Learning in Practice - Jargon Buster


We’ve created a jargon buster to explain some of the terms we’ve used on the website:

Action Learning is a process whereby the learner studies their own actions and experience in order to improve performance.  This concept is close to learning by doing.  It is done in conjunction with others, in small groups called action learning sets.  It enables each person to reflect on and review the action they have taken and the learning points arising.  This should then guide future action and improve performance.

Assessment of personal learning is critical to Learning in Practice.  It comes in two forms – Formative and Summative.  Formative assessment can be used to help learners test their learning and get feedback during a program.  Summative assessment can be used at the end of a program to consolidate a range of learning outcomes. Summative assessments can include de-brief interviews, 360 feedback, group or personal assignments and presentations.

Cognition is the scientific term for the process of thought.  At the most basic level, learners need to have the cognitive capacity to grasp concepts and skills.

Communities of Practice describe a group of people who share an interest, a craft, and/or a profession.  It is in the process of sharing information and experiences in that group that the members learn from each other.  The communities can exist online or face-to-face in a work or non-work setting.                                      

Ethnography literally means ethno = people and graphy = writing.  It is a qualitative research method used in social scientific research.  We use it to gather data about human interactions in the workplace. Data is usually collected through participant observation and interviews.  It is then written up to produce a detailed account of what is happening and why.  This is useful for program design and case studies.      

Ethnomethodology literally means ethno = people and methodology = methods.  Ethnography is concerned with ‘what’ and ‘why’.  Ethnomethodology is concerned with ‘how’ people get things done in their everyday activities. We use it to gain insights into how managerial work is being accomplished.  Our view is that ‘management’ is a lived experience that takes place in vivo and in situ.   By undertaking research in this way our aim is to develop better learning processes and programs.    

Experiential Learning is the process of making meaning from direct experience.  The American educational theorist David Kolb developed the Experiential Learning Theory which states that in order to gain genuine knowledge from an experience, certain abilities are required:

Human Capital refers to the accumulation of individual knowledge, skills and behaviours deployed in the workplace to produce economic value.

Learning by Doing is a concept of economic theory.  It refers to the capability of workers to improve their productivity by regularly repeating the same type of action. The increased productivity is achieved through practice, self-perfection and minor innovations.

Meta-cognition is a concept which is about knowing what you know, and knowing what you do not know.  As learners become more active it’s important to develop the ability to know and be adept in higher cognitive functions.

Social Capital refers to the connections among individuals and is closely related to the idea of ‘civic virtue’.  Social capital is about the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from social networks. 

Social Constructionism is a social theory of knowledge.  Knowledge is constructed in a dynamic, ongoing interaction between people. For learning in practice this means that the learner is jointly involved with the teacher and their colleagues in creating or constructing new meanings and knowledge.

 


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