Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Collaborative Learning is superior

Learning is no longer memorizing what the teacher considers important. Today, we are in transition. It is now time to convert yourself from training pawns to proactive learning opportunists.

We do most of our learning during spontaneous, collaborative activities. We learn on-the-job, from other people like parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, sisters, brothers, teachers, playmates, cousins, roommates, teammates, classmates, coaches, study groups, mentors, bosses, colleagues, gossips, co-workers, neighbors, and even, our children.

We even learn more in the recreation room than in the classroom. We discover how to do our jobs through informal learning, e.g, observing others, asking the person in the next cubicle, discussing with the experienced and experts of the organization, calling the help desk, try and learn from mistakes, and simply working with people.


Research says that collaborative learning is three times more important in becoming proficient on the job than company-provided training. Most people developed many of their skills by modeling the behavior of their colleagues and peers. People, who are well connected or networked, make greater contributions than those who are not.

Informal learning is personal. The learner individually takes the responsibility. In formal or traditional learning environment, learning is imposed by someone else. In case of formal learning - classes and workshops and online events - is the source of only 10% to 20% of what we learn at work. While traditional learning helps establish a sound foundation, it frequently falls short in completely meeting expectations of a professional environment, where graduates are expected to acquire, interpret, and evaluate information to learn, reason, and solve problems.

We need to bring a collaborative, structured, community-based learning approach, which allows us discuss with others who help us define what is relevant, which provides the learners the freedom of place and time to access their online courses anywhere, anytime and through any device and which can bridge the gap and provide continuity between informal and formal learning.

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