A very long time ago (in May 1970 actually!) I wrote an article called ‘Stop the courses, I want to get off!’ It was a provocative piece and the late John Wellens, then editor of Industrial and Commercial Training, felt the need to add an introduction in which he said: ‘Peter Honey here states the case against formal courses. Indeed, … he might even be suspected of over-stating the case. If this is so, provided his article drives home the point, we welcome his offering.’

Thirty-four years on I’d have to say that my article failed to change anything. The touching faith most organisations have in the effectiveness of formal training courses, whether virtual or real, is largely undiminished. Informal learning (that is, the sort of learning people do all the time) remains the Cinderella, while the ugly sisters (formal education and training) continue to steal the limelight.

But all is not lost. My colleague, Ian Cunningham, together with Graham Dawes and Ben Bennett, have produced a splendidly upbeat book that leaves you in no doubt that informal, work-based learning must take centre stage if there is to be a quantum leap in learning productivity and effectiveness. They are careful not to dismiss the part formal courses can play, but argue that the status of informal, work-based learning should be raised. ‘What would be useful is if there was recognition that education and training have a minor (but important) role to play and that … we need an overarching strategy for learning.’¹

The part of the book I most relish is tucked away right at the end as Appendix 3. Here, having spent 280 pages making a compelling case for work-based learning, the authors explore why such an eminently laudable cause hasn’t been better supported. They come up with a whole host of possibilities, among them being:

* the tendency to keep doing what you’ve always done – in this case, peddling courses

* following the herd – ‘if all the big organisations offer formal courses, then we’d better too’

* the fact that it is relatively easier for managers to send people off on courses than to bother with providing staff with work-based learning opportunities

* the recreational aspect – many people like attending formal courses as a welcome respite from the stresses and strains of their normal workplace

* the attraction of a certificate or qualification – formal learning is usually accredited in some way and that can look good on a person’s CV

* the need to be seen to ‘tick the right boxes’ by, for example, putting everyone through a training programme because legislation requires it or because of a perceived need to indulge in some mass sheep-dipping.

As you might expect, trainers don’t escape unscathed. The authors suspect that many trainers prefer the tidiness of running pre-conceived courses to getting involved with the promotion of work-based learning for which ‘command and control’ behaviours are less appropriate. They also float the possibility that trainers get an ego-boosting buzz from delivering courses.

And, as if that wasn’t enough, I’d like to add a few more reasons that might help to explain why the Prince hasn’t yet discovered that the shoe fits Cinderella rather than her ugly sisters. The first is that work-based learning isn’t particularly glamorous or sexy. It doesn’t have the attraction of being a new fad or an exciting bandwagon. It isn’t even one thing, it’s lots of bits and pieces. Ian Cunningham’s book focuses on 58 strategies, tactics and methods. My own book, 101 Ways to Develop Your People, Without Really Trying!, features (needless to say!) 101 things any manager, in any organisation, could do to get learning and working to be parallel, totally complementary activities.²

Second, it occurs to me that work-based learning is a bit like continuous improvement: it is never ending. This means it isn’t an event with a beginning, middle and end. Work-based learning is a continuous slog that doesn’t lend itself to a fanfare of trumpets and all the other razzmatazz that things with an obvious beginning and end can easily have. So, I suspect that work-based learning is daunting – perhaps even depressing – for people who relish neat events with clear starts and finishes.

Finally, Ian Cunningham and his colleagues offer a more sinister explanation for the continued comparative popularity of formal learning – even though it is estimated that, at best, only 20 per cent of it successfully transfers back to the workplace. The conspiracy theory is that senior managers quite like training to be ineffectual. It saves them the hassle of having to cope with upward change and the sheer inconvenience of people taking initiatives and making a difference for the better. When push comes to shove, compliance is preferable to improvement and change.

Still, we can all take heart from the fact that Cinderella eventually got the respect she deserved.

References

1. Ian Cunningham, Graham Dawes and Ben Bennett, The Handbook of Work Based Learning, Gower Publishing Limited, 2004.

2. Peter Honey, 101 Ways to Develop Your People, Without Really Trying!, Peter Honey Publications, 1994.

Dr Peter Honey, FRSA, FCIPD, FIMC is a Chartered Psychologist and founder of Peter Honey Publications. He can be contacted on +44 (0) 1628 633946, at peterhoney@peterhoney.com or visit www.peterhoney.com

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