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It highlights how power relations can devalue informal learning and explains why only a relatively small share of adults currently participate, even though many who do are dedicated lifelong learners. It also discusses reframing informal learning as part of solutions to adult exclusion aggravated by educational hierarchies, accreditation, assessment, and formality.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/australian-journal-of-adult-learning-informal-learning-volume-49-number-1-april-2009/593442/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/australian-journal-of-adult-learning-informal-learning-volume-49-number-1-april-2009/593442.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Elsa","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-22","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":81},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What central issue does the paper focus on regarding informal learning?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"It argues that power relations play a central role in the value and identity of both formal and informal learning, with emphasis on informal learning.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"Why does the paper say informal learning is often devalued?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"It discusses how power relations and hegemony in discourses can legitimate some identities and educational forms while privileging formal learning and devaluing informal learning.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"How does the paper review earlier work on informal learning?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"It summarizes research beginning with Tough’s findings that most adults set intentional and unintentional self-teaching projects, and it outlines McGivney’s view that there is no single definition while offering a broad characterization for her report.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},593442,1792211208,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":81,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":144,"read_time":41,"preview_page_count":4},137455077381,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_994ba38a5ba835b3df7d355c54d3ed8d","Australian Journal of Adult Learning Informal learning 35  \nVolume 49, Number 1, April 2009  \nInformal learning: a discussion around defining and researching its breadth and importance  \nBarry Golding, Mike Brown and Annette Foley School of Education, University of Ballarat  \nInformal learning has often been seen as formal learning’s ‘poor cousin’. Our paper explores and discusses new and different ways of thinking about defining, valuing and researching the breadth and importance of informal learning in diverse national and cultural contexts. This includes a consideration of the power relations  \nthat can act to devalue informal learning. It is underpinned by a recognition that not only do a relatively small proportion of adults currently engage informal learning, but those who do tend already to be dedicated and successful lifelong learners. It leads to a discussion about how informal learning might be framed as part of the solution to adult exclusion, seen to be aggravated by unnecessary adult educational hierarchies, accreditation, assessment and formality.  \nIntroduction  \nOur paper proceeds from a brief review of definitions of informal learning to examine and focus on the conceptual terrain and power relations surrounding learning in/formality.At its core is a critical reflection and discussion of our role as researchers into informal learning.Our essential argument in this paper, using insights from other researchers and reflections from our own research, is about power relations and the central role power plays in the value and identity of both formal and informal learning (with an emphasis on the latter).  \nPower is a central concept in understanding the formations of social difference and inequity.Power is connected to meaningmaking, social relations and the ways in which certain discourses gain hegemony, the formation of policy and the ways that certain identities are legitimated and privileged over others and valued across educational contexts (Burke & Jackson 2007).Power operates across all levels of social life – individually, institutionally, regionally and nationally.Identities are always tied to shifting power relations. For this purpose, we find Foucault’s (1977) theory of power useful in understanding and conceptualising power as discursive.As educational researchers, we are interested in the way power is linked to wider structural inequities in education and what we see as adult educational hierarchies or power differences.We also recognise that, as researchers in the field of higher education, when we work at defining informal learning, we take up a complex and a contradictory position.While we provide evidence in our paper that academic and practical opportunities for informal learning through adult and community education (ACE) are shrinking in Australia, we highlight the need for greater acknowledgment of the value of informality in learning.  \n36 Barry Golding, Mike Brown and Annette Foley Informal learning 37  \nDefining and theorising informal learning  \nFrom the 1960s, Tough (1967, 1971) began working in Canada with the notion that adults can teach themselves, what he originally called self-teaching, and published as Learning without a teacher: a study of tasks and assistance during adult self-teaching projects.Basically, Tough showed that most adults set themselves projects to undertake and, as part of these projects, need to learn new things which they very often do without recourse to a teacher.This form of learning is both intentional and unintentional and occurs as a by-product of the project-orientated activities.His research into this idea spread over two decades as he sought evidence and began to theorise what became one of the most cited threads of informal learning.  \nComing from a United Kingdom perspective, McGivney (1999: 1) in Informal learning in the community, determined that:  \nThere is no single definition of informal learning. It is a broad and loose concept that incorporates very","cbCaidLRSsk7OXJq","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaidLRSsk7OXJq","pdf",120564,12,"English","# Introduction\n## Defining and theorising informal learning\n## The conceptual terrain around learning in/formality","[{\"question\":\"What central issue does the paper focus on regarding informal learning?\",\"answer\":\"It argues that power relations play a central role in the value and identity of both formal and informal learning, with emphasis on informal learning.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does the paper say informal learning is often devalued?\",\"answer\":\"It discusses how power relations and hegemony in discourses can legitimate some identities and educational forms while privileging formal learning and devaluing informal learning.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the paper review earlier work on informal learning?\",\"answer\":\"It summarizes research beginning with Tough’s findings that most adults set intentional and unintentional self-teaching projects, and it outlines McGivney’s view that there is no single definition while offering a broad characterization for her report.\"}]","Australian Journal of Adult Learning - Informal learning - Volume 49, Number 1, April 2009 | PDF",1792077270]