The potential role of ICT in facilitating learning for livelihoods among informal apprentices in the automotive trade in Ghana

Alla-Mensah, Joyceline and Addae-Kyeremeh, Eric (2024). The potential role of ICT in facilitating learning for livelihoods among informal apprentices in the automotive trade in Ghana. In: Powell, Lesley; Cooper, Adam; Brown, Trent and McGrath, Simon eds. Learning for Livelihoods in the Global South: Theoretical and Methodological Lenses on Skills and the Informal Sector. Routledge Research in International and Comparative Education. Routledge [In press], pp. 117–130.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032650944-7

Abstract

This chapter discusses the learning experiences of informal apprentices by drawing on interviews with eleven informal apprentices and two master craftsmen in the automotive trade in Ghana. It contributes to a small body of literature on learning in informal apprenticeship and the potential of digital technologies to improve learning (Jaarsma et al., 2011; Lancy, 2012; McLaughlin, 1979; Metelerkamp & Monk, 2021; Krichewsky‑Wegener & Brück, 2023). The findings of the study point out that beyond learning through everyday work activities, some informal apprentices’ access online resources, particularly YouTube videos, to acquire the knowledge needed to diagnose and repair faulty vehicles. While this may not be used by most informal apprentices, there is the potential for the knowledge acquisition activities of the few who consult online resources to benefit the community of practice through the collaborative nature of learning in apprenticeship. It is argued that while online learning could help to bridge gaps in the knowledge of informal apprentices, the barriers to their full engagement with online resources, such as low literacy, limit results.