The concept of Social learning completely goes against the concept of traditional learning, the one we talk about when we refer to a classroom, delivered by a teacher or trainer to a group of learners. On the other hand, It is based on the sharing of knowledge between peers and integrates the concept of co-construction of knowledge bases. Knowledge is enriched by interactions between learners. So how is social learning changing the way we learn? Let's take stock.
The new role of the trainer
The first major difference is that the learning dynamic is changing: the trainer or teacher no longer intervenes in a “top-down” dynamic, in which he is the only vector of knowledge. With social learning, each learner can be both student and teacher at any given time. But in this context, the trainer does not disappear: he remains responsible for guiding the learners in order to guarantee the pedagogical quality of the exchanges. Tutor, pedagogue, administrator, trainer... It may have multiple names, but its role remains the same.
-> What new functions for the trainer?
1 - Facilitate exchanges by setting up appropriate tools
2 - Organize workshops and initiate discussions to promote interactions and interest
3 - Facilitate exchanges and value active learners to encourage others
A more collaborative approach to learning
If you literally translate social learning, you get social learning. Our English speaking friends, on the other hand, like to use the term”Peer learning”, that is to say peer learning, and others are rather followers of the expression “collaborative learning”, for collaborative learning. In fact, there is no need to try to differentiate them, they all want to refer to the same thing: a learning situation in which learners no longer receive training content passively. They become actors in their learning and collaborate with each other to understand and integrate concepts or to solve problems in situations.
-> How does social learning make learning more collaborative?
1 - It makes learners actors in the training and each learner can simultaneously be a student and teacher
2 - Group problem solving is an integral part of social learning
Greater value for informal learning
With “traditional” apprenticeship, academic training is valued by placing it at the center of the training system. However, if we rely on The theory of the 70-20-10 model, it may not be the best strategy to adopt if you want learners to remember something. Developed in the mid-1990s by the Center for Creative Leadership at the American University of Princeton, this model based on a study suggests that out of 100% of knowledge acquired, 70% would be acquired through activity and experience, 20% through their social interactions and 10% through academic training. In summary, 90% of what we remember comes from our interactions with others and from what we learn “in context”. This 90% corresponds to informal learning, the same as social learning.
-> How does social learning promote informal learning?
1 - It encourages social interactions with educational value and boosts motivation
2 - It most often uses real situations, promoting learning in context.
The body of knowledge is less static
The Social learning drawing on individual experiences and often rooted in context, it uses a body of knowledge that is constantly evolving. Indeed, jobs are evolving more and more quickly, as are technologies, a situation that leads learners to be systematically on the lookout, even more so in a context of corporate training. When you train on a daily basis in a social learning model, collective monitoring allows training content to be adjusted in real time, according to learning needs. Because it promotes sharing between peers, social learning, if supported by the right tools, allows the simplified transmission of this knowledge, which takes on a different value when it is transmitted by peers who actually carry out their daily activities.
-> How does social learning promote the evolution of the body of knowledge?
1 - It encourages each learner to be on the lookout for their job and to share each new apprenticeship with their peers
2 - Equipped with the right tools, it can share training content in real time
Decompartmentalizing training
Since informal learning goes far beyond the walls of the training room, it goes without saying that the Social learning naturally has the same characteristics. Certainly, some social learning activities take place in groups and face-to-face, but “remote” and on-demand learning contexts are becoming more and more the norm. With tools such as mobile learning, social learning goes beyond the boundaries of learning, by no longer requiring the learner to “block” time for learning. Social learning is often done in context, as we would ask the question directly to our colleague if he were next to us.
-> How does social learning contribute to the decompartmentalization of training?
1 - In mobility, it allows you to learn in context, on demand and at the moment when the information is necessary for immediate implementation
2 - It allows you to leave the “walls” of the classroom to integrate learning into daily discussions
