Ce n'est pas du folklore

This is a study of informal learning content and processes in the context of community governance. Participants were volunteer deputies in the Assemblee Communautaire Fransaskoise (ACF), a francophone community-based governance organization in Saskatchewan, Canada. In the ACF, Fransaskois community members are elected to serve as “deputies”, representatives who make decisions regarding initiatives and allocation of funds. During the course of this study, I conducted interviews with eight deputies using semi-structured interviews. The resulting data were analyzed using thematic analysis. In addition to the content and processes of informal learning, I sought to understand how deputies saw their learning applied to the benefit of the Fransaskois (French-speakers from Saskatchewan) community in the context of their role in the ACF. Participation in the ACF resulted in informal learning on the job or ‘sur le tas’. Deputies learned to define their multiple roles and negotiate the system. In this way, they were able to become stronger decision-makers and increase the Fransaskois community’s political capital.