Conceptualized as a professional learning context both the scholastic and the clinical practice contexts are place for ongoing fieldwork and for case studies carried out in health education at University colleges and at universities. Focus for the ethnographic studies is strategies for organizational and pedagogical development in the different learning contexts called the scholastic, the profession oriented and the academic learning context (Borgnakke 2010).
Using ethnographic approaches to explore the learning context concepts of scholastic and practice learning and analysis of formal and non-formal learning situations are placed in the center of research reflections.
Concerning the ethnographic principle “following the field of practice” the relation between field, context and the on going learning process is strengthened though still related to the classic ethnographic approach (Marcus 1995; Hammersley 2006, Borgnakke 2013, 2015). In research terms ‘following the field’ therefor means following the intervention and the continuum of professional learning through scholastic and professional practical settings tracing the flows of learning activities and situations.
On this background the paper will map the characteristic learning activities, reflect their learning value and clarify the relation to theoretical concepts of learning in professional practices (Argyris, Schøn, Benner, Dreyfus, Lave, Wenger).
Close to the former empirical findings and current casestudies in higher education (Borgnakke 2004, 2005, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015) the paper will exemplify the chief themes in the profession-oriented context and discourse on Interprofessionalality (The IP-discourse) as IP Learning Pathway and Interprofessional Health Team Development in the Health Sciences Education. Covering the spectra of professional learning situations the analyses will focus on: student focused resources, learning in classroom, simultations, roleplay, The Standardized Patient to the students’ participative integration in health care teams and in the clinical practice.
