Need for more experiential learning in MBA programs

“I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand.”

Confucius, 450 BC

“Experiential learning is a philosophy and methodology in which educators purposefully engage with students in direct experience and focused reflection in order to increase knowledge, develop skills, and clarify values”

Association for Experiential Education

The case method is a standard tool used in MBA classrooms. It started at Harvard, and others have learned from it. It has been practised in medicine for a long time. The case method has some limitations, such as the case is about the past, but the management is about the future; sometimes the case is not written correctly, or a wrong choice of a case; sometimes students do not relate to the case; sometimes the faculty is not trained to teach the case properly; and sometimes the students do not bother to read the case before coming to the classroom. The case method has certain advantages, and it needs to be continued. However, its overdependence needs to be reduced substantially.

📚 Related Read: Make imagination a part of MBA programs

Experiential learning is a valuable learning method for MBA programs. The case method can also be called a kind of experiential learning, but its desired impact is questionable due to the above-given reasons. Exceptional learning beyond the case method addresses some of the case method's shortcomings. However, it also needs to overcome the problem of identifying correct situations/problems and train the faculty in experiential learning.

Faculty can use the published experiential learning tools, but some may have problems similar to the case method. A better approach is to take problems related to what is being taught from students' professional and personal lives and engage students in solving them. Since these are the challenges faced by students, they will relate to them and be interested in finding solutions to these problems. For example, asking a strategy professional to do a five-force analysis on her industry or identifying the innovation challenges in her company or how to improve the impact of CSR of her company and so on.

The experiential learning method is a very powerful method. It needs to be given much more importance, use, and visibility in MBA programs to create the desired learning, add value, and create impact.