Informal learning recognition through a cloud ecosystem

Learning and teaching processes, like all human activities, can be mediated through the use of tools. Information and communication technologies are now widespread within education. Their use in the daily life of teachers and learners affords engagement with educational activities at any place and time and not necessarily linked to an institution or a certificate. In the absence of formal certification, learning under these circumstances is known as informal learning. Despite the lack of certification, learning with technology in this way presents opportunities to gather information about and present new ways of exploiting an individual’s learning. Cloud technologies provide ways to achieve this through new architectures, methodologies, and workflows that facilitate semantic tagging, recognition, and acknowledgment of informal learning activities. The transparency and accessibility of cloud services mean that institutions and learners can exploit existing knowledge to their mutual benefit. The TRAILER project facilitates this aim by providing a technological framework using cloud services, a workflow, and a methodology. The services facilitate the exchange of information and knowledge associated with informal learning activities ranging from the use of social software through widgets, computer gaming, and remote laboratory experiments. Data from these activities are shared among institutions, learners, and workers. The project demonstrates the possibility of gathering information related to informal learning activities independently of the context or tools used to carry them out.

TRAILER Project (Tagging, Recognition, Acknowledgment of Informal Learning Experiences) a methodology to make learners' informal learning activities visible to the institutions

The application of information technologies (specially the Internet, Web 2.0 and social tools) make informal learning more visible. This kind of learning is not linked to an institution or a period of time, but it is important enough to be taken into account. On the one hand, learners should be able to communicate to the institutions they are related to, what skills they possess, whether they were achieved in a formal or informal way. On the other hand the companies and educational institutions need to have a deeper knowledge about the competencies of their staff. The TRAILER project provides a methodology supported by a technological framework to facilitate communication about informal learning between businesses, employees and learners. The paper presents the project and some of the work carried out, an exploratory analysis about how informal learning is considered and the technological framework proposed. Whilst challenges remain in terms of establishing the meaningfulness of technological engagement for employees and businesses, the continuing transformation of the social, technological and educational environment is likely to lead to greater emphasis for the effective exploitation of informal learning.

Using the TRAILER tool for managing informal learning in academic and professional contexts: the learner perspective

Informal Learning plays an important role in everyone's life and yet we often are unaware of it. The need to keep track of the knowledge acquired through informal learning is increasing as its sources become increasingly diverse. This paper presents a study on a tool developed to help keeping track of learners' informal learning, both within academic and professional contexts, This tool, developed within the European Commission funded TRAILER project, will further integrate the improvements suggested by users during the piloting phase. The two studied contexts were similar regarding the importance and perception of Informal Learning, but differed concerning tool usage. The overall idea of managing one's informal learning was well accepted and welcomed, which validated the emerging need for a tool with this purpose.

Managing informal learning in engineering contexts: the learners' perspective

According to recent studies, informal learning accounts for more than 75% of our continuous learning through life. However, the awareness of this learning, its benefits and its potential is still not very clear. In engineering contexts, informal learning could play an invaluable role helping students or employees to engage with peers and also with more experience colleagues, exchanging ideas and discussing problems. This work presents an initial set of results of the piloting phase of a project (TRAILER) where an innovative service based on Information & Communication Technologies was developed in order to aid the collection and visibility of informal learning. This set of results concerns engineering contexts (academic and business), from the learners' perspective. The major idea that emerged from these piloting trials was that it represented a good way of collecting, recording and sharing informal learning that otherwise could easily be forgotten. Several benefits were reported between the two communities such as being helpful in managing competences and human resources within an institution.

Managing Informal Learning in professional contexts: the learner’s perspective

Informal Learning is present in everyone's life but its awareness only recently has been reported. The need to keep track of the knowledge acquired this way is increasing as its sources diversity also increases. This work presents the pilots trials on the use of a tool developed to help keeping track of the learners’ informal learning, within a number of companies spread out in three countries. This tool developed through the European Commission funded project TRAILER, is still under development, which will allow integrating the set of improving suggestions obtained from users during the piloting phase. The overall idea of managing one’s informal learning was well accepted and welcomed, which validated the emerging need for a tool with this purpose.

TRAILER – e-Portfolio for collecting and recognizing informal learning process and outcomes

Informal learning is becoming more and more important: Nowadays people learn more this way, through the Internet, than in schools or normal trainings. But they don’t get any certificateswhich attest this fact. So they can't show the employer or teacher etc. that they have learned something. TRAILER project aim is to solve this problem by developing a special tool for managing of all competences and skills acquired through informal learning experiences. Both from the perspective of the user and the perspective of an institution or a company. We’ll present the IT tool to show how people can make their informal learning outcomes visible. TRAILER helps users to gather all information about process and outcomes of their informal learning. Users can share this with friends, colleagues or their employees, teachers and so on. They can create an interactive e-portfolio which can be attached to their CV, cover letter or Knowledge Management system etc. After the presentation of the tool we will discuss possible areas and fields to use this tool. Also we would like to discuss all possible use of the tool by the participants and another needs in this area. Moreover we want to discuss other problems in informal learning process, ways to solve the problems and discuss other ideas of different IT tools which could help in informal learning process. During the discussion we’ll use an interactive respond system which can be used on mobile devices: it makes possible for participants to share their opinions individually before knowing another persons' opinion.

A tool to aid institutions recognize their employees competences acquired by informal learning

People do not learn only in formal educational institutions, but also throughout their lives, from their experiences, conversations, observations of others, exploration of the Internet, meetings and conferences, and chance encounters etc. However this informal and non-formal learning can easily remain largely invisible, making it hard for peers and employers to recognize or act upon it. The TRAILER project aims to make this learning visible so that it can benefit both the individual and the organization. The proposed demonstration will show a software solution that (i) helps the learners to capture, organize and classify a wide range of ’informal’ learning taking place in their lives, and (ii) assists the organization in recognizing this learning and use it to help managing human resources (benefiting both parts). This software tool has recently been used in two phases of pilot studies, which have run in four different European countries.

TRAILER project overview: tagging, recognition and acknowledgment of informal learning experiences

The evolution of new technology and its increasing use, have for some years been making the existence of informal learning more and more transparent, especially among young and older adults in both Higher Education and workplace contexts. However, the nature of formal and non-formal, course-based, approaches to learning has made it hard to accommodate these informal processes satisfactorily, and although technology bring us near to the solution, it has not yet achieved. TRAILER project aims to address this problem by developing a tool for the management of competences and skills acquired through informal learning experiences, both from the perspective of the user and the institution or company. This paper describes the research and development main lines of this project.

Enhancing informal learning recognition through TRAILER project

International Workshop on solutions that Enhance Informal LEarning Recognition – WEILER 2013

Bridging Formal/Informal Learning

Recently many OER activities have been getting popular, and users who access those content for informal learning are increasing. Most popular OER must be OCW, which has been proposed and promoted by MIT since 2001. In Japan OCW has been penetrating gradually since 2005. However in terms of formal learning utilization ICT technology has not been so popular yet in Japanese higher education field. In this paper two case studies, one is formal e-Learning using OCW, and the other is portal site of open contents from universities are described

Modes of acquisition of health literacy skills in informal learning contexts

In this article we try to analyze the learning processes of health literacy skills in informal contexts. We intend to broaden the understanding of the learning process beyond the formal contexts, thus contributing to the elucidation of health professionals on how individuals acquire and manage their knowledge in health matters. Given our goal, we use an analytic corpus constituted by one hundred autobiographical narratives written between 2006 and 2011, in educational contexts but with recognized potential for use in different scientific fields, including health. The results reveal the existence of three different types of modes of learning health literacy skills in informal context: : i) learning that takes place in action, in achieving daily tasks; ii) learning processes that result from problem solving; iii) learning that occurs in an unplanned manner, resulting from accidental circumstances and, in some cases, devoid of intentionality.

Remote collaborative multi-user informal learning experiences: design and evaluation

This paper presents a customizable system used to develop a collaborative multi-user problem solving game. It addresses the increasing demand for appealing informal learning experiences in museum-like settings. The system facilitates remote collaboration by allowing groups of learners tocommunicate through a videoconferencing system and by allowing them to simultaneously interact through a shared multi-touch interactive surface. A user study with 20 user groups indicates that the game facilitates collaboration between local and remote groups of learners. The videoconference and multitouch surface acted as communication channels, attracted students’ interest, facilitated engagement, and promoted inter- and intra-group collaboration—favoring intra-group collaboration. Our findings suggest that augmentingvideoconferencing systems with a shared multitouch space offers newpossibilities and scenarios for remote collaborative environments and collaborative learning.

The good and the successful - Examination of informal learning mechanisms

This thesis strived to find out which informal learning (IL) mechanisms are used the most by the respondents. Additionally, the goal was to know more about the respondents as informal learners and what could explain possible differences. The target was to resolve whether informal learning explains differences in individual performance or, do some other explanations for success exist. Informal learning was to be made more visible, since many are unaware of it. Relevant IL mechanisms that the interviewees could explain were selected for this thesis. The theory on informal learning was presented and some additional informal learning mechanisms were included: Underlying learning theories, internal and external learning resources, as well as some sport related informal learning mechanisms. Various scholars have explained these terms. The final results of this thesis relate to business context, but sport is at the scope of my research. The target group consisted of nine individuals in team sports that were considered as high performers (good/successful). Hence, also the concept of high performance was clarified with competence, expertise and talent literature. The study is qualitative and face-to-face interviews were chosen. The data was analyzed with Grounded Theory principles and theory elaboration. This thesis pointed out similarities and differences between the respondents´ answers (good/successful, inexperienced/experienced). Thus, the analysis clarified that there are different attitudes to learning and different learner profiles in sports context. Also, it became clear that some informal learning mechanisms are more used than others. Secondly, based on the most crucial differences, Typology of Talentum was formulated based on Le Deist & Winteron´s (2005, 39) Typology of holistic competence. Some variables of informal learning seemed to constitute the Meta-competence of Typology that ultimately causes the differences in individual performance and success. The results can be transferred to business context because meta-competence is transferable by nature.

Informal learning and competence development during a management trainee program

The purpose of this research was to study how management trainee program participants experienced the program with respect to their learning and competence development. Additionally, the purpose was also to examine what the trainees learned and how the learning occurred. Furthermore, factors affecting learning in the workplace were examined. The theoretical framework of this research was formed utilizing individual competence and informal learning frameworks. Research was conducted as a single case study and data was gathered by thematic interviews. The results of this research indicate that the trainees experienced the program as a good method for learning the overall picture of the organization and its business. Regarding competence development, especially knowledge- and cognitive competence categories were developed during the program. The best learning outcomes were achieved through learning by doing, in co-operation with others, and learning from others. The results indicate that the planning of the program and its structure have a significant effect on learning. Furthermore, a sufficient level of challenge was experienced as being important for the quality of the learning as well.

The role of organization-level factors on informal learning process

This study discusses the nature of informal learning process in business organizations, and the importance of different organization-level factors in this process. The purpose of this study is to understand the role of organization-level factors on informal learning process with three subquestions: how informal learning process takes place in business organizations, what organization-level factors affects informal learning process, and how informal learning process is affected by organizational-level factors. The theoretical background of this study includes literatures on the concept of informal learning, its process, and organization-level factors that can affect informal learning process. The empirical research has been conducted in this study by face-to-face interviews. The interviews were conducted between June and August 2015 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Thirteen interviews were made with the employees from different hierarchical levels from four freight forwarding MNCs in Bangladesh. Constant comparative analysis has been used to process the collected data until reaching a level of saturation. The empirical research found that all the phases in an informal learning process are not linear and sequential, and the role of organization-level factors on each phase varies with the degree and nature of each factor. In addition, the results also revealed that all the organization-level factors do not interact with each other while playing their role on informal learning process. The findings of this study considerably extend our understanding of the important role of HRD, manager, colleague, culture, and work structure on informal learning process in the workplace. However, future research in different organizational contexts is required to generalize the findings of this study.