This is the latest edition of the L&W Newsletter, which will reach you via a mailing list of over 1400 experts in and beyond Europe. As always, it focuses on transnational research activities in the field of human resource development (HRD) and vocational education and training (VET), centred on major categories: conferences, networks/ centres, programmes, projects and publications. Many thanks to all who contributed information for this edition of the Newsletter!
Particularly worth noting in this edition are calls for papers related to the conferences on "Learning through and for professional practice" (see Conferences) and "Materialities and virtualities of professional learning" (see Networks: ProPEL), outcomes of three European projects (see Projects) and a new interdisciplinary volume on "Technology-enhanced professional learning" (see Publications). Furthermore, this edition draws attention to the relaunch of the Directory of Professional Contacts (see Networks: DPC).

Should you prefer to read the current Newsletter edition online, you can find it under August 2013 on the website (www.news.wifo-gate.org). And please pass the Newletter on to your own networks - thanks!

The next edition of the Newsletter will appear in early October 2013. You are invited to submit short pieces of news (texts of 100 to 200 words, without attachments, but including links to web resources) - please by 30 September 2013 at the latest!

With best wishes
Sabine Manning
Research Forum WIFO
Editor of the L&W Newsletter

Conferences

Call for papers: Learning through and for professional practice
4th International conference on Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice (ALAPP 2014). University of Geneva, Switzerland, 10-13 September 2014
After Cardiff in 2011, Sydney in 2012 and Kuala Lumpur in 2013, the University of Geneva will host the 4th International conference on Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice. The conference aims to bring together scholars from different disciplinary backgrounds, especially language and communication research, and professional specialities (e.g. healthcare, social care, therapy, law, mediation, management, business, journalism, education). It encourages research and reflection on developing interdisciplinarity, methodological diversity, inter-professional collaboration and explores the relations between language use and social practices taking place in institutional and organisational contexts. A special emphasis will be on cross-boundary collaboration and the translation of research findings to ensure impact. For this 2014 ALAPP conference, special attention will be dedicated to the topic of "Learning through and for professional practice".
Individual papers, posters and thematic symposia can be submitted in English and French through the conference website (http://www.unige.ch/alapp2014). Submission opening: 1st November 2013. Submission deadline: 31st January 2014. Email address:  [email protected]
(Posted by: Laurent Filliettaz [email protected])

NOTE: Forthcoming and recent events related to European research in work and learning are listed on the WIFO Conference page [www.conferences.wifo-gate.org].  

Networks

Call for Papers: Second International ProPEL Conference, June 2014
ProPEL = Professional Practice, Education and Learning Research Network (http://www.propel.stir.ac.uk/)
ProPEL is a collaborative, multi-professional international network that promotes research and knowledge exchange in leading issues of professional education, practice and learning. Based at the University of Stirling under the direction of Professor Tara Fenwick, and working with a range of partner researchers, ProPEL promotes leading-edge research and theory that examines the most pressing issues in professional practice, education and learning. We invite you to the Second International ProPEL Conference "Professional 'matters': Materialities and virtualities of professional learning", at the Stirling Management Centre, University of Stirling, Scotland on 25-27 June 2014.  Keynote speakers include Professor Yrjö Engeström (University of Helsinki), Dr Beverly Metcalfe (University of Manchester) and Professor Mats Alvesson (Lund University & University of Queensland Business School). Paper abstracts are due 1 November 2013. For more information please email [email protected] or visit http://www.propel.stir.ac.uk/conference2014/
(Posted by: Janet McCurdie [email protected])

Directory of Professional Contancts (DPC) - relaunched in July 2013
The Research Forum WIFO has relaunched its online Directory of Professional Contacts (www.dpc.wifo-gate.org). The DPC offers up-to-date information on more than 200 contacts across 30 countries in the field of transnational European VET and HRD research. Each person included in the DPC is both a producer of transnational research and a transnational networker. The professional activities of the contacts match at least one of the following criteria: coordinator of a network or project; chair of a conference programme; author/editor of a book or an article AND active involvement in conferences/ networks/ projects; author of a conference paper (in case of contacts from Eastern and Southern Europe). All these criteria are related to evidence of transnational activities presented in WIFO resources of European collaboration such as the Bookshelf, Overview of articles, Conference page, ECER VETNET Proceedings and Overview of HRD conference papers, Networks at a glance and Overview of projects. Let me add, while these web resources have been developed over a long period, they cannot be regarded as complete. Colleagues are therefore welcome to provide further data with regard to their professional activities. The DPC will be updated continuously while European collaboration in VET and HRD research is progressing.
(Contributed by: Sabine Manning)

Latest news: The July Newsletter of the University Forum for HRD, edited by Rick Holden, has been published on the Forum web site. Please go to: http://www.ufhrd.co.uk/wordpress/july-news/

NOTE: References to research networks in the field of European work and learning are available on the WIFO page Networks at a glance [www.networks.wifo-gate.org]. Major online resources related to European research networks include the ECER VETNET Proceedings (www.ecer-vetnet.wifo-gate.org) offering a complete and up-to-date collection of conference papers submitted since 1998, and the Overview of selected HRD conference papers (www.ehrd-papers.wifo-gate.org).

Programmes

NOTE: Contributions are welcome for the next edition of the Directory of Doctoral Dissertations (www.ddd.wifo-gate.org), provided as part of the WIFO Gateway, which focuses on European research in the field of vocational education (VET) and human resource development (HRD). Please provide information on expected or newly completed doctoral dissertations investigating issues of HRD, VET or work-related adult education, according to the following pattern: 1*Theme of dissertation (original language AND English); 2*Year of (expected) completion or publication; 3*Author (name and email address); 4*Tutor (name and email address); 5*Institution of tutor (name and home page). Contributions should be posted by email to the editor ([email protected]).

Projects

Lang2Tech: An ePortfolio approach to language certification
Conference at University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh UK, 30th August 2013
Lang2Tech is an exciting and innovative project supported by the European Commission Lifelong Learning Programme that has developed an ePortfolio approach to validate and certify workplace second-language competence specifically for technicians across Europe. The Lang2Tech conference will be held on Friday 30 August 2013. It will provide you with an opportunity to hear about the development of the project products and certification processes as well as the experience of technicians developing their second-language competences. A ground-breaking event in the field of languages for special purposes, it will involve a range of speakers from the project partnership, as well as technicians and employers discussing wider experiences of language learning in and for the workplace as well as the direct experience of Lang2Tech Certification. Discussions will also take place on the future development of this new Certification and we will be considering ways in which the Certification can help you in your work context. The conference is free to all participants and includes full daytime catering.The conference will be held at The University of Edinburgh's central George Square Campus, during the Edinburgh International Festival.
For registration, please see: http://www.lang2tech.eu/events/lang2tech-project-final-conference
(Posted by Peter Evans <[email protected])

Workshop on Accreditation of Prior Learning
The  Practices and Outlooks of Accreditation of Prior Learning - Workshop in  Vilnius (Lithuania) 26-27 September 2013
The project IDEAL (Identifier, Evaluer et Valider) aims at transferring and sharing the French methodology for the APL in other European countries (Belgium, Italy, Lithuania and Portugal). During this workshop, we will present the IDEAL methodology and tools that have been developed by the network, and you will get IDEAL partner feedback. Moreover, thematic sessions and talks with APL experts will be proposed. The expected contributions would deal with topics including APL: outlooks on lifelong learning in Europe; APL methodologies: from diversity to quality; its adaptation to local needs; Professionalization of APL by setting up tools (from non-formal and informal prior learning to accreditation of prior learning) and use of IT technologies. For more details go to http://www.ideal-project.eu/ Contact: Fanny Buannic [email protected]
(Information received from: PASCAL International Observatory Site Digest for 24/06/2013)

Xploit - Towards Learning Communities
The website learningcommunities.eu offers you the results and experience of three years Xploit work, funded by the Commission's Transversal action, and carried out in the UK, Italy, Romania, Hungary and Catalonia Spain - managed by Jan Gejel and Enara Zabaleta from Denmark, and quality assured by Holger Bienzle from Austria. The Xploit project set out to develop pathways of more sustained exploitation of European resources, including European projects, funding programs and other resources. It soon became clear that the highway to better exploitation is learning communities, offering infrastructures to capture, exploit and implement available quality resources produced at the European arena. You are invited to take the hard way and produce your own experience. The website learningcommunities.eu can be used to explore pathways to learning communities and to support you and your community along your journeys.
(Posted by Jan Gejel [email protected] in: PASCAL International Observatory Site Digest for 01/07/2013)

NOTE: Contributions are invited to update the Overview of European research projects [www.projects.wifo-gate.org], provided as part of the WIFO Gateway. The overview focuses on transnational research projects, mainly supported by EU programmes, in the areas of human resource development, vocational education, work and learning. Please send the following information to the editor ([email protected]):  (A) exact title and acronym (short name) of the project; (B) name and email address of the coordinator or main contact; (C) address of the website (or info page/ flyer) of the project. Contact: Sabine Manning

Publications

New interdisciplinary volume on Technology-enhanced professional learning
A new interdisciplinary volume "Technology-Enhanced Professional Learning: Processes, practices, and tools" will be published by Routledge in November 2013.  Co-edited by Professor Allison Littlejohn and Dr Anoush Margaryan of the Caledonian Academy, Glasgow Caledonian University, the book integrates contributions from a range of leading scholars from ten different countries (UK, US, Australia, Estonia, Finland, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Canada and Serbia). Spanning the fields of professional learning, technology-enhanced learning, computer-supported collaborative work, human resources development, computer science and information science, the contributions in this volume address the need for continuous workplace learning that derives from the emergence of new, specialised, and constantly changing work practices and technologies. By examining the intersection of human learning processes, emergent work practices, and patterns of use of digital technology to support learning and work, this edited collection brings the disparate fields of professional learning and technology-enhanced learning together to advance theory and practice in both realms. This book is part of the Routledge Advancing Technology Enhanced Learning series, edited by Allison Littlejohn and Chris Pegler. For details see http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415854092/
(Received from: Anoush Margaryan [email protected])

NOTE:  Updates on publications provided by the WIFO Gateway include the WIFO Bookshelf [www.books.wifo-gate.org], a collection of references to publications focusing on cross-European issues of work and learning, and "From the Journals" - Overview of articles on cross-European issues in VET and HRD research [www.articles.wifo-gate.org], selected from European and international Journals related to education research [www.journals.wifo-gate.org].

Impressum

Editor of the L&W Newsletter: Dr Sabine Manning, Research Forum WIFO ([email protected]);
Address: Neue Blumenstr. 1, D-10179 Berlin, Germany;
Editions of the L&W Newsletter: six times a year, every two months (at the beginning of February, April, June, August, October, December);
Deadline for contributions to the L&W Newsletter: end of January, March, May, July, September, November;
Circulation of the current L&W Newsletter: about 1400 experts in 40 countries (mostly Europe);
Details and Archive of the L&W Newsletter [www.news.wifo-gate.org].