What motivates informal learning?

05/07/2009 by lizit.

I’m playing around with ideas about what motivates informal learning and wanting to move beyond the idea that it is somehow innate and something human beings do all the time.  I’m outlining some of my thoughts below, but would really appreciate comments and other ideas on this.

• People engage in informal learning because we have an inbuilt drive to learn.  This probably applies to babies and children, but is not so obvious once we have acquired basic life skills - or is it?
• People engage in informal learning out of interest in something.  This could be things like researching a holiday destination, route planning, language learning - other examples?
• People engage in informal learning do develop a hobby or skill.  This may be similar to becoming part of a community of practice - start by learning the basics, look to improve by practising/reading/etc, extend understanding by experimenting, become expert and help others (expertise might be in one part of hobby - not overall).  Had lace making in mind here and the process I went through becoming competent but there may well be hobbies it doesn’t fit.
• People engage in informal learning by accident. The sort of serendipitous learning that comes from watching TV, listening to the radio, reading newspapers, browsing the web, etc. Not setting out to learn or expecting to learn but picking up interesting facts on the way.
• People engage in informal learning intentionally - perhaps to enable social relationships or to pursue an existing interest (is this any different from hobby/skill?). Examples might be learning to play a game, learning how to build/script/use gestures in SL, etc.
• People engage in informal learning out of necessity. This might be around house and family. Undertaking household chores, maintaining and repairing property, looking after baby, etc.
• People engage in informal learning to look after their health. Reading or using web to explore diet or to understand a medical condition.  Taking up exercise and learning how to do it probably to avoid injury.
• People engage in informal learning because they are bored.

Why else do people engage in informal learning?  Other examples/idea?

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