ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates the mechanisms at work in the transmission of skills, and sets out the lessons learned about the very concept of competence itself. Professional didactics show that the transmission of skills goes beyond the transmission of knowledge which entails a simple transfer of resources, because the transmission of skills actually acquires learning a new combination of resources. By basing our research on activity theory and professional didactics, we have tried to shed light on skill transmission while taking into account the full weight of work situations. Activity theory makes it possible to understand better the exchanges between several interrelated activity systems. The chapter examines the case study of a greenfield project of a factory in the aerospace industry that needs to deliver large quantities of parts, at rigorous quality standards, within short deadlines. The interviews we conducted, coupled with our video recordings, also confirm the idea that competence is a construct, a combination of heterogeneous resources.
