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From Passive to Passionate: How Experiential Learning Transformed Our School
Yoel Benn
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Founder of the
Centre for Experiential Learning
5 min read
September 2025
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Across international education, there is growing recognition that students need more than knowledge alone. They need experiences that shape identity, build agency, and inspire leadership. But how can schools embed this kind of learning meaningfully, beyond tokenism, beyond one-off events, and without reducing it to another assessment?
In this article, Yoel Benn, founder of the Centre for Experiential Learning, shares how his team transformed the culture of a Melbourne independent school through experiential learning. His reflections offer practical insight for schools everywhere on creating learning that is memorable, empowering, and lasting.
How do we create learning in schools that empowers students?
How do we design experiences that are memorable, inspire beyond the moment, and give students genuine leadership and agency over school culture? How do we create spaces where young people can explore their own identities with guidance and without judgement?
These were the questions my team and I returned to again and again while building an experiential learning department at a Melbourne Jewish Independent High School. The challenge: to embed these values deeply into school life, outside of regular classes and without relying on assessments.
A spark at age 9
My first taste of experiential learning came at a youth camp at age 9. In one moment, a plain hall was transformed into a simulation of social inequality. I still remember how it felt. That experience lit a fire: learning does not need to stay in textbooks, it can move, breathe, and connect. From then on, I understood that experiential learning is powerful precisely because it asks students to be active, playful, experimental, and reflective. It builds curiosity, responsibility, and emotional intelligence.
Making learning stick
Experiential learning engages the whole person. It is creative, relevant, sensory, and active. Most importantly, it creates teachable moments that embed themselves in memory because they are tied to emotion and authentic practice.
When I arrived at the school, student engagement in co-curricular life, camps, and leadership was patchy. Over seven years, we built a culture where connection came before content. We invested in relationships, sharing stories, joining students during breaks, and building trust. No department can succeed in isolation; collaboration with staff was essential.
Designing the journey
Every session was treated as a learning journey. Later I would learn Kaospilot’s “learning arch” language: set, hold, land.
Set: Begin with connection through a check in or playful game to create a learning community. Create routines, set expectations and cultural norms
Hold: Move quickly into action, building intrigue, engagement, and novelty.
Land: Distill learning through debrief. Whether by circle discussion, silent reflection, or creative methods like “speed dating” or picture prompts, students developed social emotional skills and perspective taking.
Overlaying this structure was intentional design for emotions and guiding inquiry questions. We asked: What do we want students to feel? How do we make it safe? Emotion is inseparable from memory. Inquiry questions, framed openly, anchored learning across weeks, terms, and years, sparking wonder and generating insight.
Agency and choice
Giving students choice was central. They could reflect through writing, drawing, or speaking. Year 10s selected the social issues they tackled. Year 11s chose short courses. On camps, students designed and facilitated activities, from themed dinners to games nights. These opportunities built ownership, trust, and engagement.
Making memories that last
We wanted calendar moments to feel epic. Camps, festival days, or leadership seminars were designed with purpose, creativity, and fun. When students associate learning with joy, it strengthens long term memory and willingness to re engage.
Authentic leadership
Too often, student leadership is tokenistic. Inspired by Roger Hart’s ladder of participation, we aimed for authentic agency. Our Year 12 model was not about popularity but readiness and responsibility. Students prepared through a two day seminar where they wrote vision statements and strategic plans across the arts, social justice, Jewish life, and school life (sport and wellbeing). Leadership became less about holding a title and more about creating real change.
The teacher as a facilitator
Experiential learning also shifts the teacher’s role. Teachers become facilitators, guides who step in with prompts but also step back to allow students space to wrestle with ideas. This space for uncertainty and reflection meant students could internalise lessons on their own terms, learning that lasts far longer than any lecture. Over time, the experiential learning department became the heart of the school - the lifeblood of student voice, agency, and the kind of learning that is meaningful, relevant, and fun.
Experiential learning is more than a teaching approach; it represents a mindset that values curiosity, agency, and authentic engagement. This article highlights how intentional design, trust, and student-led experiences can transform school culture and create lasting impact.
How might schools reimagine learning opportunities to give students genuine ownership, spark curiosity, and foster leadership that endures? Even small steps can generate meaningful moments that shape both the student experience and the wider school community.
Yoel Benn is a trusted partner of the Global Education Network – to learn more about his work and the support he offers schools around the world, you can email him directly at yoel@cfel.com.au
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