The Oxford English Dictionary defines knowledge as “facts, information, and skills acquired through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject.” While most of us are familiar with facts, information, education, and theory as forms of knowledge that are shared, we often overlook the other aspects. Learning through experiences is a crucial way in which knowledge is shared in society. Reading about events may provide superficial or surface-level understanding of them, but actually experiencing them provides a much greater depth of understanding.

Riverside School, the community of people I surround myself with everyday, puts a spotlight on experiential learning. From when we are toddlers in PreK, learning the ABCs, to when we are applying for colleges in grade 12, much of our education happens through experiences. For example, in grade five, we develop an understanding about child labor as part of citizenship — our initiative to give back to the community.

When I was in grade five, we began by reading up about child labor, including the book Iqbal, but we only built depth in our understanding when we experienced child labor ourselves. We went through the agarbatti (incense stick) experience, where for three days we rolled incense sticks with minimal food and water. We sat in a dingy room under constant supervision. We knew we were in a secure environment. However, we were denied our regular nutritious meals. We had to “earn” a glass of water by making 50 incense sticks. And we had to sit on our haunches continuously without talking. These were the hardships that made us appreciate our privileges. The physical discomfort helped us understand what child laborers go through on a daily basis.

While this may sound like a horrifying idea, the experience made us more resilient, more patient, and more grateful. Our teachers knew this, but we didn’t. Not when our backs were breaking and we were sweating buckets, trying to roll out the perfect incense. And yet, when the experience concluded, we emerged from it kinder.

This is an example of how knowledge — in the form of new attitudes — was shared with my entire class. Wordlessly, through an experience. The interesting thing about the experience is that I remember so much about it in great detail, but the book Iqbal, I cannot remember much of. The knowledge that was shared through experiences has stayed with me much more than that shared by conventional mediums. Experiential learning is impactful and permanent, even though it is unspoken.