Active learning engages participants in activities that force them to think about and comment on the information presented. Participants involved in active learning don't just listen. They read, write and are engaged in solving problems. Most importantly, they spend time analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating new ideas with their peers.

Experiential learning provides participants with the opportunity to integrate abstract, conceptual knowledge into concrete applications, leading to broader, more enduring learning outcomes. A key aspect of experiential learning is that it is cyclical and incremental in time; one learns a bit, experiences the application of that learning, contemplates and learns from the experience and then learns some more. For an experience to be a valuable the participants must have the opportunity to spend time in "reflection" so that the relevance of the experience can be assessed and the experience can be placed into context.