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When learning in the workplace is conceptualised as a social process, different social or cultural features of workplaces may enable or constrain students’ learning. The purpose of this paper is to understand the views of students, workplace supervisors and university academics concerning sociocultural features that influenced work-integrated learning (WIL) experiences.

An interpretive case-study methodology, incorporating questionnaires and semi-structured interviews was used to determine the views of stakeholders involved in WIL experiences in a sport undergraduate degree.

Students’ learning was enhanced when they participated in authentic activities, worked alongside colleagues and could assume increasing responsibility for roles they were given. Social experiences, interactions and activities provided them with opportunities to access individual, shared and tacit knowledge, to learn about language, processes and protocols for interacting and communicating with others, and to become aware of the culture of the workplace. When students successfully acquired this knowledge they were able to “take-on” the accepted characteristics and practices of the workplace community – an outcome that further enhanced their learning.

Students need to understand the social and cultural dimensions of how the work community practices before they begin WIL experiences. Practical ways of addressing this are suggested.

This paper conceptualises WIL as learning through the “practice of work communities” whereby through the activities of the community students can access knowledge in a way that may differ from what they are familiar with from their experiences within the university environment.

The purpose of this article is to describe the organization of workplace learning in Finnish polytechnics, the models that have been developed for this purpose, and the challenges presented.

First, the models for embedding workplace learning in the curriculum are described and analysed. Second, the conflicting factors encountered in building the network of expertise to support students' workplace learning in the cooperation of polytechnics and working life are investigated. Third, suggestions are made regarding some of the questions raised by the introduction of connectivity that might be explored to better understand the similarities and differences between workplace learning and learning at school (polytechnics). The study was carried out in five Finnish polytechnics in 2002‐2006. It focused on the bachelor' s degree programmes in the fields of social services, business administration and engineering. Data were collected through thematic interviews conducted with teachers supervising and organising workplace learning. The different models utilized in the five polytechnics with respect to the three educational fields are incorporated into a single holistic model on the basis of a theory‐led content analysis of the interviews. Further analysis of the interviews indicates the institutional barriers and obstacles that exist to the development of placements.

Placements in working life by Finnish polytechnics exhibit considerable variety. In addition the cultural practices that guide and limit the organising of placements are presented. These include the location of placement in the curriculum, negotiation of students' contracts, guidance in the workplace and practices, assessment including self‐assessment, student remuneration, and rewards for employers. The development of quality in workplace learning is heavily dependent on local initiative, as introducing connectivity is a practical process that has to be implemented and reflected on by networks of expertise. The debate on similarities and differences of workplace learning and learning in education could be enhanced by a more detailed exploration of the questions on what is learned and where.

The description given here of the organisation of placements can be utilized by higher education institutes and polytechnics as a tool in reflecting on their own models. Furthermore, the questions presented here within a framework grounded in a socio‐cultural approach may be used by teachers and developers of education as stimuli in developing quality assurance tools and in analysing the strengths and weaknesses of their placement systems.

The paper seeks to explore the role of problem‐based learning (PBL) in the workplace context. Its aim is to explain the relationship between PBL and workplace learning by examining PBL as an approach to continuous learning in the workplace.

Through an exploratory orientation, data were collected at two stages. Stage 1 involved convergent interviewing with ten international PBL trainers. The data gathered here partly formed a questionnaire to be tested in the next stage. Stage 2 involved an Ideas Unlimited™ qualitative survey with 50 Singapore working professionals through face‐to‐face and online means. Follow‐up telephone interviews were also conducted to minimize lost data. In addition, a second questionnaire, developed through literature review, was given out in both stages.

Findings reveal that there is a significant relationship between PBL and workplace learning. For instance, PBL systematizes learning in a way that informal learning patterns are transformed into specific structures to facilitate workplace learning. Skills such as critical thinking, reflective inquiry and team learning were identified as essential for workplace PBL. In order to implement PBL programs successfully, strong leadership, an appropriate reward and recognition system together with a realistic timeframe should be considered.

The study suggests a coherent relationship between experiential learning, team learning, single and double‐loop learning, and triple‐loop learning. A key theoretical contribution is that the complexity of learning embedded in the systemic process of PBL ultimately leads to the generation of competitive organizational knowledge. Future lines of study could focus on in‐depth analyses of intra‐organizational processes to explore the wider relationship and application of PBL and workplace learning.

The applicability of PBL is evaluated in the context of workplace rather than an educational setting. Owing to the limited research in this area, the development of new organizational perspectives and concepts from two rather different disciplines – PBL and workplace learning – contributes to the paper's originality.

First, to explore the application of e‐learning as a medium for workplace learning, as a form of adult learning and organisational learning from a theoretical point of view, second, to review empirical studies on recent solutions to pedagogical problems encountered in workplace learning in general and in e‐learning in particular, and finally, to consider the challenges facing the further development of e‐learning solutions targeted at the workplace.

The paper reviews theories of adult learning, workplace learning and organisational learning and brings out main pedagogical implications of these theories from an e‐learning point of view. Some empirical studies in which electronic networks and communication tools have been utilised in workplace learning are also described.

The development of successful e‐learning solutions for the use of work organizations requires integrating research knowledge from different sources: theories of the learning organization, sociocultural theories of learning, and cognitive theories of learning.

Based on empirical examples and the literature review pedagogical challenges and theory‐based guidelines are presented for the design of e‐learning environments for the workplace. These include integration of theoretical knowledge with participants' practical experience, support for the explication of implicit knowledge, and encouragement of collaboration and knowledge exchange between different groups of people.

This paper integrates different theoretical approaches for the design of e‐learning environments of work organizations.

This paper aims to consider and appraise current developments and emerging perspectives on learning in the circumstances of work, to propose how some of the challenges for securing effective workplace learning may be redressed.

First, new challenges and perspectives on learning in the circumstances of work are summarised. Then, three key emerging concepts are reviewed. These are: changes in requirements of work; conceptual understandings about the processes of learning; and more elaborated views about the relations between the social and personal attributes. The procedural contributions of learning to improve learning for occupations, and employability and working life are also appraised.

The authors suggest that current conceptual and procedural understandings of learning in the workplace, informed by fields of cognitive science, and learning and development are limited because learning in the workplace is multimodal and complex, considering the socio‐cultural nature and boundaries that influence learning in multiple ways.

The appraisal here draws knowledge from the education discipline, yet there is a need to reach out to other fields to extend understandings and develop appropriate responses to emerging perspectives and new challenges.

A broader understanding of the workplace learning environment will assist those responsible for organising learning in the workplace and worker‐ learners to facilitate and engage in learning for transformations in work practices and meet changing performance requirements.

The authors advocate an extension to different disciplines such as anthropology and neurological science to broaden understandings about the potential of the workplace as a learning environment for novice as well as experienced workers.

This study aims to describe the lectores (readers) who read the world news and works of literature to workers in pre-World War II cigar factories in Tampa, Florida, and in New York City. The paper addresses the need for more examination of some neglected aspects of workplace learning by presenting a more critical approach to workplace learning as a form of social change. It also focuses on the importance of the lectores’ role as facilitators of workplace learning and leaders of change.

The paper is based on a qualitative analysis of archival data from libraries and research centers located in New York City and in Miami, Florida.

Through the lectores, cigar factories were a place where workplace learning, organizational and social change occurred daily. As leaders, the lectores were radical agents of change and created affordances that shaped the factory workers’ workplace and personal learning. The discussion explores the dynamics between the lectores and the cigar workers.

Findings from this study demonstrate that developing employees is not limited to elevating their knowledge and skills needed to increase productivity and organizational performance. As self-actualized employees are better contributors to organizations, they, along with facilitators of learning, must care about what workers intrinsically need and explicitly demand. The findings speak to the multifaceted nature of workplace learning, one that encompasses skill acquisition and one that transforms workers. In essence, learning facilitators elicit change.

The research literature on workplace learning in the early part of the twentieth century in the USA is rare. This historical data-driven examination of the lectores and their role in factories presents a unique opportunity to focus on issues of social justice that are largely absent from human resource development discourse.

Investigates the real meaning of workplace learning by looking at definitions used by academics to describe how individuals and organisations attach different meanings to the phrase. Goes on to suggest that for workplace learning to work in any situation, certain opportunities, conditions and features need to be in evidence, although workplace learning can take a variety of forms, including formal, informal and incidental learning. Looks at various learning paradigms and models, including the latest patterns of development and learning in response to new demands placed upon employees and organisations and uses the examples of the “new” universities in Australia to illustrate the increase in workplace learning. Concludes that there is increasing recognition for workplace learning, but that employees must realise the benefits of workplace learning in order for the organisation to evolve into a learning organisation.

This paper aims to explore the role of self-regulatory behaviours in predicting workplace learning. As work practices in knowledge-intensive domains become more complex, individual workers must take greater responsibility for their ongoing learning and development.

The study was conducted with knowledge workers from the finance industry. In all, 170 participants across a range of work roles completed a questionnaire consisting of three scales derived from validated instruments (measuring learning opportunities, self-regulated learning [SRL] and learning undertaken). The relationship between the variables was tested through linear regression analysis.

Data analysis confirms a relationship between the learning opportunities provided by a role, and learning undertaken. Regression analysis identifies three key SRL behaviours that appear to mediate this relationship: task interest/value, task strategies and self-evaluation. Together they provide an insight into the learning processes that occur during intentional informal learning.

This quantitative study identifies a relationship between specific SRL behaviours and workplace learning undertaken in one sector. Qualitative studies are needed to understand the precise nature of this relationship. Follow-up studies could explore whether the findings are generalisable to other contexts.

Developing a deeper understanding of how individuals manage their day-to-day learning can help shape the learning and development support provided to individual knowledge workers.

Few studies have explored the role of self-regulation in the workplace. This study adds to our understanding of this critical element of professional learning.

The purpose is to examine the cross-level relationship between workplace fun and informal learning with workplace friendship as a mediator and team climate as a moderator.

Adopting a two-wave survey procedure, data were collected from 251 employees working across 45 teams of a leading heat transfer manufacturer in Asia. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to test our hypothesized cross-level moderated mediation model.

Out of the three forms of workplace fun, only two – manager support for fun and coworker socializing – supported our hypotheses. Therefore, not all types of workplace fun are equal and one of the key factors through which fun influences informal learning is by maintaining harmonious interpersonal interactions and high relationship quality in teams.

Based on social interdependence theory, this study uncovers the cross-level mechanism of how workplace fun affects informal learning. The findings extend existing research on workplace fun by focusing on not only individual factors but also interpersonal and contextual elements. The findings also provide practical implications for managers to understand the possible impact of workplace fun on employees' informal learning.

The purpose of this paper is to review the existing workplace learning measures used in empirical studies in human resource development (HRD).

By reviewing 141 studies on workplace learning published in six journals in the field of HRD, we identified nine measures for workplace learning. Tynjälä’s (2013) 3-P model of workplace learning was adopted as the framework to analyze the features of each measure in terms of presage, process and product.

Workplace Climate Questionnaire, Learning Opportunities Questionnaire, Approaches to Work Questionnaire and Self-regulated Learning in the Workplace Questionnaire belong to the presage category. Small Business Workplace Learning Survey and Workplace Learning Activities are categorized as the process dimension. The Questionnaire on Informal Workplace Learning Outcomes is in the product dimension. Informal Workplace Learning Survey and Workplace Adaptation Questionnaire are across the three categories.

The authors identified the issues of existing workplace learning measures to emphasize the importance of reliable and valid measures for workplace learning and to gain the attention of researchers concerning these issues.

The findings can provide organizations and practitioners with insights and ideas on how to prepare employees to engage in diverse learning activities, how to support their learning activities and how to combine their learning activities with the existing job structure and work system.

This study is the first to review workplace learning measures in the field of HRD. The authors review the dimensions, items and reliability of each measure, and summarize the features of nine measures in terms of presage, process and product of workplace learning.