Learning in the Workplace

Citation

Bensley, R. (2002), "Learning in the Workplace", Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol. 14 No. 6, pp. 263-263. https://doi.org/10.1108/jwl.2002.14.6.263.1

Purpose

Stephen Billett leaves us in no doubt as to the purpose of his writing; he is intent on presenting a “case for a pedagogy for the workplace and a workplace curriculum”.

Audience

Human resource managers, organisational development managers and those responsible for managing workplace training and development would find a rich mix of good conceptual insights and practical tips into how the process of workplace learning can be better structured and managed.

Structure

Five key premises provide the foundational underpinnings of Billett’s work:

1. 1.

   (1) Learning occurs as a normal part of everyday thinking and acting. “If we are thinking and acting we are learning”, not just when we are in a class or training room.

2. 2.

   (2) Workplace curriculum needs to be grounded in the contribution and circumstances provided by the workplace environment and not some educational institution.

3. 3.

   (3) Workplace learning experiences need to be adequately structured and supported if the learning of vocational practice is to reach a satisfactory standard.

4. 4.

   (4) Workplaces do not always provide equitable vocational practice learning opportunities for all employees.

5. 5.

   (5) Vocational practice learning may be most potent when the contribution of school or college and workplace‐based learning are made complementary.

The book is divided into two major sections.

Part A focuses on the workplace as a learning environment. Billett illustrates the idea of learning as part of everyday thinking and acting in the workplace. The knowledge and skills required for acceptable levels of performance in the workplace become the criteria for assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the learning environment. For Billett, the goal of the workplace learning environment is to move employees from the level of novice to that of experts in their field. The process is aided by the guidance provided by more experienced workers in the area or experts called in to assist.

Part B focuses on the delineation of a curriculum for the workplace. Billett proposes a model of workplace curriculum to guide the learner along the pathway from novice to that of expert. The model takes account of both environmental and human factors impacting on the learning effectiveness.

In this section, the author identifies three levels of guidance available in the workplace and details how the direct guidance provided by more experienced workers augments what is naturally provided by the workplace environment. This section concludes with a good discussion of the role of the enterprise in organising and managing workplace learning.

This is not a manual on workplace training, rather the focus is on how people learn through their everyday work and the distinctive contribution made by the workplace environment. The author provides a good critical review of the research into learning at and for work and successfully argues that, although workplace learning may often be informal, incidental, unstructured and have no designated “teacher,” nevertheless, it often proves to be more effective than classroom‐based programs in advancing the novice worker to the level of expert. The book also offers some helpful suggestions as to how learning for vocational practice can be improved through the careful selection and training of those who act as learning guides.