There has always been a great deal of lip service given to the idea of learning by doing, but not much has been done about it. In fact, John Dewey remarked in 1916, in his book, Democracy and Education:

'Why is it that, in spite of the fact that teaching by pouring in, learning by passive absorption, are universally condemned, that they are still so entrenched in practice? That education is not an affair of 'telling' and being told, but an active constructive process, is a principle almost as generally violated in practice as conceded in theory. Is not this deplorable situation due to the fact that the doctrine is itself merely told? But its enactment in practice requires that the school environment be equipped with agencies for doing ... to an extent rarely attained.' There are two important reasons why learning by doing isn't our normal form of education. First, it is quite difficult to implement without 'doing devices.' How can we teach history by doing? What does it mean to teach literature by doing? In many cases, it is difficult to define what doing might mean with respect to a given subject and to attempt to implement a realistic sense of doing in a classroom setting.