Dale's Cone of Experience

Edgar Dale was a theorist in the areas of reading and journalism and a leader in the humanistic/communications tradition of the field of instructional technology.  He wrote three books dealing with "Audio-Visual Methods in Teaching." Dale believed that learning becomes more meaningful when abstract learning and concrete experience are related. 

Edgar Dale created the cone of experience (1946) that he explained in his book on audiovisual methods in teaching.  The Cone of Experience is a graphical representation of Dale’s model of visual classification on ways of learning experiences.  The theory assisted in the development of utilizing audio-visual methods in teaching that were used within the instructional technology field.  The conical shape was used to create the symbolic depiction of learning from the most concrete level of experience located at the bottom of the cone to the most abstract level of experience located at the point of the cone.  The cone implemented a series of varied experiences from the very basic to enhanced learning experiences with the intent to immerse the learner further within the subject matter in order to retain a greater knowledge of the material.  The learner is meant to utilize a variety of senses (movement, sight, hearing, touching) at different intervals of experiences to create a direct learning process.  The original categories of Dale’s cone of experience starting from the top of the cone to bottom are as follows:  Verbal Symbols; Visual Symbols; Radio-Recordings-Still Pictures; Motion Pictures; Exhibits; Field Trips; Demonstrations; Dramatic Participation; Contrived Experiences; and Direct Purposeful Experiences. 

Edgar Dale made changes within the cone of experience as advances in technology brought new and immersive ways of learning into teaching.  In Dale’s second edition to his book (1954), he made the change of Dramatic Participation to Dramatized Experiences and added television.  

Dale’s cone of experience is a model that incorporates several theories related to the use of media in instructional design and learning processes (Simonson, et. al., 2009). During the 1960s, Edgar Dale coined this theory by suggesting that “learners retain more information by what they “do” as opposed to what is “heard”, “read” or “observed” (Anderson, 1989).

Based on Dale’s theory, there is a hierarchy for experiencing real learning. The lowest part of the cone allows learners to us a variety of senses because they are experiencing “direct purposeful experiences” (Simonson, 2009, p.92). As one moves up the cone, direct purposeful experiences are not required as much in the learning process because the events are less abstract and doesn’t rely on a person’s past experiences.

The cone of experience has great implications for DE. It offers a perspective for DE instructors as they design instruction. If considered, the cone of experience can provide learners unique opportunities at all levels of the cone. The variety of media introduced to the learner has the potential of meeting the learner where he or she is on the cone of experience. The DE instructor can use the cone of experience to guide instructional design for a variety of audiences.

 

  

 

It is said that people remember:

• 10% of what they read
• 20% of what they hear
• 30% of what they see
• 50% of what they see and hear
• 70% of what they write and say
• 90% of what they say as they do

The percentages –> 10% of what they read 20% of what they hear 30% of what they see 50% of what they hear and see 70% of what they say or write 90% of what they say as they do a thing are not from Dale.