| For the Record: The Misinterpretation of Edgar DaleÕs Cone of Experience |
| Tony Betrus | |
| Al Januszewski | |
| SUNY Potsdam |
| The Authentic Cone |
| 1946, 1st Edition of Audiovisual Methods in Teaching | |
| 1954, 2nd Edition of Audiovisual Methods in Teaching | |
| 1969, 3rd Edition of Audiovisual Methods in Teaching | |
| Possible Misconceptions about the Cone1 |
| Perhaps the Cone of Experience has already helped to remind you of some important ideas about communication, learning, and concept development. But like all reminders, the Cone carries the dangers of oversimplification... [do] not mistake the Cone device for an exact rank-order of learning processes. You will understand that the Cone classifies instructional messages only in terms of greater or lesser concreteness and abstractness. |
| Possible Misconceptions about the Cone2 |
| Q Does the Cone device mean that all teaching and learning must move systematically from base to pinnacle? | |
| A Emphatically no. As we have noted, young children use many simple abstractions-verbal symbols. Before entering school they have mastered the meanings of at least 2500 words, or verbal symbols, each one of which is an abstraction. The fact that something is an abstraction does not necessarily make it difficult to understand. Actually, there are wide variations in degree of difficulty. |
| Possible Misconceptions about the Cone3 |
| Q Can we overemphasize the amount of direct experience that is required to learn a new concept? | |
| A Yes, this is a danger. Perhaps the new abstraction can be mastered with less firsthand experience than you might think necessary. Indeed, too much reliance on concrete experience may actually obstruct the process of meaningful generalization. Certainly a mathematician could not develop a system of higher mathematics by counting on his fingers. |
| Possible Misconceptions about the Cone4 |
| Q Are the upper levels of the Cone for the older student and the lower ones for the child? | |
| A It is true that the older a person is, the more abstract his concepts are likely to be. We can explain this developmental change by a greater physical maturation, greater opportunity for vivid experiences, and (in certain circumstances) greater motivation for learning. But an older student does not live exclusively in the world of his abstract concepts, just as a child does not live only through the impressions his senses give him. The shuttling process, in fact, continues not only through the learning of a particular concept, but throughout all life. And this interaction is an indication of the nature and complexity of concepts themselves. (continued on next slide) |
| Possible Misconceptions about the Cone5 |
| Q Are the upper levels of the Cone for the older student and the lower ones for the child? | |
| A (Continued from previous slide) Instructional materials at all levels of the Cone can help us to extend the web of relationships that our concepts involve. Even the most advanced student, therefore, can deepen his understanding of concepts and his enjoyment of life by participating in experiences all along our Cone. É the Cone of Experience stands for activities that are available, in varying degrees, to learners in all age groups. | |
| Possible Misconceptions about the Cone6 |
| Q Does the Cone of Experience overemphasize instructional devices (the media of communication) at the expense of subject matter (the message to be communicated)? | |
| A Actually, use of the Cone may lead to an enhancement of our subject matter presentations. Indeed, the Cone may help us to choose the instructional materials that are most appropriate for the particular topic we wish to teach. The Cone can help us to understand these relationships between media and the messages they convey. It suggests, in fact, that various instructional materials differ in the degree of sensory experience they are able to provide. Our selection of instructional materials, therefore, will depend on the amount of sensory experience we wish to provide for a particular topic of our lesson. And the Cone can help us "place" a teaching method; it can help us select the way of communicating most suited to the experience we wish to convey. | |
| Possible Misconceptions
about the Cone7 Conclusions |
| Our understanding of the Cone of Experience, moreover, will remind us of a fundamental principle for our teaching: We do not use any one medium of communication in isolation. Rather, we use many instructional materials to help the student conceptualize his experience so that he can deal with it effectively. The Cone suggests that concept development can proceed from experiences with any specific instructional material. It often follows, then, that the more numerous and varied the media we employ, the richer and more secure will be the concepts we develop. Well-chosen instructional materials of various kinds can provide a variety of experiences that enhance the learning of a given subject for any student at any given point in his continuing development. |
| Possible Misconceptions
about the Cone8 Conclusions |
| We conclude, then, that the Cone of Experience is visual model, a pictorial device that may help you to think critically about the ways in which concepts are developed. Indeed, you may now be able to apply your ideas about the relationships of interesting, meaningful experiences and abstract, highly symbolic representations. |
| So WhatÕs The Problem? |
| Students brought to our classes handouts of ÒalternativeÓ Cones of Learning with different names for levels in the Cone. | |
| Internet Searches revealed ÒInterestingÓ percentages applied to the Cone. | |
| They all looked Òkind of the same.Ó | |
| Did they know something we (and Dale) didnÕt??? | |
| The following slides show examples of various Cones we have encountered: |
| #1. Computer Strategies,
LLC http://www.compstrategies.com/staffdevelopment/4cueadlearn/sld002.htm |
| 10/25/1999 | |
| San Leandro, California | |
| Reference: Wiman and Meirhenry, 1960. |
| #2. http://www.hishelpinschool.com/learning/Bloom.html |
| At the next level, we find that we are reaching the place where activity and application make our use of information "real" to us. Bruce Nyland in the 1950Õs studied what kinds of information people remember the most and for the longest period of time. He concluded that when students "do the real thing," "simulate" the real thing, or teach others what they have learned, the retention rate is about 90% of what was taught. | |
| Note: Bruce Nyland died in 1998 at the age of 62. He was 14 years old in 1950 and 23 in 1959. |
| "#3. Crystal Kuykendall," |
| #3. Crystal Kuykendall, Ed.D, J.D. | |
| The Mid-Atlantic Equity Center, School of Education, The American University | |
| Improving Black Student Achievement By Enhancing Student's Self Image | |
| http://www.nwrel.org/cnorse/booklets/achieve/table6.html |
| #4. Office for Distributed & Distance Learning, FSU http://www.fsu.edu/~ids/fac2002/Edgar%20Dale.htm |
| Lower levels of the cone involve the student as a participant and encourage active learning. | |
| Lower levels include more stimuli and are richer with regard to natural feedback - the consequences of an action. | |
| Higher levels compress information and provide more data faster for those able to process it. | |
| Pictures are remembered (recalled) better than verbal propositions. | |
| Pictures aid in recalling information that has been associated with them | |
| Upper levels of the cone need more instructional support than lower levels. | |
| #5 Wallace Library Online / Distance Learning Services, RIT Marianne Bhueler 2000 http://wally.rit.edu/information/CUNY2000/sld008.htm |
| #6. Oakland Unified School
District Technology Learning Center http://tlc.ousd.k12.ca.us/tlc/sitetech/agendas/documents_81202/Dale's%20Cone.pdf |
| #8. Dr. Mary C. Rainey, University of Akron |
| Course: 603 Family: Middle and Later Years | |
| http://gozips.uakron.edu/~mrainey/603les~1.htm | |
| "http://ohioline.osu.edu..." |
| http://ohioline.osu.edu/4h-fact/0018.html | |
| The Edgar Dale Cone of Experience summarizes how learners retain information. A person remembers 10% of what they read, 20% of what they heard, 30% of what they seen and 50% of what is seen and heard. | |
| This is the first only ÒconeÓ reference when searching the OSU site for ÒEdgar Dale.Ó | |
| Ohio State is the Home of the Edgar Dale Media Center. |
| "Studies have shown that how..." |
| Studies have shown that how information is presented determines the retention level of the information. The Cone of Learning Theory, explains the likelihood of retaining information, based on the method of delivery. | |
| #11. Online, Inc., a Division of Information Today Inc. Wilton, Connecticut |
| http://www.econtentmag.net/r19/2002/delancie8_02.html | |
| #12. Dr. James M. Marshall |
| http://www.ciconline.org/uploads/CIC_REPORT.pdf | |
| #13. Why Use Active
Learning? http://www.acu.edu/cte/activelearning/whyuseal2.htm |
| Brought to you by the Active Learning Online team at | |
| the ACU Adams Center for Teaching Excellence | |
| ACU Box 29201 Abilene, TX 79699-9201 |
| #14. The Initiative: Experiential Learning Resources, Workshops, Ideas, Articles |
| Spring/Summer 2002 | |
| 10% of what we hear. | |
| 15% of what we see. | |
| 20% of what we both see and hear. | |
| 40% of what we discuss | |
| 80% of what we experience directly or practice doing. | |
| 90% of what we attempt to teach others | |
| Source: Brady (1989) |
| LetÕs Sum it Up |
| We Remember: | |
| 5% Lecture | |
| 10% What we read | |
| 15% What we see | |
| 20% Audio-Visual | |
| 20% What we see and hear | |
| 20% What we hear | |
| 26% What we hear | |
| 30% What we see | |
| 30% Passive Verbal | |
| 30% Demonstration | |
| 40% What we discuss | |
| 50% Visual Receiving | |
| 50% See and hear | |
| 50% Discussion Group | |
| 70% Discuss with others | |
| 70% Active Receiving and Participating | |
| 70% Say | |
| 70% Say and Write | |
| 70% Say or Write | |
| 70% Say as they talk | |
| 75% Practice by Doing | |
| 80% Experience Personally | |
| 80% What we experience directly or practice doing | |
| 90% Say as they do a thing | |
| 90% Say and perform a task | |
| 90% Teach to others/Immediate Use | |
| 90% What we attempt to teach others | |
| 95% of what we teach someone else |
| Slide 27 |