Informal Learning Basics STC-TC January 2016

© Copyright. Saul Carliner. 2010. All rights reserved. 1

Informal Learning Basics Saul Carliner, PhD, CTDP

Associate Professor Provost Fellow for Digital Learning

Concordia University Montreal, Quebec

[email protected] www.saulcarliner.com

© Copyright. Saul Carliner, 2010-2015. All rights reserved.

What is your role?

1.  Technical writer or editor (or both) 2.  Trainer or instructional designer 3.  Content strategist 4.  Project manager 5.  Manager 6.  Student of technical communication 7.  Instructor of technical communication 8.  Other (please specify)

(Type your response in the Chat area.)

What prompted your interest in tonight’s session?

1.  Part or all of my job involves the design or delivery of instructional materials or programs

2.  I’ve heard about informal learning but want to learn more

3.  I attend STC meetings regardless of my interest in the topic

4.  I couldn’t find anything good to watch on TV or Netflix

5.  Other (please specify) (Type your response in the Chat area)


What do you hope to learn in this presentation?


Question 1

Identify a topic on which you have considerable expertise—but have not formally studied. How did you learn about the topic?


Question 2

Name something you have learned from a television show, museum, newspaper, or magazine that you use in your everyday life.



This development of skills and expertise outside of a formal education is the essence of

informal learning.

Informal learning involves learner control over aspects of:

Process (who controls and assesses the learning process)

Location (intended for learning)

Purpose (is learning is a primary or secondary goal)

Content (abstract or technical, or related to a practical, everyday skill)

Consciousness (awareness that learning occurred)

Colley, H., Hodkinson, P., & Malcolm, J. (2003). Wihak (2009)

Informal learning contrasts with similar terms.

Term Use

Formal learning Instruction in which the instructor or some similar “expert” sets the objectives and determine the requirements for successful completion

Informal learning Instruction in which some combination of process, purpose, location, content, and consciousness are determined by learners.

Nonformal learning

Learning that happens incidentally, accidental learning in non-learning contexts

Incidental learning Same as nonformal learning

Self-directed learning

Self-study programs aiming towards a goal (usually overseen by a tutor and formalized with a contract)


Informal learning is not new. It dates to the first humans.

Before formal schooling

1960s and 1970s

1970s and 1980s

Early 1990s Late 1990s Late 2000s

De-facto and formal apprentice-ships “School of life”

Self-directed learning

Informal (then free-choice) learning Adult learning theory

Performance support

Knowledge management

Informal learning

Economics and evidence plus technology drive current interest.

§  Studies show that 56% of work-related learning occurs outside of formal contexts (Conference Board, 2009)

§  Organizations are reducing training expenditures (Carliner & Bakir 2010) and shifting expenses.

§  Belief that informal learning processes can be harnessed for learning

§  The Internet has generated hybrid forms of content that serve many purposes, including learning

Phases in the Life Cycle of a Job (Carliner, in press)

Orient workers to

the technical

aspects of a job

Orient workers to the values and culture

of the group

Expand the scope of

assignments a worker

can handle

Build workers’

proficiency

Help workers

deal with undocu-mented

problems

Update workers’

skills

Help workers choose career goals

Prepare workers for the next job

Informal learning supports the development of workers throughout

their tenures in jobs.


The extent of informal learning at a phase varies by the ease with which the material can be explicitly taught.

1

4

3

3

5

2

4

3

Orient workers to the technical aspects of a job

Orient workers to the values and culture of the group

Expand the scope of assignments a worker can handle

Build workers’ proficiency

Help workers deal with undocu-mented problems

Update workers’ skills



(1—extremely easily, 5—extremely difficult)

The next slide suggests why technical communicators might have a personal

interest in informal learning.

A variety of interventions support development support informal

learning at each phase. Technical training OJT Observation and feedback on the job

Onboarding Social activities Stories and Experiences

Gaming-simulations Performance support

Performance support Tips and tricks Seminars Forums to ask questions Coaching Lunch and learns

Case studies “Communities” Peer learning Seminars Independent research and study Trial and error Documentation

Update classes Conferences Seminars News Observation and Feedback Coaching Lunch and learn

Mentoring Coaching Internships Informational interviews Job shadowing Internships

Education Developmental assignments Credentialing Job shadowing Internships





Help workers deal with undocumented problems





The next slide suggests why technical communicators might have a

professional interest in informal learning.

A variety of interventions support development support informal

learning at each phase. Technical training OJT Observation and feedback on the job

Onboarding Social activities Stories and Experiences

Gaming-simulations Performance support

Performance support Tips and tricks Seminars Forums to ask questions Coaching Lunch and learns

Case studies “Communities” Peer learning Seminars Independent research and study Trial and error Documentation

Update classes Conferences Seminars News Observation and Feedback Coaching Lunch and learn

Mentoring Coaching Internships Informational interviews Job shadowing Internships

Education Developmental assignments Credentialing Job shadowing Internships





Help workers deal with undocumented problems




Question 3

Given a choice, users would rather try to fix a problem on their own rather than check the documentation or call for help.

(Type Agree or Disagree.)

� Agree � Disagree


If you dis-agreed with the statement—and feel comfortable doing so—please explain why you feel that

way. (Please type your response.)

If you agreed with the statement—and feel comfortable doing so—please explain why you feel that


Question 3

Given a choice, users would rather try to fix a problem on their own rather than check the documentation or call for help. þ Agree þ Disagree


It depends.

§  On the situation §  On the gender of the user

One of may factors in how people learn informally.

Workers tend to learn on their own schedule (which may differ from

yours. Time

to perfor-

mance

None Extensive

Extent of intervention

Lacking context, informal learners might reach incomplete or incorrect conclusions that need “unlearning.”

The McDonald’s Hamburger Makers


Informal learning is often less “applied” than formal learning.

Research suggests that: §  Informal learners often focus on topics of

interest to them—and avoid ones with little or no interest.

§  Without external incentives, many learners: –  Start self-study programs without finishing them –  Fail to identify the take-away messages of a

learning program

Question 4

Informational materials are educational.

(Type Agree or Disagree in the Chat area.)


Question 4

Informational materials are necessarily educational. � Agree þ Disagree


Education promotes a change in belief or behavior; information is primarily used at the moment of

need.

Educational materials provide opportunities to practice skills and

receive feedback.

Informational resources often lack these characteristics.

Also, mere access to information does not ensure learning.

Limits on:

Information quality Search skills


Also distinguish between socializing and learning online.

Online socializing

versus

peer learning

Question 5

Technology promotes informal learning.

(Type Agree or Disagree in the Chat area.)


If you dis-agreed with the statement—and feel comfortable doing so—please explain why you feel that



If you agreed with the statement—and feel comfortable doing so—please explain why you feel that


Question 5

Technology promotes informal learning. þ Agree � Disagree

Several classes of technology support different types of informal learning.

Method Technology

Case studies, stories Online videos, blogs, wikis

“Communities” Wikis to create, blogs to report and comment, Facebook/LinkedIn

Documentation PDF, content management systems, RSS

Gaming-simulations Simulation tools, virtual worlds

Lunch and learns, seminars Webcasting

Mentoring Online dating tools

News Content management systems, RSS, Facebook/LinkedIn

Observation and feedback Performance monitoring and analytics software

Onboarding Asynchronous tutorials for technical topics, webquests

Social activities Webcasts, Facebook/LinkedIn

Tips and tricks Blogs, wikis, Facebook/LinkedIn, content management systems


Question 6

How do you evaluate informal learning?


It depends: individual or across all learners?

Individual Learning Learning Across Groups of Workers

Identifying what workers learned

Determining the extent of use of resources for informal learning

Identifying how workers learned it

Assessing satisfaction with individual resources

Recognizing acquired competencies

Identifying the impact of individual resources

Question 7

What opportunities does informal learning offer technical communicators?



Here are some ideas.

§  Finding alternate uses for the documentation that we produce

§  Producing other informational resources that might support informal learning

§  Overseeing the development of knowledge bases and community-created online resources that facilitate informal learning

§  Promoting the availability of resources

And

Developing our own careers.

Take-Aways Name one or two insights you will take from this

presentation to your workplace.

(Type your responses.)


Learn more about informal learning.

About the Presenter Saul Carliner is an Associate Professor of Educational Technology, Provost's Fellow for Digital Learning, and Director of the Education Doctoral Program at Concordia University in Montreal. His research and teaching focus on the design of content for learning and communication in the workplace, the management of groups that produce that content, and formats for transferring research to practice. Among his books are the recently published Training Design Basics (2nd ed), award-winning Informal Learning Basics, and the award-winning E-Learning Handbook (with Patti Shank). Also an industry consultant, he has advised organizations like Alltel Wireless, Equitas, Lowe’s, Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, ST Microelectronics, and several US and Canadian government agencies on strategic design, evaluation, and technology issues in learning and communication. He is a Fellow of the Institute for Performance and Learning, a past Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, and a Fellow and past international president of the STC. He holds degrees from Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Minnesota, and Georgia State University

Contact: [email protected] www.saulcarliner.com

Career

Informal Learning Basics STC-TC January 2016