Entrepreneurial activity has been an element of economic and social enhancement. However, managing a startup is a difficult and risky activity that strongly depends on the entrepreneur's characteristics and skills. While much attention has been given recently to entrepreneurial learning, less has been studied about the learning dynamics in…

Work-based learning (WBL) is used interchangeably with other concepts such as work-related learning (WRL) and workplace learning (WPL). Work-integrated learning (WIL) considers WBL a subset within WIL. Some scholars and practitioners argue that WBL as a mode of learning is pedagogically incompatible with WRL, WPL, and WIL. WBL and WIL…

"In 2012," European Union Member States committed to implement policies for the "Validation of Nonformal and Informal Learning" (VNFIL). In this article, we examine Austria and Italy and ask how VNFIL policies in these two countries relate to "informal learning" (IL) and how this can be interpreted from a…

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to expand knowledge on Swedish principals' professional development (PD) from the perspectives of superintendents. In particular, the article analyzes how superintendents understand and organize PD for principals. Design/methodology/approach: Empirical data are derived from a strategic sample of ten (n = 10)…

Mobile performance support systems (MPSS) involve the use of handheld and wearable devices to assist workers to complete job tasks that are not tied to a fixed location. This paper acknowledges MPSS as an emerging human performance technology (HPT) intervention and distinguishes the differences between mobile learning and MPSS. MPSS focuses on…

Purpose: This paper aims to address the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 4 "quality education" through the adoption of heutagogic ideas in improving work-based learning for individuals. Design/methodology/approach: This paper locates a discussion of heutagogy within the wider context of vocational and higher education, as…

Research stresses the importance of social components in learning. The social contact with peers and tutors stimulates reflection and supports higher processes of learning necessary for the internalisation and application of new knowledge. However, merely proposing opportunities for interaction does not necessarily lead to fruitful discussion and…

Purpose: Although the field of neuroscience has evolved dramatically, little research has attempted to conceptualize the impact of neuroscience on the field of human resource development (HRD). The purpose of this study is an integrative review of the influential relationship between neuroscience and workplace learning including applicable…

Context: Sense-making, understood as meaning making or giving meaning to experience, is an integral part of everyday life, work and learning, and is a process critical in enabling people to recognise how and when to respond to situations appropriately so that they can resolve problems effectively. Earlier studies on sense-making in educational or…

Amidst concerns over skills shortages, both the current British government and its coalition predecessors have, against the grain of wider austerity measures, invested heavily in the apprenticeship system. The majority of apprentices are, and have historically been, employed within small businesses. However, research suggests that, in the main,…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse if open courses, including massive open online courses (MOOCs), can be used as professional development despite their openness since the openness not only brings together individuals from different organizations but also may make the results of collaboration public. Design/methodology/approach: The…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the ways in which organisational context and individual agency interact (co-participate) to shape the workplace learning of graduate trainee accountants, and to examine the role of firm size in conditioning this interaction. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative, comparative approach was…

In this article, I explore the effect of training on the productivity of a sample of Italian firms and the impact of training on EU economic growth. Specifically, retrieving data from a survey performed by the Italian Institute for the Development of Vocational Training in 2009, I find that employer-sponsored training displays a positive and…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between peer support and sense of belonging on the mental health and overall well-being, with a specific focus on comparing the perceptions of students in a work-integrated learning (WIL) program to those in a traditional non-WIL program. Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured…

Purpose: This paper aims to develop a better understanding of intergenerational knowledge transfer (IKT) practices by adopting a context-related and comparative perspective. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative case study design involving 83 interviews and non-participative observation in German and Quebec organizations has been chosen.…