The consequences of any situation include not only how it is learned in a formal sense, but also all the thoughts, feelings, and tendencies to action that the situation engenders in those individuals experiencing it. But since each individual differs in at least some small ways from all others, no two individuals can experience the same situation in precisely the same way. Thus the experiential view of education makes enormous demands on anyone who attempts to make practical curriculum decisions, for it assumes that the curriculum is more or less the same as the very process of living and that no two individuals can or should live precisely the same lives. In 1938, Dewey expressed concern about balancing the development of intelligence and the development of socially useful skills and the healthy growth of individual experience. The influence of Dewey is evident in Dorothy Spoerl's writings on experiences and creativity.
Explicit curriculum refers to what is consciously and intentionally presented.
It is the official curriculum, or written curriculum, which gives the basic lesson plan to be followed, including objectives, sequence, and materials, what is taught by the teacher, and the learning outcomes for the student. Null curriculum consists of what is not taught. Consideration must be given to the reasons behind why things are not included in the explicit curriculum or recognized in examination of the implicit curriculum. This has been broadened beyond Posner's concern about planned learning to include all learning outside the immediate educational setting. All of these appear in the extensive writings of Dorothy Spoerl.