Informal Learning Experiences Research Articles

How are social context factors related to epistemological beliefs, motivations, and achievement in science? A serial mediation model

How are social context factors related to epistemological beliefs, motivations, and achievement in science? A serial mediation model

STEMing together: a comparison of co-ed and all-female informal learning environments

STEMing together: a comparison of co-ed and all-female informal learning environments

Professors' Informal Learning in their Workplace: The Case of Nepali University

This study explores how Nepali professors engage in informal learning practices in their workplace and identify the potential for creating a conducive learning environment We conducted in-depth interviews with five Nepali professors using a qualitative case study approach to explore their informal learning experiences at their workplace. The study revealed that professors engage in informal learning through various methods, such as enacting job roles, reflecting on work experiences, interacting with colleagues, seeking feedback, and initiating self-learning through reading, online courses, professional networks, and formal training programs. However, organizational constraints hindered their self-initiated learning activities. Future research can examine the organization constraints influencing self-initiated learning among professors. This study contributes to the limited research on informal learning among professors in the workplace of developing countries and emphasizes the importance of creating a supportive learning environment for their professional growth.

Are Professional Skills Learnable? Beliefs and Expectations Among Computing Graduates

Integrating graduate education with professional skills development is still a challenge. People's beliefs about learning impact their learning processes. Therefore, we need to understand the mindset of graduates to determine best practices for promoting professional skills development. In this study, we explore the perspective of computing graduates within an Engineering educational program. This study aims to answer the following research questions: Which skills do computing graduates perceive they need in the workplace, and how do they position themselves regarding these skills? What learning beliefs do computing graduates hold regarding the skills required in the workplace? The research team conducted semistructured interviews with computing graduates within an Engineering program to analyze their experiences. The interviews were analyzed using grounded theory. As a result, the participants viewed professional and technical skills as independent, with professional skills perceived as more relevant to work success. The participants considered themselves to possess these skills. Our findings identify four learning beliefs within a fixed and growth mindset: (1) An essential personal characteristic that context may influence; (2) a learning outcome determined by early experiences; (3) a learning process associated with informal learning experiences; and (4) a learning process associated with formal learning experiences. We acknowledge the differences in perception between alums and the industry regarding possessing essential professional skills. We also highlight the need to position these skills as learnable during lectures contributing to Computing and Engineering Education.

House Officers and Junior Residents’ formal and informal learning experience during their practical year compared to the national competency framework, a qualitative study

House Officers and Junior Residents’ formal and informal learning experience during their practical year compared to the national competency framework, a qualitative study

Selecting project management ICT tools for informal education of IT professionals

Information technology's rapid development necessitates continuously updating IT professionals' skills and competencies. This study aims to select appropriate project management ICT tools to facilitate the informal education of IT company employees. The study utilized the expert evaluation method to formulate criteria and indicators for evaluating and selecting ICT tools across six categories: communication, planning, documentation, visualization and collaboration, software development, and real-time presentation feedback. Experts from leading IT companies assessed and ranked the proposed ICT tools based on the established criteria. The results identified Microsoft Teams for communication, Microsoft Project for planning, Microsoft 365 suite for documentation, Mural for visualization and collaboration, Azure DevOps for software development, and Mentimeter for real-time presentation feedback as the most suitable tools for informal education in IT companies. The selected ICT tools constitute a comprehensive toolkit to streamline educational activities and enhance informal learning experiences for IT professionals. The findings provide a foundation for implementing informal education programs within IT company resources, leveraging the selected project management ICT tools.

Qu’est-ce qui motive les décisions liées aux médias sociaux des étudiants et des étudiantes en soins infirmiers dans leurs pratiques d’apprentissage? Une étude menée dans une École de soins infirmiers de l’Ontario

Social media can provide a tool for nursing students to consolidate their formal and informal learning experiences. The objective of this study was to explore what drives nursing students’ decisions to use social media in their formal and informal learning. This study surveyed 220 nursing students at one Ontario School of Nursing. IBM SPSS (v. 24) was used to calculate frequency counts, Chi-Square Tests for Independence, and Spearman Correlations. A modified directed content analysis was conducted on the open-ended response data. Numerous drivers affect nursing students’ decisions to use social media for learning purposes. These include: 1) their nursing programs; 2) their professors’ attitudes towards social media; 3) their age and perceived levels of experience using social media; 4) the convenience of accessing learning content online; and 5) barriers like privacy, quality and reliability of social media-based learning content, and the potential for distraction. As a result of these findings, there is a strong rationale to further explore the ways in which social media can be used in both formal and informal nursing education.

Virtual Teaching Together: engaging parents and young children in STEM activities.

Early informal learning experiences are essential for sparking long-term interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). In a prior study, we found more promising parent involvement outcomes when families of young children were provided with STEM family education events along with home STEM activity kits compared to providing workshops alone. This study was a conceptual replication using the same program-Teaching Together STEM-to deliver educational workshops plus home activity kits; however, we varied the delivery method by using virtual "funshops" to evaluate if parents perceived this modality as feasible and useful. Museum informal science educators introduced four units via virtual video chat sessions linked to 12 hands-on STEM activities that were mailed to families randomly assigned to the treatment group. Half of the families were assigned to a waitlist control group that received a portion of the virtual program after the posttest. Participants included 60 families with children aged 3 to 5 years from diverse linguistic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Our results indicate no significant group differences in the primary outcome of parents' involvement in informal STEM but a small, positive effect size (ES = 0.18) that was similar in magnitude to the prior, in-person study. Although parents mostly perceived the remote delivery as convenient and the materials as engaging for their child, there were no significant program impacts on children's general science interests (ES = -0.19). Despite the convenience, parents reported time was a barrier to doing STEM activities at home. Parents with lower education levels were less likely to attend, suggesting virtual approaches are not sufficient for ensuring broad access to family engagement programs for populations underrepresented in STEM.

Talking about “bioluminescence” and “puppies of the ocean”: An anti‐deficit exploration of how families create and use digital artifacts for informal science learning during and after an aquarium visit

AbstractFamilies commonly document their outings by capturing their experiences through digital photographs and videos. However, little is known about the ways in which families engage their personal mobile devices to document educational family outings and how they subsequently talk about the digital artifacts that captured their informal learning experiences. This paper presents new evidence on family digital artifact creation during an informal science institution (ISI) visit, the expected and actual uses of their digital artifacts after the visit, and family conversations reminiscing about the ISI visit with the digital artifacts. Using a concurrent triangulation mixed‐methods design, data on family digital artifact creation during an aquarium visit (N = 204) and digital artifact use after the visit (n = 67) were collected using parent surveys. Audio‐recorded parent‐child conversations with a subset of families (n = 25) document whether and how families use their digital artifacts to reminisce about the aquarium visit. Quantitative findings detail family digital technology practices during informal learning experiences, and qualitative findings suggest evidence of informal science learning in the everyday interactions of the families who elected to continue the study. The study indicates that family storytelling and digital technology practices may help to bridge informal science learning from ISI to home and frames family non‐participation within an anti‐deficit perspective.

Out‐of‐School Activities in Architectural Education: MUISCARCH International Architecture Students Congress

AbstractThis research aims to question the effect of adopting non‐formal and informal learning environments into architectural education on the overall learning experiences of architecture students. In this context, a series of out‐of‐school activities organised within the scope of Maltepe University, Faculty of Architecture and Design, which are based on a variety of different non‐formal and informal learning methods, are discussed. Although there are various out‐of‐school activities, the significance of these comprehensive extracurricular activities relies on being an entire student initiative from planning to execution and consisting of symposiums, workshops and organisation processes that bring non‐formal and informal learning experiences together. Unlike most of the research discussing non‐formal/in‐formal activities through final products, our research focuses on the learning experience of the students and the learning process itself. Based on the participant observation method, we gathered data through observing behaviours and interactions, casual conversations, unstructured and informal interviews, and reviews of the participants' studies. The findings revealed the learning acquisitions and benefits that students gained intentionally or unintentionally throughout the process from integrated learning environments, which are required to compete with the complex challenges of architectural education and the profession, as emerging technologies, materials, design trends and societal conditions. This reality forces architectural education programs to embrace and integrate informal and non‐formal learning experiences into their curricula. Flexible learning models need to be designed and adapted to formal education to provide a well‐rounded educational experience for architecture students, emphasising self‐directed learning and practical experience in real‐world contexts.

Formal and informal foreign language learning at university: blurring the boundaries

ABSTRACT This paper is concerned with the integration of informal language learning into university language modules in a foreign language environment. It begins by exploring the evolving nature of formal and informal language learning. This is followed by analysis of a pedagogic innovation intended to integrate foreign language activities in an informal university space shared by domestic and international students into formal German and Spanish language modules in an anglophone context. The initiative is evaluated within an action research framework using the following research instruments: student attendance data, reflective reports, end-of-module student surveys and a collaborative debrief with two language tutors. The results indicate that the explicit integration of informal language learning into formal language modules increases student engagement with informal language learning, provides opportunities for oral practice in particular, and supports the development of language learner autonomy. While care must be taken to ensure that the informal nature of the informal language learning experience is retained using low stakes assessment and a fluid, flexible, student-led pedagogical approach, the findings indicate that the explicit integration of informal language learning activities into formal language learning has the potential to expand the personal learning environment of the foreign language learner to their benefit.

A structural equation model of online learning: investigating self-efficacy, informal digital learning, self-regulated learning, and course satisfaction.

English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education increasingly relies on online learning, necessitating a nuanced understanding of crucial factors impacting learning experiences. This research investigates the intricate relationships among online learning self-efficacy, online self-regulated learning, informal digital learning of English (IDLE), and online course satisfaction within the unique context of EFL learners. The study involved 563 intermediate college students from various national universities in China. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze the data, providing comprehensive insights into the relationships among the identified variables. The results revealed significant insights. Both online learning self-efficacy and IDLE exhibited direct and positive influences on online course satisfaction. Furthermore, the study uncovered that online self-regulated learning acted as a partial mediator in the connection between online learning self-efficacy and IDLE with online course satisfaction. This mediation implies that learners' self-regulatory behaviors significantly affect how self-efficacy and informal digital language learning experiences impact overall satisfaction with online courses. The findings highlight the pivotal role of nurturing learners' self-efficacy beliefs, fostering IDLE, and promoting effective self-regulated learning strategies in the realm of online language learning. These initiatives are instrumental in enhancing learners' satisfaction and success in online courses. The implications of these findings for EFL instruction are substantial. By emphasizing the importance of self-efficacy, IDLE, and self-regulated learning strategies, educators can significantly contribute to creating more satisfying and successful online learning experiences for EFL students.

Peer Observation to Improve Teacher Self-Efficacy

This qualitative descriptive study explored teachers’ perceptions of a peer observation structure, collegial visits (CVs), and CVs’ connection to teacher self-efficacy (TSE). The research question was: How do teachers perceive CVs, particularly with respect to their influence on TSE? Semi-structured interviews and a focus group were utilized to collect data from 13 K–12 educators from urban and suburban public school districts in the United States. The theoretical foundation included Bandura’s social cognitive theory and the triadic reciprocal causation model. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data, and four themes emerged: (1) cultural drivers and effects of CVs; (2) impact of formal and informal learning experiences on teachers; (3) teachers’ positive shift in (a) opinions and (b) emotions regarding CVs; and (4) teachers’ increased TSE throughout CV implementation. Conclusions highlighted that CVs were an effective vehicle for professional learning. The results provide qualitative evidence demonstrating that CVs foster educators’ TSE beliefs.

Children's engineering identities‐in‐practice: An exploration of child–adult interactions in an out‐of‐school context

AbstractBackgroundResearch points to family talk and interactions involving STEM concepts as one of the most influential informal learning experiences that shape an individual's STEM identity development and encourage their pursuit of a STEM career. However, a recent literature review uncovers limited research regarding the development of engineering identity in young children.PurposeThe purpose of this study was to add to this scant literature by exploring how children position themselves as engineers and how children are positioned as engineers through interactions with parents and other adults within a program focused on family engagement within an engineering design process.MethodsThis study includes two parent–child dyads. We collected and analyzed approximately 19.5 h of video data of the two child–parent dyads interacting with one another throughout an engineering design process as part of an out‐of‐school program.ResultsResults highlight three ways in which the two children enacted various engineering identities through their positioning, negotiation, and acceptance and/or rejection of positionalities as they engaged in an engineering design process with a parent. These identity enactments included (a) possessing knowledge and authority to make decisions regarding the development of their self‐identified engineering problem and prototype; (b) questioning and challenging adult ideas, solutions, and construction of prototypes; and (c) documenting and communicating their thinking regarding the engineering design through sketches and notes.ConclusionsThe significance of this study lies in its potential to change the landscape of those who pursue an engineering career and to contribute to the limited research and ongoing conversations about how to foster environments that support families in creative and collaborative learning specific to the engineering discipline.

코로나19 엔데믹 이후의 평생학습도시 활성화 방안 연구

The purpose of this study is to present measures to revitalize lifelong learning cities through analysis of the status of lifelong learning cities after the COVID-19 pandemic.
 The result of study are as follows. First, as a result of analyzing the basic status of lifelong learning cities, comprehensive development plans and mid- to long-term development plans were operated systematically, but global governance and network construction were analyzed to be insufficient. Second, as a result of analyzing the operation status of lifelong learning cities, various online and offline programs were operated centering on insufficient human resources. Third, this is the analysis of the response status of COVID-19. The need for online and offline educational infrastructure (space, people, programs, etc.) was emphasized.
 The plan to revitalize the lifelong learning city after the pandemic, which combines the results of the above research, is as follows. First, we need to establish a macro post-corona response strategy that takes into account all aspects of hardware, software, humanware, and ecoware. Second, we need to create a hybrid lifelong education learning sharing space where informal, informal, and accidental learning experiences can occur online and offline. Third, we need to establish a network and spread best practices for the advancement of a sustainable global lifelong learning city led by local governments. The results of this study are expected to be used as basic data for revitalizing lifelong education in lifelong learning cities after the pandemic.

Childhood experiences and undergraduate student interest in STEM disciplines: Attending to setting and activity type.

Informal STEM learning experiences (ISLEs), such as participating in science, computing, and engineering clubs and camps, have been associated with the development of youth's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics interests and career aspirations. However, research on ISLEs predominantly focuses on institutional settings such as museums and science centers, which are often discursively inaccessible to youth who identify with minoritized demographic groups. Using latent class analysis, we identify five general profiles (i.e., classes) of childhood participation in ISLEs from data reported by a nationally representative sample of college students (N = 15,579). Results show that childhood participation in specific typologies of ISLEs (i.e., setting and activity type) is associated with youth's disciplinary interests at the end of high school. Participation in outdoor activities that invite observation is more often reported by female respondents and is negatively associated with interest in computing and mathematics. Participation in indoor activities that invite object manipulation is more often reported by male respondents and is positively associated with interest in computing and engineering. However, frequent participation in multiple ISLEs is positively associated with interest in "science." Theseresults elucidate stereotypical discourses that reinforce the exclusionof minoritized students and exposecritical areas needing reform.

Math Attitudes and Identity of High Schoolers Impacted through Participating in Informal, Near-peer Mentoring

Research in mentoring has shown that students may at times be more willing and able to absorb information that is delivered to them by their near-peers, rather than by traditional figures of authority, like teachers and professors. In this study, underrepresented minority high school students participated in an informal learning experience that was led by college students who were "near-peers" to the high schoolers. Students were engaged by participating in interactive MathShows, following a Math Social Media Campaign, and attending a summer Math Internship. Participants in the quantitative component of the study included N = 559 U.S. high schoolers who were from predominantly (99%) Hispanic ethnic backgrounds. The qualitative component of the study involved another 19 students from the same school. The mixed methods study addresses associations between high schoolers’ attitudes toward mathematics and their identity alignment, as well as classes of reasons that students gave for their identity alignment. Interactions with the college near-peers that occurred during the experiential learning intervention are also discussed. Results of this study address the goal of broadening participation of underrepresented student groups in STEM careers.

Assessing the working practices and the inclusive programs to students with disabilities in the Egyptian museums: challenges and possibilities for facilitating learning and promoting inclusion

Following the implementation of 2018’s laws on the rights of persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Egypt, students with disabilities (SWDs) have both legal and moral rights to meaningful learning opportunities and inclusive education. Despite that, SWDs still have very limited education resources which limit their career aspirations and quality of life. In this respect, education whether as part of formal education or lifelong learning is central to the museum’s mission. Museums, as part of non-formal education, are being acknowledged for their educative powers and investments in the development of quality formal, non-formal, and informal learning experiences. Further, phrases such as “inclusivity,” “accessibility,” and “diversity” were notably included in the newly approved museum definition by ICOM (2022) emphasizing museums’ obligations to embrace societal issues and shape a cultural attitude concerning disability rights, diversity, and equality together with overcoming exclusionary educational practices. The study seeks to investigate the existing resources and inclusive practices in Egyptian museums to achieve non-formal education for SWDs. Qualitative research approaches have been employed to answer a specific question: How can Egyptian museums work within their governing systems to support the learning of SWDs beyond their formal education system? The study aims to assess the potential of Egyptian museums in facilitating learning for SWDs. Further, it examines the capability of Egyptian museums in contributing to informal and non-formal learning for SWDs and striving for inclusive education inspired by the social model of disability that fosters inclusive educational programs and adopts a human rights-based approach. The results revealed that Egyptian museums contributed to the learning of SWDs, yet small-scale programs and individual efforts, but they are already engaged in active inclusive practices that address the learning of SWDs. The study suggests that they need to be acknowledged and supported by the government as state instruments and direct actors in advancing inclusive education and implementing appropriate pedagogies in favor of SWDs.

Spatial language in families' conversational reflections about museum experiences

Prior work demonstrates the importance of spatial language use during museum experiences for children's spatial skills. The ways families talk about experiences after they occur is also important in the learning process. Therefore, we asked how families use spatial language in conversational reflections after experiencing exhibits and programs in a children's museum. Families (N = 243) with a 6- to 11-year-old child made recordings discussing experiences in a tinkering exhibit and up to two other exhibits. Families reflected on tinkering programs that were either open-ended, function-focused, or engineering-focused. In comparison to families who reflected on open-ended tinkering programs, those who reflected on engineering-focused programs used more spatial language in their reflections. Furthermore, our analysis of reflections about additional museum exhibits revealed that families used the most spatial language when reflecting on exhibits emphasizing navigation. Results suggest design features of informal learning experiences that may support spatial language in families' reflections.

THE CHAIN MEDIATING ROLE OF PERCEIVED FAMILY SUPPORT FOR FORMAL AND INFORMAL SCIENCE LEARNING IN THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN FAMILY SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS AND INFORMAL SCIENCE LEARNING EXPERIENCES

Students’ informal science learning experiences are believed to strongly influence their attitudes toward science and their abilities in the subject. Factors associated with students’ informal science learning experiences include family socioeconomic status and perceived family support. However, little is known about whether perceived family support for children’s formal and informal science learning differs significantly. The present study filled this gap by exploring how students’ perceived family support for formal/informal science learning affected the link between their socioeconomic status and their experiences of informal science learning. Survey data were collected from 486 Chinese grade 4-6 primary school students. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that the students’ socioeconomic status and their informal science learning experiences were significantly and positively correlated. This association was chain-mediated through two categories of perceived family support. Specifically, students’ socioeconomic status affected their informal science learning experiences through the separate mediating role of family support for formal science learning and the sequential mediation of perceived family support for formal and informal science learning. These results uncover the role that family support plays in students’ science education; accordingly, parents are encouraged to help their children learn science both formally and informally. Keywords: primary school students, mainland China, informal science learning experiences, family support, socioeconomic status