Workplace learning: use it or lose it

Employers get good results when they think carefully about who the learners really are in their workplace, says Dr Karen Vaughan, senior researcher at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research.

Vaughan was a keynote presenter at the Industry Training Federation's annual Vocational Education and Training Forum held in Wellington, April 22-23, where she presented findings from her research into the conditions and strategies for making the most of workplace learning.

"When workplace learning is going well the workers have lots of opportunity to use what they have learned," says Vaughan.

"They are given time for it to take root - a chance to practise and do it and also a chance to talk about doing it with other people at work, or their employer. Being able to reflect on what you do helps people to learn and helps the learning to take root and become meaningful."

From an educationalist's point of view this may seem obvious, but Vaughan says it doesn't always happen. There is a lot of variability in the way learning is approached in workplaces, but it involves more than just doing the job.

With the advent of knowledge societies the research muscles of education and industry are starting to work together. The growing number of industry training organisations (ITO) at the research forum is evidence of this.

The 30 registrations of six years ago have grown to over 200 this year and ITOs are presenting research about and examples of workplace learning in New Zealand.

The strength of workplace learning is that it combines the theoretical and the practical. Current knowledge indicates this is how many people learn best. It also helps them develop "learning muscle."

"Knowledge is no longer stuff you just carry in your head," says Vaughan.

"It is something that you do. It's more dynamic [than training focused on immediate tasks]. If you are getting people to develop learning muscle you are trying to build their capacity to continue learning. Basically it means people are much better at adapting to new situations, to new roles or new technologies in their workplace. And they are better at problem-solving as well."

Even just the pace of things today dictates that people have the ability to respond smartly. When people develop learning muscle they are better able to do this. That applies to employers as well, not just the people working for them.

Vaughan, whose research has ranged internationally, cites an example of flexible workplace learning from a study of manufacturing businesses in Australia. Mature workers, lacking in confidence in a formal classroom setting, were put into one that suited them better.

"The researchers worked out that they should take it totally out of the classroom and do it only on the job. They used these older workers to train and mentor the other [younger] people, using their experience and knowledge and the fact that they had so much respect from the other employees. It was about tailoring your learning and being flexible, making use of what you've got."

Another example involved a small sandwich-making business with a hierarchical structure "where the van drivers were just delivering".

"They started a discussion group within the organisation. The van drivers were building good customer relationships and no one had really recognised this before. They were able to have input into the business strategy in terms of sharing their knowledge about what customers were thinking and wanting. So between the employers and the van drivers they built up great cultural knowledge about the business and about the market they were serving."

Learning is only as good as your opportunities to use it, says Vaughan.

"If you don't get to use it you do lose it. You also get a lot more bang for your buck if you provide opportunities for learners to get together, share their expertise and learn from each other in their everyday work - not through a special add-on but as something that becomes almost part of the culture of your workplace."

Other topics covered included: implementing change in levels of literacy and numeracy; how the public sector and tourism industry value industry training; how training impacts on workplace productivity.

"We were treated to two-days of quality presentations that were thought-provoking and useful," says Jeremy Baker, executive director, ITF. "I was particularly proud of the number of ITO-based research projects that are helping to inform practice across the whole sector."