INSPIRED BY THE UNEXPECTED – SERENDIPITOUS LEARNING
INSPIRED BY THE UNEXPECTED – SERENDIPITOUS LEARNING

Summary/Abstract: Serendipitous learning might be viewed as a subset of the informal learning. According to Dr. Allen Tough, futurist, scientist, professor at the University of Toronto, about 80% of learning is informal rather than professionally planned. Formal learning is experienced in an authority-based, course-oriented school, but nowadays, with the incredibly amounts of information that are available through the Web, a special kind of learning makes its presence felt, assuming eminence’s learning that is discovery based. Serendipitous learning precipitates exploratory or informal learning which is less formal than objectives-driven approaches, but is still influenced by personal experience, goals and interests. Serendipity is the effect of discovering something really interesting, whilst looking for something else, in other words a completely unintended but fortunate discovery. But serendipitous learning is associated with the idea that “we are more likely to be receptive to serendipitous discovery if our minds have undergone some prior training or preparation. Preparation, training and knowledge do not guarantee serendipitous discovery, but they do increase the probability of discovery. This skill is sometimes referred to as intuitive sagacity, in which seemingly disparate pieces of information undergo a process of mental incubation and are brought together by an external catalyst such as a research query [1]”. This article aims to investigate and reflect on the exploratory hunger of the online learning fostered by the greatest serendipity engine in the history of culture – the Web - pointing out some powerful implications of this view.

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