Discussion: Bridging the individual and social in workplace learning and motivation

Abstract

Working life is undergoing rapid and profound changes which are influenced by technological development and the global economy. A knowledge-based society is emerging, bringing new skill and competency requirements. Because of the long-term effects of these changes, individuals and organisations are facing new challenges similar to those of earlier revolutionary economic changes (Hakkarainen, Palonen, Paavola, & Lehtinen, 2004; Keating, 1996). What is different from the earlier economic revolutions is the speed and ubiquitous nature of the change. The continuous rapid change and complexity of the knowledge-based society make it impossible to accurately predict these developments. However, it is obvious that knowledge, and especially knowledge creation, will be key elements in the success of enterprises and public organisations. Howdoes the knowledge-based society produce knowledge? There are, of course, special institutions such as universities and specialized professions such as researchers, which deliberately produce new knowledge (Bijker & Law, 1992). However, this is only a minor part of the continuous and often implicit knowledge creation taking place throughout working life. It is important to analyse how companies and workers are prepared for continuous learning and knowledge construction. Even though the general level of formal education is continuously improving in many countries, it is impossible to imagine that the initial learning in educational institutions would be enough for coping with the challenges emerging in changing workplaces. It is obvious that remarkable learning and knowledge building has to take place in connection with daily work. There has always been some kind of workplace learning and well-organised conventional practices such as apprenticeship models have produced high-level expertise in many special professions (Lajoie & Lesgold, 1989; Lave & Wenger, 1991). It is obvious, however, that traditional forms of formal and informal learning in schools and within traditional apprenticeship models are not sufficient for coping with learning challenges in the knowledge-based society. Boundaries between working and learning, as well as between learning and knowledge creation, are disappearing. Learning is a necessary part of work, and in many cases there are no knowledgeable teachers giving instruction and supporting the learning process, and it is up to individuals and communities to create new knowledge in order to cope with the increasing demands (Hakkarainen et al., 2004). The papers in this special issue deal with the question of how this kind of ubiquitous learning and knowledge creation can take place in workplaces. Traditional theories of learning andmotivation have focusedmainly on processes at the individual International Journal of Educational Research 47 (2008) 261–263