3.4 Defined term
conversational learning
A hybrid method in which a system improves through interactive dialogue with users or other agents, taking in new knowledge during the conversation rather than only through a separate training cycle.
What this settles
The term marks a method that changes while it is being used. That has consequences for versioning, for the evidence behind a claim and for what a user should expect to be stable.
Who it binds
No one. It is a definition. It becomes operative when a system uses the method and a description claims it.
What to do in your practice
If a system learns during a conversation, record what is retained, for how long and under whose control. Test whether the improvement persists across sessions and whether a user can correct it.
Evidence an auditor or regulator asks for
| A retention note stating what the system keeps from a dialogue and for how long. | Makes the learning boundary visible. |
|---|---|
| A persistence test across two sessions. | Shows whether the claimed learning is real. |
| A user correction path and its observed effect. | Proves the interaction can change the system safely. |
When this system learns from a conversation, what exactly does it keep, and can a user remove it?
Common gaps this page catches
- The system is described as learning in conversation but retains nothing between sessions.
- Retention is indefinite and undocumented.
- A user correction is absorbed with no record and no test of its effect.
What to prepare before publication
Write the retention note first. It answers the question a reviewer, a privacy officer and a user will all ask in different words.
How to test it here
Take one live system rather than a template, find the field or sentence where conversational learning is used, and put this page beside it. Record the answer, the artefact and the date. A glossary entry on its own is an intention; a dated record beside a live artefact is evidence.
What this page does not claim
The page does not reproduce the draft, does not know the descriptor wording that the public preview withholds, and does not certify the system or the organisation. It states the unit at the claim level "defined term" and stops where the public record stops.
Common questions
- What does conversational learning mean in ISO/IEC DIS 42102?
- A hybrid method in which a system improves through interactive dialogue with users or other agents, taking in new knowledge during the conversation rather than only through a separate training cycle.
- What evidence should we keep for 3.4?
- A retention note stating what the system keeps from a dialogue and for how long. A persistence test across two sessions.
- Is conversational learning a requirement?
- No. The draft is a descriptive framework. It sets no management system requirement and no conformity test. It becomes binding only when a contract, a regulator or a management system adopts it.
Related units
Last updated: · Markdown version · Check your system