Making Sense of Surrounding Difference: Informal Learning in National Culture Adaptation

Abstract

Informal learning is the inevitable consequence of our attempts to make sense of the world in which we live. Sometimes, on critical reconsideration, informal learning is recognized as significant and intentional; sometimes, it is recognized as trivial and inconsequential. Informal learning generally lacks external organization, structure, or support; nevertheless, it is essential in interpreting experience and anticipating outcomes. This chapter considers informal learning generally and, more specifically, the ways in which transnational students studying in Prague learn about other national cultures and negotiate their cultural adaptation. Using the reflective journals of these students, the chapter explores their growing realization of difference and critical incidents in the process of cultural adaptation. The chapter argues that a greater appreciation of informal learning can provide synergistic opportunities for linking it with formal cross-cultural learning in ways that enrich and empower the learner.