Tag Archives: informal learning

Could we build a treehouse?

Image by Th G from Pixabay
Image by Th G from Pixabay

I have written before about informal learning, and how that once you start designing informal learning it becomes formalised. What you can do is create spaces, as well as provide technology, that can encourage informal learning.

A simple example of this is providing ubiquitous Wi-Fi across the campus, especially in social and communal areas.

What would you design in your informal learning spaces if money no object?

This was the brief we had in a workshop at the Leeds Business School at the recent ALT Learning Spaces SIG in January.

So the brief was to think about how an existing space could be refurbished into an informal learning space. There were three scenarios, a very limited budgetary option, a classic budgetary scenario and ours, which was “budget, what budget!”

We were split into groups, two groups had a (realistic) limited budget to work with, another group a bigger budget and our group… well our group had an unlimited budget. We could go to town.

There is still something useful about this kind of scenario, even though it isn’t realistic, as with any blue skies thinking, you can start with unrealistic and unattainable outcome, but bringing that back down to reality, means that some things will remain.

The space we were working with was a real space, and is in the West Park Teaching Hub at Loughborough University. This is a round space, currently divided into two semi-circle teaching spaces. The space wasn’t working as planned, in the main due to noise leaking between the spaces.

The space was circular and I immediately thought lets go right out there and think about doing something very different, so I threw into the initial discussion the idea of either building a fairground carousel, my thinking was of the double decker ones you see in Germany and France.

My other idea, which the group liked more, was let’s build a treehouse in the space.

The seminar room we were in had interactive whiteboards for each group, so I got to work to “sketch” a treehouse concept for the space.

The key concept was to bring in nature into the space, both in terms of the tree, but also real foliage and natural light.

The other aspect was to design the space to create various different ways in which the space could be used for informal learning, both for individuals and for groups.

One thing I have done in spaces I was managed (some years ago) was designing the space to allow for quick (or light) informal learning and spaces for longer deeper informal learning. I took my cue from coffee shops, where though they basically sell coffee, there are different coffee drinking scenarios. There are those people who want to pop in, sit down, have a quick coffee and then go. Similarly there are two people, who want a break from shopping, so want to chat and have a coffee. Then there are the people who want a longer coffee drinking experience (maybe they are going to have cake or a sandwich). They will spend much longer in the coffee shop, they may even have a second coffee. Sometimes a group will come in to discuss and chat over coffee. Then there are those looking for a place to use their laptop.

In a lot of coffee shops, you will see they design the space to meet these differing needs. Near the entrance are usually tables and chairs and occasional soft seating. As you venture deeper into the coffee shop, you will find sofas and more comfortable seating, but also larger tables and chairs (for groups).

So back to the learning space design, we wanted to do something similar. We wanted a range of furniture that would allow for multiple and varied informal learning scenarios. Places where a learner could sit down and check something on their laptop. Tables that would allow a couple of learners to grab a coffee and chat about their most recent lecture. Furniture for longer and deeper informal learning scenarios, working on an essay or a group project.

We felt that lighting was important and would both encourage and discourage informal learning. Everyone felt coffee (and snacks) was important, but were aware of the noise issues that this could cause. Acoustical planning would be undertaken to create quiet spaces and ensure noisy spaces could be contained and the sound absorbed by the furniture and plants.

Technology would be embedded and integrated into the treehouse. There would be ubiquitous Wi-FI, well would you expect anything less. There would be places to charge devices. Screens would be available for small group work, as well as traditional whiteboards and other areas to write on.

Image by Duddesack from Pixabay

We also thought a big screen surrounding the tree could be used to change the mood of the space, as well as for information.

It was a fun task and we enjoyed working together. It certainly wasn’t a realistic option, but some of the concepts and ideas could certainly be utilised in a real budgetary envelope when designing a space for informal learning.

Reflecting on the informality of learning – Weeknote #31 – 4th October 2019

The view from St Philip's Bridge in Bristol
The view from St Philip’s Bridge in Bristol

Over the weekend I saw this article on WonkHE called  Learning in the spaces in between,

The final paragraph said:

With institutions re-evaluating their teaching and thinking how best to invest, it’s a great time to consider whether we really understand how students are using informal educational spaces outside of the classroom. The student perspective combined with novel use of occupancy data is bringing us closer to answering that conundrum.

Reminded me of this blog post that I wrote this back in 2017 on designing informal learning spaces that would encourage informal learning.

 Well the key really is to think about what actually facilitates and encourages informal learning.

It’s a combination of factors and can include design of learning spaces and the learning activities undertaken by the learners.

Creating the right contexts and environments for informal learning, will ensure that the concept of learn anywhere and anytime is encouraged and enhanced.

Though I wouldn’t have called it ethnography (and I certainly wouldn’t call it ethnography today) my blog post was based on my experiences in designing and running libraries, as well as developing the use of digital and virtual learning. I would spend a lot of time observing how learners would use our spaces, what they were doing in those spaces and I felt importantly what they weren’t doing as well. I would talk to learners, more importantly I would listen to learners. We would also measure space utilisation and activity in our spaces and all this would inform how we would design and change the space.

Sofa's in the library at Gloucestershire College
Sofa’s in the library at Gloucestershire College

When we originally designed the spaces, an important aspect to me was flexibility, being able to change the space as demands on that space changed, in how people wanted to use it and how many wanted to use it. All our shelving for example was on wheels, could be moved easily and quickly around. So following observation and listening, we would adjust the space accordingly.

That blog post was inspired by another one I had written in 2010 on designing informal learning.

The premise of that article was you couldn’t design informal learning (as that would formalise it) but what you could do is create spaces that would encourage informal learning.

It is more challenging to create learning spaces that encourage informal and social learning. As demands on space continues to grow and demand for more learner-led learning, it is important that institutions consider much more how their spaces can be used for informal learning.

Victoria Street in Bristol
Victoria Street in Bristol

Monday I was into the office in Bristol for various meetings and some training on culture. One of the things I did finalise was my performance objectives for the year ahead. One thing which I ensured was that my objectives were derived from the strategic objectives of the organisation. This way everything I do is contributing to the organisational strategic priorities. This process was something we did on the Jisc Digital Leaders Programme and I also illustrated in this sketchnote.

Vision

I also had a discussion about writing an article about Education 4.0, but with a copyright lens. At this time we’ve not really looked into the copyright implications of the changes that could happen in the world of education.

Alas when leaving the office later that day, it was pouring rain and I got rather damp walking back to my car. I realised my waterproof coat was in fact no longer waterproof.

Illness in others and terrible rain, meant that meetings were changed, so I was able to change my plans from going into the Bristol office to working from home on Tuesday and avoid the rain.

I saw a video in the Twitter on the fourth industrial revolution which I thought was rather good so I blogged about it.

What is Industry 4.0?

Wednesday saw an interesting anniversary, as ten years ago on the 2nd October, I was at the ULCC Event, The Future of Technology in Education.

James Clay presenting at FOTE09
James Clay presenting at FOTE09

Little did I know the impact that this presentation would have on me, my future career and education in general. I wrote a nostalgic blog post looking back at the event, my presentation and the impact it had.

The future of learning… ten years later!

Group working
Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

I spent a lot of time on Thursday interviewing prospective student partners for Jisc. We like to know what is important to students regarding their use of technology in education and research. What skills they think they need and how they want to learn. So every year we get a group of students from across HE and FE and work with them in a variety of different ways. Some attend our meetings, others our events, they participate in podcasts, panel sessions and workshops. I have always felt it was important to listen to the student voice to inform my work.

Friday I had various meetings, but managed to make a lot of progress on our Learning Technologist technical career pathway. We will be piloting this with individuals over the next twelve months.

My top tweet this week was this one.

Encouraging informal learning

So how do we encourage students to learn outside the formal structures and processes we put in place across our institutions?

Informal learning in my opinion is learning that happens outside the “control” of the institution, but is part of the learning towards a qualification that a learner will undertake. This learning may happen within the institution, but will also happen outside at home, at work or in a coffee shop. This definition of informal learning differs from non-formal learning in that the activity of learning is still tied to the institution and the qualification, but is not a proscribed or set activity as set down by a practitioner or an academic.

So can you design informal learning?

No!

There we go that was easy wasn’t it.

You see when you design informal learning, you formalise it and as a result it becomes formal learning.

So if you can’t design informal learning, then how do you design informal learning?

It’s not about designing informal learning, it’s about institutions facilitating and encouraging informal learning. If this happens then, with encouragement from practitioners (rather than setting activities) we should see more learners learning informally.

So how should institutions encourage informal learning?

Well the key really is to think about what actually facilitates and encourages informal learning.

It’s a combination of factors and can include design of learning spaces and the learning activities undertaken by the learners.

Creating the right contexts and environments for informal learning, will ensure that the concept of learn anywhere and anytime is encouraged and enhanced.

Don’t forget the coffee, well of course that could be tea, soft drinks, even cakes and chocolate. Having refreshments can aid the learning process, but also encourages people to be within an informal learning space.

So where is it written that learning has to be uncomfortable?

After I put some sofas into the libraries when I worked in a college, I was asked a few times why do I have sofas in the library when the library is a learning environment?

I would ask then, where is it written down that learning has to be uncomfortable? Where is the rulebook that states learners should sit at desks on hard chairs? Is it not possible for a learner to learn whilst sitting on a sofa? Why can’t a learning environment be enticing, comfortable and even a little bit social?

Sometimes you want to take learners out of their comfort zone, but I am not sure that means making them sit on hard benches! Providing spaces that learners like to be in, ones they will spend time in, combined with other factors could encourage informal learning. If all other factors were implemented, why would you spoil it all, by having an uncomfortable environment?

With dependency on the internet and connectivity for learning these days, it is critical when wanting to encourage learning to have ubiquitous, fast and dependable wifi. Any spaces will need to have the capacity for multiple connections, many learners will have two or more devices that use wifi.

Dropped connections, insufficient bandwidth can result in learners going elsewhere or doing something other than learning.

Another factor that often gets ignored is the impact building construction can have on 3G and 4G signals. If learners are using their own connections, then building construction should be considered in respect to that issue.

When creating spaces that will encourage informal learning, then it needs to provide different furniture for different activities.

Sofas for calm individual reflective thinking, tables and chairs for small group work. Quiet secluded places for focused work. Use appropriate furniture for small groups discussion.

As well as the physical aspects of the space, it is also useful to
think about the temperature, the lighting and ambient noise.
Use furniture, walls and plants to create quiet and less quiet spaces for example. Having the same kind of lighting across a space may be efficient, but using different kinds of lighting for different spaces can both encourage different kinds of activities.

As well as physical spaces, it is also useful when encouraging informal learning, to provide access to virtual collaborative spaces. This could be the vLE, but other options are available such as Slack, WhatsApp or even a Facebook group. It’s not just about providing access (through the firewall) but also about providing guidance and best practice so that learners have a better understanding of the benefits (and limitations) of these virtual collaborative tools. It would also make sense to check that the organisation has a sensible Social Media policy that reflects the use of social media tools for learning.

Think about any non-formal activity and ensure that student has access to appropriate resources (digital and non-digital). Is access to those resources mobile friendly? Will they work on the kinds of devices those learners are using when learning?

One thing to ensure is you have an appropriate Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy to facilitate informal learning.

So how are you creating spaces for and facilitating informal learning?

This blog post is inspired by a blog post on informal learning, that I wrote in 2010, and a cookery book activity from the ALT Winter Conference 2016.

Designing Informal Learning

So can you design informal learning?

No!

There we go that was easy wasn’t it.

You see when you design informal learning, you formalise it and as a result it becomes formal learning.

Okay?

But….

There is always a but…

You see informal learning is such a valuable way of learning for learners that institutions are often thinking about how to design informal learning activities… of course as we know, that means it becomes a formal learning activity.

It might be useful at this point to define what I mean by informal learning, how it differs from formal learning and the implication of using the term as opposed to non-formal learning.

Formal learning is is learning that happens within a structure prescribed by an institution. This learning may happen within a classroom or lecture theatre, but could also happen outside the institutions. It will involve set tasks and activities and a timeframe. Examples could include:

  • a lecture on macroeconomics in a lecture theatre
  • a lesson on statistics in a classroom
  • a field trip to look at tourist sites in Gloucester

Formal learning is very much about learning that is planned, organised and assessed. There is structure, constraints and expectations.

Non-formal learning is learning that happens not just outside the confines of the institution, but also outside the qualificational framework. This learning is often ad hoc and unplanned. Examples could include:

  • reading a book on political history on a train
  • using the web to discover how to write an iPhone Application through sites, forums and iTunes U
  • watching a television programme on archaeology

Informal learning in my opinion is learning that happens outside the “control” of the institution, but is part of the learning towards a qualification that a learner will undertake. This learning may happen within the institution, but will also happen outside at home, at work or in a coffee shop. Examples could include:

  • an economics student reading books on macroeconomics in the college library
  • media students discussing an assignment on media channels in the college cafe
  • photography student checking websites on photography in Starbucks
  • managers in a business discussing their management course over lunch

This definition of informal learning differs from non-formal learning in that the activity of learning is still tied to the institution and the qualification, but is not a proscribed or set activity as set down by a practitioner.

So can practitioners design informal learning activities?

No!

You see when you design informal learning, you formalise it and as a result it becomes formal learning.

It’s not about designing informal learning, it’s about institutions facilitating and encouraging informal learning. If this happens then, with encouragement from practitioners (rather than setting activities) we should see more learners learning informally.

So how should institutions encourage informal learning?

Well the key really is to think about what actually facilitates and encourages informal learning.

It’s a combination of factors and can include design of  learning spaces and the learning activities undertaken by the learners.

If learning activities are dependent on learners learning knowledge and demonstrating that they understand and can apply that knowledge through an essay or an assignment, then traditional learning spaces are usually going to be sufficient. Learning at home on a desk is probably quite normal for this kind of individual activity.

However once practitioners think more creatively about learning activities and learners are given more choice and control about how they undertake their learning, then the space in which the learning takes place becomes much more important.

The learning space and importantly the informal learning space is really important if learners are to take advantage of the time and space to learn. Learners will learn in a variety of places both in and out of the institution.

Inside the institution, we need to consider how the spaces we provide allow for informal learning. In the past we generally divided spaces into learning spaces such as the library and social spaces like the refectory or cafe. If we are to encourage informal learning, then we need to create social learning spaces. Usually (in the past) libraries were silent working areas, recently quiet working is now the norm. Good library design allows for a variety of learning activities from quiet individual work, to collaborative group work. Space needs to allow for the use of both new technologies, user owned technologies and traditional resources such as books and journals.

Questions you need to ask about your learning spaces?

Are the computers all in one place in the learning centre? Or are they spread about the space to encourage group working, working with non-digital (traditional) resources and individual working.

Do you provide a wireless network to allow users to use their own devices? Does the wireless network “work” with mobile devices such as the iPhone or other smartphones? What barriers are in the way when a learner brings in their device? Do they need to register the device? Have it PAT tested? Are there power points for user owned devices? How simple is it for users to charge their devices?

Can learners access digital and online resources via the wireless network? Can they access online storage?

Are users allowed to use their mobile phones in the learning space? Not for loud conversations, but for internet, SMS or listening to audio and video content.

What about the coffee?

Likewise what about the traditional social space? The focus is probably on moving people through the space as quickly as possible through a short lunch hour! They are probably designed for eating and drinking and not studying. They are probably loud noisy places, some may even have loud music!

These spaces are fully utilised during refreshment breaks and are designed to ensure as many people as possible can get something to eat and drink before they then move onto the next lesson or workshop. That obviously means at other times, the space is quieter and accessible for learning; but is it accessible and accomodating to those learners who want to use the space for learning?

Are they fully open plan? Are there spaces for small group working? Do you divide the space out or are there no divisions?

Are there different kinds of furniture to cater for different needs? Are there chairs, tables, sofas?

Are there different areas for different activities? Quiet spaces for individual working or reflection? Group spaces for discussion and collaboration? Open spaces for debate?

Are there charging points for learner owned devices?

Is it purely a self-clear area, or do the staff take pride to ensure that the space is attractive and conducive to study and learning?

Has any consideration been given to the sort of food and drink available? Are healthy snacks promoted?

What about the coffee?

Yes it is easier to design spaces for learning and design spaces for social use. It is more challenging to create learning spaces that encourage informal and social learning. As demands on space continues to grow and demand for more learner-led learning, it is important that institutions consider much more how their spaces can be used for informal learning.