There's no such thing as 'Formal Learning'

There's no such thing as formal learning. There, I've said it. I feel much better now. I hope you do too.
In the 18th century our best scientists toiled away in an attempt to determine the essence of phlogiston - the substance which allowed things to burn. Turns out, phlogiston never existed; but once you've given something a name it's easy to think that the name must actually correspond to something. And so it is with formal learning.
I thought I would point this out, because I keep finding myself in 70:20:10 conversations, and I think that if we are going to start being a little more honest about learning then we might as well go the whole way.
The thrust of 70:20:10 is that almost all of the learning taking place in your organisation is already informal - stemming from everyday challenges, peers & mentors, and stories. Formal learning (whether e-learning or classroom courses) plays a very small role. Read more...