Language and Experience Influence Children's Biological Induction

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 171-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florencia Anggoro ◽  
Sandra Waxman ◽  
Douglas Medin
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Biologically Relevant ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning ◽  
Biological Concepts ◽  
The Way ◽  
Naming Practices

AbstractChildren's reasoning about biological concepts is influenced not only by their experiences in the natural world and in their classrooms, but also by the way that these concepts are named. In English, 'animal' can refer either to (a) exclusively non-human animals, or (b) all animate beings (human and non-human animals). In Indonesian, this category of animate beings has no dedicated name. Here, we ask whether this difference in naming has consequences for children's reasoning about humans and non-human animals. Results from English- and Indonesian-speaking children reveals differences in reasoning at age 6, differences that become attenuated by age 9. These results suggest that not only naming practices, but also biologically-relevant formal and informal learning experiences, influence children's reasoning about biological concepts.

scholarly journals Someone Like Us: Trades identities and support for work/learning

2011 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-34
Author(s):  
Chris Holland
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Learning Support ◽  
Family Status ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning ◽  
Emerging Themes ◽  
Language Literacy ◽  
Vocational Learning ◽  
Learning Connections

This paper reflects on specific findings from a 2009 study of on and off-job learning that explored apprentices’ learning experiences, formal and informal learning connections, and implications for language, literacy and numeracy in vocational learning. The study was conducted in the glazing industry in New Zealandi, and as part of that study, apprentice profiles were developed. This discussion focuses on three of those profiles and reflects on two emerging themes. The first theme is employer and apprentice perceptions of the value of apprentices coming from a ‘trades family’. The second theme is the range of inclusions and exclusions, advantages and disadvantages that apprentices experience depending on their ‘trades family’ status in both on and off-job learning. The paper then considers what kind of learning support might help integrate the different identities required within an apprenticeship.

Situated learning, post-migrant youth and ludic spaces in diverse urban environments in Italy

Modern Italy ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 263-271
Author(s):  
Davide Zoletto
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Situated Learning ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
North East ◽  
Everyday Practices ◽  
Migrant Youth ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning ◽  
Spatial Construction ◽  
The Way

The aim of this article is to offer introductory theoretical arguments in order to research the role that urban ludic spaces play in post-migrants' everyday processes of situated learning. I discuss how situated learning processes are embedded in everyday webs of relationships, with special reference to spatial construction of intersectionality within power laden spaces affecting the way in which communities of practice develop in urban areas. I draw on results from a previous research carried out in diverse neighbourhoods of central and north-east Italian cities as an example of the way in which public playgrounds could be laden by power and could in this way affect the opportunities to share everyday practices and to build up a community of practices in non-formal and informal learning environments.

Memories on the Trail: Families Connecting their Prior Informal Learning Experiences to the Natural World during Nature Walks

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 21-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy R. McClain ◽  
Heather Toomey Zimmerman
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Making Meaning ◽  
Family Case ◽  
Long Term Impact ◽  
Prior Experiences

This study examined the importance of memories of informal learning experiences as families shared their prior experiences during meaning-making talk during nature walks. The families’ memories came from previous visits to interpretive sites and were used to shape their observations of the natural world during conversations in the outdoors. Using ethnographic data collection and thematic analysis, findings are first presented through one family case study, then across all 16 participant families. Three findings include: (1) for one family, prior informal learning experiences provided an essential learning tool for making meaning together during their hike; (2) across the dataset, when families observed the landscape along the trail, they often connected memories gleaned from previous visits to the nature center, while encounters with natural objects sparked memories originating from other informal learning sites; and, (3) children most often recalled prior visits to the nature center, while parents made connections to other settings. This study revealed that families’ personal memories were salient—months and even years later—as they attempted to make meaning with new experiences on the trail. Our work suggests that informal learning spaces that provide the opportunity to make previous connections to life experiences can have a long-term impact on families’ new understandings about the environment.

scholarly journals Exploiting the Web of Data to bridge formal and informal learning experiences

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adolfo Ruiz-Calleja ◽  
Miguel L. Bote-Lorenzo ◽  
Guillermo Vega-Gorgojo ◽  
Sergio Serrano-Iglesias ◽  
Juan I. Asensio-Pérez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning ◽  
Web Of Data ◽  
The Web

Internet vs. Matter

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 60-72
Author(s):  
Zheng Yan ◽  
Xiufeng Liu
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Growth Rate ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Scientific Concept ◽  
Formal Learning ◽  
Rasch Modeling ◽  
Interval Scale ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning

Internet is an emerging complex scientific concept that children have not yet systematically learned in schools but continuously experience in their daily lives. In contrast, matter is a classic complex scientific concept that children systematically study from elementary through high school in addition to continuous everyday experiences. In this study, with two independent samples of grades 4-12 students, the authors deliberately compared these two concepts to understand the effects of formal and informal learning experiences. Understandings of Internet and matter were measured and then converted into a same interval scale through Rasch modeling. Results show that the development of Internet understanding has a much lower rate than that matter and the development of Internet understanding shows more heterogeneous than that of matter. These findings suggest that formal learning helps increase the students’ understanding growth rate while reduce variation in understanding among students.

Connecting formal and informal workplace learning with teacher proactivity: a proactive motivation perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 437-456
Author(s):  
Xianhan Huang ◽  
Chun Lai
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Teacher Learning ◽  
Educational Change ◽  
Workplace Learning ◽  
Dominant Role ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Formal And Informal Learning

Purpose It is vital in today’s society that teachers are proactively involved in educational change. Given that proactive motivation is a critical driver of proactivity, this study aims to investigate how teachers’ formal and informal workplace-learning experiences were connected with their proactive motivations to implement educational change. Design/methodology/approach The authors used a qualitative case study approach to describe the relationships between teachers’ formal and informal learning activities and their different proactive motivations. The authors collected data from 17 teachers via individual interviews and open-ended questionnaire and performed analyses using a continuous inductive and deductive coding process. Findings The authors found that informal teacher learning can trigger three types of proactive motivation, whereas formal teacher learning is mainly connected with the can do and energised to motivations. The authors also found that formal and informal learning complement and compete with each other in shaping the can do motivation. Moreover, the authors found that informal learning played the dominant role in the reason to motivation, whereas informal and formal learning were separately connected to the energised to motivation. Practical implications These findings indicate that greater attention must be paid to teachers’ informal workplace-learning experiences. Specifically, teachers’ informal learning experiences should be actively integrated into their formal workplace training to enhance their proactive motivation to educational change. Moreover, teachers’ learning preferences and teaching experience should be considered in the design of teacher-training programmes. Originality/value Based on the proactive motivation model of Parker et al. (2010), the authors have uncovered the mechanisms of workplace learning that drive teacher proactivity. The authors have examined the relationship between teachers’ formal and informal workplace-learning and proactive teaching. The findings will assist policymakers and administrators to identify effective means of motivating teachers to engage in workplace learning.

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