Learning is a continuous
process and mirror image with the intention of getting something done. Scripture
says that “When a truth is learned, it must be practiced. Indeed, knowledge that
is not put into practice is not truly learned; it soon fades away like a
mirage”. Wenger (1998) describes “Practice as about meaning as an experience of
everyday life”. (p. 52). Learning from practice (LFP) is another most important
dimension towards education. It is a project oriented approach for staff
development through which practitioners become researchers, learners, and
reformers. According to Pennsylvania (2001) “Its purpose is to have
practitioners actually "put into practice" the information, materials, and
techniques they’ve acquired through attendance at a particular training or
through their own research and document the results”. In LFP, practitioners
generate valuable knowledge for themselves and for the broader field. It gives
participant a point for exploration, provides effective practice based small
group learning program, and the support to carry out a data based projects.
LFP is a big challenge for professional development. It focuses mainly on the
concern that participants raise about their own practice. Participants identify
the problems, issues, or activities in order to learn and explore them. As a
result of this discussion, relevant changes should be done. Besides this,
participants try to identify specific barriers to these practice changes and to
formulate implementation strategies to facilitate desired changes. Furthermore,
they also explore what questions to investigate and how to conduct their
research. They decide what the appropriate outcomes for the work might be, given
the constraints or demands in their working contexts. Another most significant
challenge is theoretical basis for changing practice begins with the
individual’s experience. Through reflection, a gap between current practice and
best practice is recognized. Distinguishing this gap represents an opportunity
to identify learning objectives. The acquisition of new knowledge, skills, and
approaches can be follow and bridge this gap. However, access to new information
alone is not sufficient. Therefore, reflections and discussions are necessary to
help participant in identifying areas where current practice requires change and
develop strategies in order to integrate this new approach.
One of the best strategies for LFP is to develop practice based small group
learning programs for members. One of the objectives of this program is to
encourage members to reflect on their individual practices and identify any
break between current practice and the best available evidence. This can
accomplished through discussion of real life medical and patient problems in
small groups. Previously common approaches like lectures and handouts were
ineffective in changing applicant behavior. However, it can be effective,
particularly when they involve in small groups of peer through which it foster
trust, promote discussion of evidence relevant to real cases, provide feedback
on performance, and offer opportunities for practicing newly learned skills.
Moreover, practitioners can meet to discuss and share ideas of procedures and
problems in their own practices. On the other hand, group activities encourage
meaningful critique of classroom and program based needs and challenges as
participants build a professional community in which successes, struggles, and
new methods of teaching (or directing or counseling, etc) can be shared and
discussed. Another most important objective is to encourage group members to
initiate, as a result of this discussion, relevant changes to patient care.
Within the group, members endeavor to identify specific barriers to these
practice changes and to formulate implementation strategies to facilitate
desired changes.
Learning from practice offers a relatively high level of support in the form of
periodic, small group meetings and a mentor who will guide practitioners through
the process. LFP participants become member of a learning community, which
develops as their work does. In addition, according to Wenger (1998) “a
community is constituted by mutual engagement, joint enterprise and a shared
repertoire”. (p.73). All three dimensions are both subject to, and influence,
the negotiation of meaning in the community. On the other hand, it give
participants an opportunity to share their research as it unfolds, to focus on
individual and group issues, and create strategies for dealing with issues at
various stages of the research work. Moreover, practitioners may also tie in
continuous program improvement efforts to a LFP project, using their program
improvement team as a sounding board and support system for addressing agency
issues and concerns.
Based on above discussion, I conclude, that learning is a purposeful activity.
In the world of work, there are enormous opportunities to learn which support
knowledge from experiences and practices. Learning creates emergent structures.
Wenger (1998) best be supported in an environment where these structures are
allowed to grow according to the needs and goals of the learners. (p.53). In
addition, learning from practice offer an opportunity to participants a point
for exploration, provides effective practice based small group learning program,
and the support to carry out a data based projects. These all strategies have
evolved steadily in response to feedback of members and reflection of each
participant which enhance their implementation of new knowledge in to real
setting. Atherton (2005) suggested that “the capacity to reflect on action so as
to engage in a process of continuous learning was one of the defining
characteristics of professional practice”.