Promoting learning in, through and for work is important to improve the quality and efficacy of the services provided and/or goods produced. Making workplace learning experiences more effective can assist workers’ initial occupational preparation and their on-going development across lengthening working lives. It can also support workplace continuity and efficacies in responses to changing practices and work requirements. Certainly, much, and perhaps the majority of learning required across working life, arises through the everyday process of work activities and interactions in the circumstances where occupations are practised. This is because work settings provide many of the contributions required to secure the learning necessary to optimise those experiences. This learning is also central to working lifelong employability and developing capacities required for effective occupational practice.

Building on two decades of empirical studies of learning through work activities and interactions, over the past three years, I have engaged in an inquiry to assist understanding of how learning in practice settings can progress effectively. It is concluded that to effectively support and promote that learning, requires: i) a practice curriculum; ii) practice pedagogies and iii) the promotion of workers’ personal epistemologies of practice. The aim of this talk is to discuss these three elements and appraise their usefulness and applicability of those findings to different kinds of occupations and workplaces, through a process of informing participants and responding to their evaluations of these findings.

Learn more about professor Stephen Billett.

Contact: Stine Trentemøller, stinet@edu.au.dk