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The learning culture of Hull

One theory that has been put forward to explain Hull's below average educational performance has been that the city does not have a 'learning culture'. The precise meaning of 'learning culture' is unclear, but the general reasoning is that there may be cultural reasons, relating to the city's location and history, which have led to attitudes that make people in Hull less likely to get involved in learning than in other parts of the country.

A study to investigate and attempt to clarify the nature of a learning culture in Hull was beyond the scope of the Learners' Forum, but we did find some indications of what the learning culture might be in Hull.

The report 'Too much to do in the real world' suggests that there is a culture of learning in Hull, but that its more about informal learning than formal courses.  Informal learning is seen as self-directed learning outside of an educational establishment, or stepping into a course structure, but with the flexibility to direct and mould the learning to your needs.  Formal learning, on the other hand, is going to an institution and working through a prescribed curriculum.

The report suggests a couple of reasons for this.  Firstly, Hull has an industrialised history- the docks were important, as was manufacturing, fishing and related processes.  These kinds of jobs lent themselves to apprenticeships and learning on the job- an informal style of learning.  As people quoted in the report say, you didn't need qualifications, you just turned up, and learnt on the job.

Secondly, as the industry declined in the '80s, there was high unemployment.  People were in a situation where there weren't many jobs regardless of the skills people had.  Therefore there was little incentive to engage in formal learning in order to become qualified for a job.

So the report concludes that Hull has ended up with a culture that values learning, but not necessarily formalised learning.  The conclusions of 'Learning to Listen, Listening to Learn' also suggest that people in Hull value learning.

Respondents were asked whether they thought going on courses was worthwhile, and all the respondents thought that they it was worthwhile.  Around 80% also said that they planned to do courses in the future, with most of them specifying what they wanted to learn.  People saw courses as important for employment related reasons as well as for leisure. One interesting finding was that people saw courses as a way to provide qualifications that they could list for employers, making them more likely to get a job.  Courses were mostly seen as a way to validate existing skills, not a way to gain new ones. This perhaps relates to a culture of informal learning tied with the realisation that qualifications are needed to get jobs.

Overall then, whilst these two reports aren't saying exactly the same thing, they both suggest that people in Hull do value learning.  Therefore it is up to providers and commissioners of learning to tap into what people want to learn, and the ways they want to learn, and direct this to the advantage of both the individual and the city.