ii) Why These Questions

I chose these questions because they are key to the idea of "best practices" for workplace educators. How we view our role, our relationship to the workplace, and how we prepare for our work seem central to our success as workplace educators. I hope that this discussion will provide food for thought in terms of possibilities for future professional development and informal learning for both the novice and experienced workplace educator.

I. The Conversation

A. Introduction

I was struck by the many similarities among us even though we are from three countries and some of us have never met! Not surprisingly, everybody expressed a deep commitment to and respect for the adult learner or worker, seeing the worker or adult learner as the central client. This was coupled with the recognition that workplaces are complex and that there are other stakeholders to whom one must be accountable.

Secondly, there was a great respect for the knowledge among workers and within workplaces, and the skills that adult learners have gained through a variety of means. Thirdly, people have come to workplace education from many different sets of experiences and have used creativity and ingenuity to immerse themselves and develop and grow in their work. Mentoring and learning from colleagues were key themes in people's growth and development.

Obvious divergences came from the different cultural contexts of the educators, their constituencies, the different roles they play and their work contexts.

B. The Role of Workplace Educator

I was curious to learn how people would actually define the roles a workplace educator plays-- both the similarities and differences in thinking. Do people see the role as a broad one or one that is more connected directly to the learning process?