Professor Stephen Gomez Advanced Professional Development (APD1)
No general agreement on a definition; Work-based learning (WBL) represents a ‘cluster of activities’, including lifelong learning (Costley, 2001); Multiple perspectives of WBL; Some focus on the ‘workplace’ & would include all types of learning generated or stimulated by the needs of the workplace, eg in-house job training, informal learning while you are working & related off the job education & training (Unwin & Fuller, 2003); ◦ Occurs as a normal part of someone doing their job and acquiring new skills & developing new approaches (Boud et al, numerous publications).
Work based learning: a new higher education? Boud & Solomon, Relationship between university-based education & WBL for work-based degrees ◦ Learners in the workplace study for a degree and learning opportunities arise from normal work; ◦ University – equips & qualifies people already in employment to develop lifelong learning skills; ◦ Not based on specific disciplines, bodies of knowledge or courses defined by the university but through a curriculum unique for each person Organisations benefit through practically applied knowledge & assessments that advance the organisation
It is not necessarily the experience of work itself that is paramount – rather.. the learning.. an individual derives from that experience of work and..reflecting upon it.... WBL can take many forms including a fulltime undergraduate undertaking a work placement...as part of the curriculum; a full time undergraduate doing a part-time job; a full-time employee seeking to explore...work-related issues in the context of the knowledge, skills & values of a higher education institution.. common factor linking these..the individual would be..undertaking a work role.
Student/ Learner Employer/ Work organisation Tutor/ University Flexibility & respond to changing needs & market forces Partnership
This resource was created by the University of Plymouth, Learning from WOeRK project. This project is funded by HEFCE as part of the HEA/JISC OER release programme.Learning from WOeRK This resource is licensed under the terms of the Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales license ( The resource, where specified below, contains other 3 rd party materials under their own licenses. The licenses and attributions are outlined below: The name of the University of Plymouth and its logos are unregistered trade marks of the University. The University reserves all rights to these items beyond their inclusion in these CC resources. The Higher Education Academy and JISC logos are licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution -non-commercial- No Derivative Works 2.0 UK England & Wales license. All reproductions must comply with the terms of that license. Author Stephen Gomez Title What is Work Based Learning? Description Date Created August 2011 Educational Level 7 Keywords UKOER, Learning from WOeRK, LFWOER, UOPCPDWBL, Work-Based Learning, WBL, Continuous Professional Development, CPD, Advanced Professional Development Back page originally developed by the OER phase 1 C-Change project ©University of Plymouth, 2011, some rights reserved