1. Carla Ralph
EDUC 6303
April 14, 2013

2. Outline
 Context plays an important part in how
and why people learn
 Define context and then describe in two
different learning contexts and learning
perspectives.
 Demonstrate the different approaches
that will best suit the needs of the
learners.

3. Context – The Learning Space
 Refers to the situation in which the
learning is taking place.
 Can take many forms: formal institution
based, informal meetings of like minded
people, internet based, apprenticeships
at work, etc.

4. Online and Informal Learning
Much learning
Community workers
moving toward being People working in
striving for social
open similar industries use
change increasingly
education, leveraging online learning to
leverage the internet
the possibilities connect and strive for
to communicate and
available online betterment.
learn
(Bouchard, p.4)

5. Social Change
 People come together when they perceive an
injustice, to achieve social change they engage in
activity
Personal Activity
Interacting with greater society to engage in
Meeting with likeminded people
social change
Social Interaction
Formation of new skills (letter
Gaining new cultural tools
writing, organizing protests
Learning
Through discussion transformation of Through social interaction, transformation of
personal beliefs society.
 Taken from Smolka (2001, p. 364)

6. Social Change and
Learning
Long term Circumstancial
Activists Activist
Apprentice Type
Urgent, Rapid Learning
Learning
Learning through action
Learning through
and interaction in the
challenge to current
heat of the moment
views
Development of Skill Identifying important
and Discussion of Social personal views on the
Implications spot, at time of crisis.
Taken from Ollis, 2011.

7. Communities of Practice
 Community of Practice is a group of people
coming together to share and create knowledge
and develop solutions to their common problems
in regards to work (Akkerman, et al, 2008, p. 383-
384).
 Communities of Practice aim to improve the
group, it is group learning, for a preconceived
shared goal.

8. Learning in a Community of
Practice
Complexity Theory in a Community of Practice
Any learning directed at a
The learners have Community of Practice must
The learners are part of a
acknowledged the fact that address not only the
specific group, a context
they are learning in order to learners, but the system from
which they help to form and
change their context in which they are coming. The
which in turn forms them.
someway. context needs to learn as
much as the people.
Adapted from Fenwick, 2010, p. 108-109.

9. Comparison
 Social Change Context  Community of Practice
Learning Context Learning
-can be long or short term -has a set goal and lasts until
the goal has been achieved
-is often informal, or even
-learning is an acknowledged
incidental activity, therefore tends to more
- is designed to bring about planned if not completely
transformation of society, to formal
challenge the current norms -occurs through sharing of
-occurs through discussion knowledge and creation of new
and consideration knowledge relevant to the
community
-involves both skills and
-involves the skills of the
attitudes of the person and community as a whole, not just
society the individual

10. Conclusion
 Learning is a complex process and
 2 different contexts, both involving
adults learning a group
 Different goals and processes – learners
will benefit from different approaches to
the material

11. References
 Akkerman, S., Petter, C., & de Laat, M. (2008) Organising communities-of-practice: facilitating
emergence Journal of Workplace Learning 20. 6, 383-399.
 Bouchard, P. (in print). Learning without a distance: networked learning, in Nesbit, T. (ed).Canadian
readings in adult education. Toronto:Thompson Educational Publishing
 Fenwick, T. (2010) Re-thinking the “thing”: sociomaterial approaches to understanding and
researching learning in work, Journal of Workplace Learning 22, No. 1-2, 104-116.
 Ollis, T. (2011) Learning in social action: the informal and social learning dimensions of circumstantial
and lifelong activists, Australian Journal of Adult Learning 51, No. 2, 248-268.
 Smolka, A. L. B. (2001) Social practice and social change: activity theory in perspective, Human
Development 44, No. 6, 362-367.