NOPROS Learning Circles Project

If you've ever been part of an informal learning group, like a camera club or a book group, chances are you've been part of a Learning Circle. A Learning Circle is a supportive environment in which people get together to learn from others and share their own knowledge and expertise.

We have been using Learning Circles workshops to develop a curriculum aimed at helping adults develop their online skills. We've worked with two groups:

• Older adult learners who wanted to learn how to use the internet, including getting online, using email and understanding social networking.
• Creative business owners who wanted to develop their own identity online and grow their businesses using social media.

Both groups met at the museum for sessions to explore aspects of the technology with a facilitator and share their experiences with each other. The workshops were very successful, with both groups preferring Learning Circles to more formal methods of learning.

The Learning Circles workshops are part of the NOPROS project, a two-year collaboration in which we worked together with 10 European partner organisations to research ways in which Learning Circles can be used in informal adult learning. The project's outputs include a methodology for using Learning Circles with informal adult learners, practical support materials and five transferable Learning Circle curricula aimed at developing key competencies.

The workshops have also been a test bed for some of the learning activity planned for our new Life Online gallery which opens in Spring 2012.

The project is supported by the Grundtvig programme of the European Union.