1 WORKPLACE TEACHING AND THE CONCEPT OF CONTEXTUALIZING

The aim of the paper is to explore some of the central aspects connected to the concept of contextualising, in relation to workplace teaching. In the behavioral sciences the i the concept of “contextualising ” is usually based on two main aspects: A horizon of meaning and intention, plus a specific way of organizing and handling objects, tools and actions. Contexts of teaching and education are here seen as primarily established through a collective agreement among the included persons on the intention of supporting learning processes. The task to contextualise teaching in a workplace setting is often a complex one because the practical aims and goals of the work are competing with the intention of creating and withholding the best possible support to learning. Drawing on two empirical studies, organizational development projects in Danish high schools (“gymnasiale helskoleforsøg”) and the clinical supervision of nurse students in a hospital setting, the paper discusses different theoretical frames of understanding context (Bourdieu, Lave & Wenger, Bateson, Bernstein, Argyris & Schön and Goffman) in relation to intentional workplace learning. As a starting point in exploring how the concept of ‘contextualising ’ in relation to teaching an