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PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine factors influencing the engagement of public school teachers in informal learning activities.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a survey research design.FindingsAnalysis of the data found that teachers rely to a greater degree on interactive than on independent informal learning activities. Three environmental factors inhibit teachers from engaging in informal learning activities: lack of time, lack of proximity to colleagues' work areas, and insufficient funds. In addition, seven personal characteristics enhance teachers' motivation to engage in informal learning: initiative, self‐efficacy, love of learning, interest in the profession, commitment to professional development, a nurturing personality, and an outgoing personality.Research limitations/implicationsA limitation of this study was the survey's response rate of 27.7 percent.Practical implicationsThe findings from this study give rise to three implications for facilitating informal workplace learning. First, work areas need to be strategically designed so that employees are located near colleagues in the same technical or professional area. Second, a greater amount of unencumbered time must be built into a professional's work day. Third, access to computer technology and the internet should be provided so that professionals can communicate with others and gather information when the need to do so arises.Originality/valueAn important contribution of the present study to new knowledge of workplace learning is the construction of a survey instrument for assessing informal workplace learning. A second contribution is greater understanding of the personal and environmental factors that influence informal workplace learning.

The purpose of this study was to examine environmental inhibitors to informal learning in the workplace. Twenty-two experienced teachers were interviewed and numerous site visits were made to each school where these teachers worked to develop a greater understanding of the ways in which aspects of their work environment inhibited them from engaging in informal learning. Four environmental inhibitors emerged from an analysis of the data: lack of time for learning, lack of proximity to learning resources, lack of meaningful rewards for learning, and limited decision-making power in school management. Implications of these findings for theory, research, and the facilitation of informal learning in the workplace are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of case segmentation schemes in problem-based learning (PBL) on the development of problem-solving skill, self-directedness and technical knowledge. Seventy-four dental education students were randomly assigned to 12 PBL groups. Six groups experienced PBL cases that were formatted in short segments and six groups experienced PBL cases that were formatted in long segments. Pretest measures of problem-solving skill, self-directedness and technical knowledge were administered at the beginning of the Fall 1998 semester. Students studied three PBL cases in their assigned groups in the ensuing semester. Posttest measures were administered at the conclusion of the semester. Analysis of the data found that students who experienced PBL with a short case segmentation scheme were better able to solve problems highly similar to the problems in the teaching cases than students who experienced PBL with a long case segmentation scheme. No significant differences were found for selfdirectedness, technical knowledge, or ability to solve problems distinctly different from the teaching cases. Explanations of these findings and their implications for research and practice in PBL are discussed.

The self-initiated learning activities of experienced public school teachers are examined in this study. Twenty-two experienced teachers were interviewed to develop a greater understanding of the types of self-initiated learning activities in which they engage and the organizational characteristics that in¯uence their participation in those activities. Analysis of the data showed that experienced teachers engaged in three types of self-initiated learning activities: knowledge exchanging, experimenting, and environmental scanning. Participation in these activities was in¯uenced by the availability of resources, physical layout, and level of centralization in their schools. Implications of these ® ndings for theory, practice, and future research in teacher learning and development are discussed.