Comments on: When should you use Informal Learning? http://www.upsidelearning.com/blog/index.php/2009/04/27/when-should-you-use-informal-learning/ Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:15:08 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: Mallika Ganguli http://www.upsidelearning.com/blog/index.php/2009/04/27/when-should-you-use-informal-learning/comment-page-1/#comment-92 Mallika Ganguli Thu, 07 May 2009 11:42:28 +0000 http://www.upsidelearning.com/blog/?p=726#comment-92 Thanks for sharing your views. I guess what we now need to look at is offering solutions that include an informal learning component, rather than just stopping at the formal learning. Any ideas (or experiences) on how open would organizations be to implementing such solutions? Thanks for sharing your views.
I guess what we now need to look at is offering solutions that include an informal learning component, rather than just stopping at the formal learning. Any ideas (or experiences) on how open would organizations be to implementing such solutions?

]]> By: Archana Narayan http://www.upsidelearning.com/blog/index.php/2009/04/27/when-should-you-use-informal-learning/comment-page-1/#comment-87 Archana Narayan Tue, 05 May 2009 12:35:58 +0000 http://www.upsidelearning.com/blog/?p=726#comment-87 "Let’s take an example from my own domain. I work as an instructional designer. My organization has induction programs for new joiners who have no prior ID experience. This program introduces them to the basics of ID— theories, the processes that we follow, basically all the “how tos” about the stuff that we do. We also have regular training that looks at our weak spots and hones the skills that we already have. So these are all formal learning methods. However, if we had left it to the individual to learn about, say, how to write a storyboard, till the time they were actually beginning a project, the project would be at risk." I was listening to a session 'An Unconversation with Jay Cross, Jane Hart and Fae Longman'. In this Jay Cross clearly states that formal training will never go away and is absolutely essential for learning new information in a particular domain, putting frameworks together and so on. I am an instructional designer too. My formal trainings on the learning and ID theories were extreme useful. But, writing a storyboard as such is an expertise that you gain only as you actually do it. I would agree with Jay Cross (especially in my case) 80% of my learning happened on-the-job, i.e informal training.  I think the key is to integrate informal learning to supplement formal training to ensure that learning is more effective and holistic. “Let’s take an example from my own domain. I work as an instructional designer. My organization has induction programs for new joiners who have no prior ID experience. This program introduces them to the basics of ID— theories, the processes that we follow, basically all the “how tos” about the stuff that we do. We also have regular training that looks at our weak spots and hones the skills that we already have. So these are all formal learning methods. However, if we had left it to the individual to learn about, say, how to write a storyboard, till the time they were actually beginning a project, the project would be at risk.”

I was listening to a session ‘An Unconversation with Jay Cross, Jane Hart and Fae Longman’. In this Jay Cross clearly states that formal training will never go away and is absolutely essential for learning new information in a particular domain, putting frameworks together and so on.

I am an instructional designer too. My formal trainings on the learning and ID theories were extreme useful. But, writing a storyboard as such is an expertise that you gain only as you actually do it. I would agree with Jay Cross (especially in my case) 80% of my learning happened on-the-job, i.e informal training. 

I think the key is to integrate informal learning to supplement formal training to ensure that learning is more effective and holistic.

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