Learning swings like a subjective-door in its work-frame

Billett's (2006) views on work, subjectivity and learning captivated my full attention and prompted me to reconsider some personal viewpoints/assumptions.

During my undergraduate studies in pedagogy a lecturer remarked one day that 'learning is like a door on its hinges, any moment, regardless of the kind of activity, the door may swing and learning will occur'. Billett reminded me about this profound lesson, with his equally profound statement (p. 7) "[t]here is no difference between participating in work and learning". Similar to the door-metaphor, learning depends upon if the worker perceives the action as familiar or something novel -- in the case of the latter 'the door swings' and it is "generative of new learning". This is a very important notion to consider with regard to learning.

Billett defines (p. 4) work as an "individual's engagement in the goal-orientated activities that usually emanates from social and cultural purposes" and he states (p. 5) that "paid work might well be an unwelcome, but necessary intrusion" -- "there is a blurring here between non-paid and paid work" (p. 4) he remarks - learning is equally important in both. Billett (p. 4) asserts that in addition to "a cultural genesis", "a particular situated manifestation" and "in a particular workplace", work also "has personal dimensions". He further postulates that it is the "deployment of human subjectivities that shape how the work is conceptualised, engaged with and conducted".

Subjectivity, as emerging concept, defined by Billett (p. 5) "comprises the conscious and non-conscious conceptions, dispositions and procedures that constitute individuals' cognitive experience". Subjectivity is about individual "ways of engaging with and making sense of what we experience through our lived experience[s]". This sense of self is never static, but continually develops. Our individual subjectivity "compromise a set of conceptions, procedures beliefs and values and dispositions that are, in part, non-conscious (yet quickly becomes conscious when something we experience doesn't fit) and, in part, conscious" (p. 6). The concept of identity is further associated with subjectiveness, both from personal and societal perspectives.

Billett remarks that the relationship among work, subjectivity and learning is significant in order to understand how individuals learn, are motivated to and direct their own learning throughout their lives. This relationship is of utmost importance within the global emphasis on improving the capacity of human capital. Billett suggests a move away from behavioural and neo-behavioural approaches to learning, away from a focus mainly on observable performance outcomes and away from an emphasis on measurability. He urges that the social and physical context of work, as well as the dispositions and values of individuals that drive and energise them. He argues for an intertwining of the social and personal and recognition of the interdependence.

I have for a long time regarded the DACUM (designing a curriculum) method as appropriate for deciding what the work-based learning part of the integrated curriculum of a programme/qualification should entail. I have been an advocate of 'directing' the learner to achieve the predetermined measurable outcomes of the work-based learning part. Now I am not so sure any more.

Billett, S. (2006). Work, subjectivity and learning (pp. 1-20). In Billett, S., Fenwick, T. & Somerville, M (eds.) (2006). Work, subjectivity and learning - understanding learning through working life. Volume 6 of the UNESCO-UNEVOC book series on technical and vocational education and training: issues concerns and prospects. Dordrecht: Springer.

Comments

[Dr Natasja Holzhausen]

When I reflect on learning and what I think learning entials, I think of learning as the "Road to El dorado". A place where we all would like to be (and want to reach) and the road towards El dorado personifies that you would like to go for the gold, but stay on the road for the adventure. That is why there will be turbulations on the road! Learning is thus an adventure.

[Dr Marius Wessels]

I consider it necessary that we engage in academic discourse about cooperative education, because after all is it what the learning proses of our students is about. I am concerned that the focus is often on matters other than the learning of the students.

Firstly, I like the title: "learning in vivo". I would prefer to read Billett first but comment nevertheless.

I like the description of learning as a swinging door. Learning occurs all the time and work is part thereof, another is the learning environment. We tend to ignore the remuneration aspect, but it is an important dimention of learning in the workplace. The conscious and non-conscious is woven into the subjectiveness of being a human. The social and individual influences with regard to value-systems, etc. do influence learning.

The learner's social context is in my view important in so far as the learning context to which the learner is exposed. That is why we, as cooperative education practitioners, regard it as important: the workplace, the social interaction, conflict handling, etc. All work together in order to bring about another form of cognition, that is socially acceptable.

I like the argument of the intergrated nature of the social, personal and the recognition of interdependance. I am of opinion that all function in synergy in the natural and human sciences. I support it - nothing works in isolation, there is always synergy. I found it also in my research in the natural sciences.

The outcomes of the curriculum must be assessed in some way. Both qualitative and quantitative assessment in combination (synergy) works best.

I believe that we live in a world of realities and the learning must be concretised in some way.