Module 2 - Section 2
Situated Learning
carrying out learning in the context in which it is going to be used, as close to the point of its application as possible increases the retention of that learning and therefore its effectiveness
“[We’re still giving learners] information out of any context of demand - big blocks of information that students can’t tie to experience”
(Foreman, J. 2004 Game-Based Learning – How to Delight and Instruct in the 21st Century) EDUCAUSE Review September/October 2004)
So, as you’ll have gathered from the introduction to this module, we’d suggest that associations between disparate bits of information (between 'old'/received information we have stored away, and new information) do indeed help us retain new learning. But, we've also known for some time that carrying out learning in the context in which it is going to be used, as close to the point of its application as possible (referred to as 'Situated Learning' or ‘situated cognition’) also increases the retention of that learning and therefore its effectiveness. In his paper on workplace learning, Peter Smith defines situated learning as,
“learning that takes place within a culture of practice where the knowledge is deployed in the same context as the learning” (Smith, 2003, p.62) ,
Smith’s review of the literature around workplace learning, cites
research highlighting concerns about the effective transfer of
learning from the classroom to the workplace and suggests that
learning for the workplace is best when it is designed in the
context of actual workplace problems and delivered in that
workplace context. Webster-Wright (2009) shares this viewpoint,
and highlights that delivering learning divorced from its
application reinforces the divide between theory and practice;
that learning is most successful when it takes place in the
culture and context in which it is expected to be applied
(Webster-Wright 2009, pp 753 & 251). This is further support in
research carried out by Bates and Khasawneh who point out that
organisational cultures which value learning and are supportive of
learning are likely to be most successful in enabling
learning transfer
(Bates and Khasawneh 2005, p 106). This doesn’t mean that the
learner has no personal role to play here. Gardner and Korth point
out that in applying their new learning as soon as possible, the
learner has a key role in ensuring learning transfer (Gardner and
Korth 1997, p.49).
It’d be fair to say that the learning landscape today is very
mixed, with education and training opportunities covering further
and higher education, as well as a wide variety of
employer-delivered in-service learning, for the majority of people
in work. The common thread in all of this is the emphasis on
preparation for, and application of learning to practice.
Despite this, the emphasis in formal learning programmes has been
on teaching concepts and facts, in an abstract and
decontextualized
form: i.e. students experience the teaching of these concepts,
facts and theories in the classroom and are expected to transfer
them to the practice setting at a later date. The problem with
this is that, in general, this abstract knowledge is not
retrievable in real-life, problem-solving contexts, because this
approach ignores the interdependence of situation and cognition
(Herrington, 2006 p.1). In other words, how we make sense of new
information relies on being able to apply it to the context in
which it can be used. For example, having to take lessons in
geometry at scholl may not have made much sense to 15-year-old you
sitting in s high school classroom but, if you learned the same
information in the context of a job role in engineering, it would
make perfect sense: the context (i.e. practical application) helps
you to make sense of the information. As Diana Oblinger and Brian
Hawkins, writing for EDUCAUSE pointed out,
“The ability to transfer learning to a real-world situation enhances the application of knowledge and leads to enduring understanding” (Oblinger and Hawkins, 2006, p.14)
Activity 1
Blog
So, if the desired outcome from the application of learning to practice is to ensure that staff are both confident and competent in their work roles, we’d like you to identify and describe one skill or knowledge area which is important to your organisation’s ability to achieve its service objectives and, highlight how you think the principles of situated learning could be used to improve the effectiveness of staff development in that area. You should post your write-up in your blog or as a Word/PDF file and share with your peers.
Finally, Dede states that, what he refers to as “ubiquitous computing”
has the potential to support the power of situated learning by
allowing the development of immersive learning experiences which
reflect the real-world problems faced by employees (Dede 2010 p.1). In
other words, with the huge uptake and general availability of
smartphones
and
tablet devices
(and mobile broadband), it is now much easier to design and deliver
learning materials to learners in workplace settings without the need
for them to access a computer.
Therefore, we can now design learning experiences, which we can
deliver on these mobile devices, where people can access new
information and apply it to their practice with minimal, or no delay.
This means we can negate the effects of the ‘forgetting curve’
(described in the module introduction), benefit from the effects of
situated learning in providing learners with the opportunity to learn
in their work context (and therefore make better sense of the material
they are learning) and, have their learning reinforced by applying it
to real-world tasks. The key take-away here, is that we can
significantly improve the effectiveness of our learning activities by
moving them into real-world situations.
There is a significant body of research available to support these
model. We’ve provided some further reading to help you get started in
finding out more, but we’d like you to search beyond what we’ve given
you and see what other research and practical examples you can find of
situated learning in action.
Activity 2
Blog
We’d like you to find and share an example of learning and development material which has been designed for delivery on mobile devices and highlight how you feel the example you have found addresses the basic elements of situated learning. You should share your findings with your peers via a blog post.