Conditions for workplace learning in professional work

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to examine and discuss learning conditions for teachers, in the context of choice and decentralisation reforms. Design/methodology/approach This article is based on analyses of 30 interviews with Swedish upper secondary teachers focusing on their experiences of their conditions for learning. Findings This paper shows how teachers at upper secondary level identify their subjects as the most important to learn more within. Secondly, we also show that spatial and temporal aspects of organisation of work seem to influence the conditions for subject learning, where the interviewees in many ways contrast their own view to how they describe their work being organised. Research limitations/implications Our findings may have currency for other professional groups with similar governance-contexts, and teachers in other similar governance-contexts. Practical implications These findings indicate the need to further develop workplace learning strategies founded upon the understanding of schools as workplaces, taking occupational values into account. Furthermore, these strategies should be seen as a core Human Resource Management issue, as they can potentially enhance the work environment, thus increasing the profession’s attractiveness. Originality/value We show that spatial and temporal aspects of organisation of work seem to influence the conditions for the sought after subject learning, and that the teachers and the school management seem to identify with different and clashing ideals in terms of what, when, how and with whom to learn.

Biology teachers’ collaborative experiences: benefits and difficulties in different contexts in relation to perceived value

“…In the intradisciplinary collaborations, close and long-term interactions prevailed. Learning within the subject has been identified by Swedish upper secondary school teachers as the most important area of professional learning, with subject colleagues as a highly valued resource (Parding and Berg-Jansson 2017). In the present study, learning, development, and well-being were emphasised, both by new and by more experienced biology teachers, in intradisciplinary collaborations.…”

Schoolteachers' experiences of knowledge sharing when teaching new education programs

“…This constrained their opportunities to learn from “experienced” teachers. Time constraints are a common experience among teachers, and this is one element in the workplace that impedes informal learning (Grosemans et al , 2015; Parding and Berg-Jansson, 2018; Schad, 2019).…”

Skills supply and governance in the Bothnian Arc cross-border region

“…According to Parding and Berg-Jansson (2017), there is substantial literature that identify colleagues as one of people's main source of know-how. In their words: "teachers identify their subject colleagues as essential for everyday learning, emphasizing the importance of their physical proximity to subject colleagues".…”

“…This can also be related to 'organisational learning' which entails knowledge creation and retention at a collective organisational level. Yet, learning can be "encouraged or obstructed by the design of the organization" (Ellström and Kock, 2008 in Parding and Berg-Jansson, 2017). This would depend on a variety of conditions internally to an organisation, from how tasks are being assigned, to leadership, and the overall working environment.…”