points should center on demonstrating that you have achieved equivalent learning to the catalog course description.
o Most paragraphs should start with a topic sentence of your main idea and be developed with strategies from Colvin (strategies 1-4) and A Writer’s Reference under “Writing and Composing.” Also refer to
the sample essays for various ways to develop paragraphs and present your learning.
• Conclusion (½ page)
o Briefly restate the thesis and only the most memorable points.
• Additional information:
• Use the Kolb Learning Cycle and Experiential Learning Essay documents (in Week Three) to guide you in developing this essay.
• Demonstrate what you have actually learned and/or can do by walking the reader through an analytical reflection of your key or pivotal experiences.
• Remember, writing about your experience alone will not earn credit from the evaluator—only by writing specifically about what you have learned from your experiences will earn credits. Give examples that
describe your knowledge and illustrate your skills.
• Highlight the connecting patterns, principles, and theories that connect and clarify your learning. It is also a good idea to read one or two scholarly articles that supports or even contradicts your own
conclusions (i.e., theories). Explain how the research compares or contrasts to your ideas.
