For everyday use
Summary Definition
The generation of knowledge through purposeful contribution, where value is situated in context and validated through social and communal recognition; it is both a way of learning and a field of study.
For research and publications
Reference Definition
Work-Based Learning does not yet have an official entry in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). The following definition guides our work and is encouraged as the scholarly reference point for defining work-based learning.
Work-Based Learning
WERK-bayst LUR-ning
[mass noun]
Learning that arises through purposeful contribution within personal, organizational, or community contexts, where the contribution produces value for others and is acknowledged by those who are the direct beneficiaries of that value.
Example: Work-Based Learning occurs when a parent managing a household budget develops financial skills that are affirmed within the family through decisions about income and expenses.
The generation of knowledge, skills, and understanding by undertaking situated tasks, responsibilities, or roles, the outcomes of which are recognized within the community, workplace, or social context of the contribution itself, rather than solely by an instructional authority.
Example: Frontline staff demonstrate Work-Based Learning as they gain conflict resolution skills recognized by customers and colleagues during daily interactions.
A transdisciplinary field underpinned by contributive epistemology, in which knowledge arises through acts of contribution and becomes legitimate through social or communal recognition.
Example: Work-Based Learning is increasingly studied as a transdisciplinary field that bridges education, labour, and community recognition systems.
(Definition ratified by the Council Advancing Work-Based Learning and authored by Jeremy McQuigge, Secretary-General, 2025)
Orienting WBL in Practice
Work-Based Learning is not the same as...
Work-Based Learning is often confused with other terms, such as Work-Integrated Learning, Work-Based Training, or Work-Applied Learning. Each has value, but none captures Work-Based Learning as a system of knowledge built through contribution.
These related approaches focus on education programs, employer-led training, or organizational change. Work-Based Learning is broader: it recognizes knowledge created through contribution itself — wherever it happens, and whoever makes it.
Understanding work-based learning
Clarifying Aspects of Work-Based Learning.
While often conflated with training programs or academic placements, work-based learning is an autonomous learning system rooted in the "Third Space" of purposeful contribution. This section answers common questions about work-based learning.
