What is action learning?
Social entrepreneurs are proactive, hands-on, inquisitive, “people” people. They aren’t interested in learning programmes that don’t seem relevant to them, and they often move straight into action without any educational preparation. They learn as they go.
The School of Social Entrepreneurs was the first organisation in its field to recognise that social entrepreneurs are much more suited to ‘action learning’, rather than traditional classroom based learning.
Action learning is based on learning-by-doing. It involves small groups meeting to talk about their recent achievements and problems in a non-judgemental atmosphere. People can ask each other questions, but do not give advice. In this environment, students can be open and honest, acknowledge the personal and emotional issues that affect their projects’ development, and learn from each others’ experiences.
Students also get training in essential skills like fundraising, marketing and business planning, and the chance to grill expert witnesses, policy-makers, politicians and funders.
Here’s a nifty diagram (courtesy of the SSE) explaining the action learning cycle:
