This chapter examines questions about the nature of experiential learning and how the experiential process can be applied in the classroom. Experiential learning may be viewed as a continuum that ranges from passive students receiving transmitted knowledge to active students deeply involved in generating knowledge from their own experiences. The experiential base for learning requires that students make decisions about meaning, interpretation, and content, and take responsibility for deriving meaning from what they have done. Five variables that influence the impact of experiential learning are (1) reality of experience or relevance of vicarious experience; (2) level of risk and uncertainty; (3) student's sense of responsibility and personal investment in what is being undertaken; (4) unpredictability of specific outcomes and teacher's attitudes toward planning and predictability; and (5) student reflection, which derives learning from experience. Problems of applying experiential learning in the classroom include limitations of the classroom itself, restrictions stemming from the school environment, and the need to create vigorous environments where students can be challenged within a behaviorally acceptable climate. Adventure education can be used to overcome these difficulties. Suggestions are offered for building adventures of varying length into the school curriculum. (Contains 13 references.) (SV)