Editing Situated learning (section)

=== The new world of work ===
Reliance on structured, theoretical training programs, especially offered by third-party providers, is decreasing, and companies are finding ways to facilitate authentic learning opportunities within their communities of practice.  Wagner notes that financial considerations have led to fewer managers, so organizations are looking to those who actually do the work for ideas about improving their products and services.<ref>Wagner, T. (2010). The new world of work and the seven survival skills. In [https://books.google.com/books?id=8csKAgAAQBAJ The global achievement gap: Why even our best schools don't teach the new survival skills our children need--and what we can do about it] (pp. 1-42). New York: Basic Books.</ref>

{{blockquote|text=The issue of choosing between very abstract and very specific instruction can be viewed in the following way. If abstract training is given, learners must also absorb the money and time costs of obtaining supplemental training for each distinct application. But if very specific training is given, they must completely retrain for each application...<ref>Anderson, J.R. et al. (1996, p. 8).</ref>).}}

When determining whether abstract or specific instruction is going to be more productive it is important to look at which method will be most useful to the individuals that are learning the skill. If students receive specific instruction they are going to be capable of performing those set tasks only. When students are taught abstract instruction they are exposed to more skills that will be useful in helping them obtain a variety of jobs but at the same time, they may have training that is not necessarily needed.  When money is "wasted" by educating individuals on things that are not needed for their future it is possible to look at the situation and realize that the monies could have been of more use in giving another individual more specific instruction.<ref>Anderson, J.R. et al. (1996, p. 5-11).</ref>

{{blockquote|text=In the world of academics and policy wonks, however, a growing number of alarmist studies have appeared over the last several years about how much more unprepared young Americans are for the demands of work today than was the case twenty years ago.  Workers entering the labor force in the United States are less educated than young people in many other countries...<ref>Wagner, T. (2010). The new world of work and the seven survival skills. In The global achievement gap: Why even our best schools don't teach the new survival skills our children need--and what we can do about it (pp. 1-42). New York: Basic Books, p. 12.</ref>}}

Our students are coming out of school unprepared and it seems that if they were in an educational setting where situated learning was implemented as much as possible, they would be better prepared for their futures. Based on Wagner's research we are less prepared than other countries as far as education goes, which is not necessarily something new, but it is definitely something that seems too far from changing.  When our students are put into situations where they learn by doing they most likely will be more successful than if they were just told how something needed to be done.