An Exploration of How Competency-Based Education Can Support Self-Directed Learners and Learning

At a time when workplace skills are rapidly evolving, continuous learning is increasingly important, and the responsibility for learning has shifted from others (parents, schools, teachers, employers) to individuals. Self-directed learning (SDL) can help learner-earners thrive in a skills-based economy. Competency-based education (CBE) is well suited to appeal to self-directed learners and to scaffold learner self-direction; however, existing research on the relationship between SDL and CBE programs is limited. This chapter uses case studies of the experiences of two self-directed learners in a CBE program to explore the role of self-direction in their learning journeys. The key takeaways are that (1) self-direction can have a strong impact on learner success and (2) CBE programs are uniquely positioned to support self-directed learners. The chapter concludes with a discussion of considerations for future research.

Workplace Skills and Teacher Competency from Culinary Arts Students’ Perspectives

Workplace skills are essential skills needed by graduates today to fulfill the demands of employers. Employers in the hospitality industry are looking for well-prepared Culinary Arts graduates that possess adequate training and are equipped with workplace skills to fill up positions in the job market. Apart from skills, teacher competency impacts the acquisition of knowledge and workplace skills among Culinary Arts students and contributes to the issue of unemployment. This study aims to differentiate workplace skills and teacher competency based on gender, socio-economic status, as well as academic and vocational achievements of Culinary Arts students. Furthermore, the relationship between workplace skills and teacher competency is assessed. This correlational study was conducted at Malaysian vocational colleges offering 2-year Culinary Arts programs involving 198 final year students. A 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire was used for data collection. The findings demonstrated that the students’ workplace skills and perception of teacher competency were at a moderate level. No significant differences were noted based on gender, socioeconomic status, as well as academic and vocational achievements. Teacher competency and workplace skills were correlated moderately and positively. This study provides a basis and serves as a reference to the Technical and Vocational Education and Training practitioners to design a curriculum for vocational college students in improving the acquisition of students’ workplace skills. Teachers are recommended to play an active role in efficiently integrating workplace skills in the learning process to enhance their competencies.

PROJECT-BASED LEARNING EQUIPS UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS WITH WORKPLACE SKILLS

The new emerging trend for recent employment is the employers expect the university graduates to have more than academic excellence to be employed. They prefer graduates who possess soft skills such as communication skills, creativity, teamwork, management, and problem-solving. As a result, many educators are forced to change and find a new teaching and learning strategy to be incorporated in the classroom that would facilitate the students to develop both academic as well as interpersonal skills which are commonly known as soft skills. The holistic approach of Project-Based Learning (PBL) which integrates learning through working collaboratively in a project and bringing in the authentic experiences of the real world beyond the classroom walls has proven that PBL is designed to do both. The present study aimed to investigate how PBL can prepare students with related workplace skills and their perception of PBL in developing their soft skills. A set of a questionnaire is designed and administered to 77 second-year students, who are taking English for Occupational Purposes subject at Universiti Malaysia Sabah Labuan International Campus. The result of the study showed that PBL has able to equip the students with work-related skills, and by completing the projects, they were able to improve their soft skills, mainly in communication and self-confidence. Hence, the findings of the study proved that PBL is a relevant approach in a classroom to help in developing students' soft skills.

Preparing Undergraduate Learners with Skills Required by a Transformative Work Environment

Higher Education systems need to undergo significant transformation to produce graduates who are highly skilled and prepared for their roles in the impending workforce. Despite an improvement in university throughput rates, unemployment remains predominantly high, which could be attributed to the misalignment between mandatory workplace skills and those possessed by graduates. The focus of the study was on the exploration of skills acquired from the new General Education modules introduced into the curriculum of undergraduate programmes. Hence, the study discovered learners’ perspectives on the relevance of the skills acquired from these modules in the undergraduate programme to ensure survival in the workforce. The methodology adopted in the study was a quantitative survey research design, using the questionnaire as the data collection tool from a census of the first-year learners registered in the undergraduate programme. The results provided significant evidence to support the view that the skills acquired from the General Education modules in the undergraduate programme are indispensable in industry and enhanced critical thinking of the learners.

College Students’ Value Judgments of Workplace Skills

We surveyed college students ( N = 105) asking them to rate the importance of workplace skills as if they were responding as themselves, as their parents, and as future employers. We also asked participants to generate a list of skills they considered most important to develop in college, and to evaluate workplace behaviors for the likelihood of any of these resulting in termination of employment for new hires. Results revealed that college students perceived that the value they place on workplace skills matched more closely their parents’ views than those of future employers. College students’ list of skills considered important to develop in college was more focused on college success than career success. College students accurately identified five out of six behaviors most likely to lead to termination of employment for new staff ( Gardner, 2007 ), but failed to identify inappropriate use of technology. These findings provide insight for faculty members who want students to succeed both at college and in their careers.

IN-HOUSE OR OUTSOURCING SKILLS: HOW BEST TO MANAGE FOR INNOVATION?

Innovation is essential for driving business survival, development, and growth. Today, managers within firms continuously search for new ways to gain competitive advantage. In many cases, this comes from the effective use of intangible assets such as workplace skills and abilities. Despite this, little is known about what types of skills are required for innovation, whether these vary by innovation-type, or whether it matters if these skills are outsourced. This paper addresses these issues using data collected on eight skill types as part of the 2008–2010 Irish Community Innovation Survey. We find that there is substantial heterogeneity in the effectiveness of skills at generating different kinds of innovation. In addition, for some types of innovation, it is best to develop the skills in-house (e.g., Engineering skills for product innovation) while for others it is best to outsource the skills (e.g., Multimedia skills for process and organisational innovation).

Reconsidering College Student Employability: A Cultural Analysis of Educator and Employer Conceptions of Workplace Skills

In this research article, Ross J. Benbow and Matthew T. Hora explore the employability narrative, a view that focuses on whether colleges and universities provide students with the skills they need to be productively employed after graduation. Using sociocultural theory to problematize this narrative and qualitative methods to fore-ground the experiences of postsecondary educators and employers, the authors investigate conceptions of essential workplace skills in biotechnology and manufacturing fields. Their results show that though work ethic, technical knowledge, and technical ability represent core competencies valued across these communities, considerable variation exists in how members of different disciplinary and occupational subgroups value and conceptualize important skills. They found that respondents' conceptions of skills were also strongly tied to geography and organizational culture, among other contextual factors. With these results in mind, the authors conclude that skills are best viewed as multifaceted and situated assemblages of knowledge, skill, and disposition—or cultural models—and urge the adoption of more nuanced views among educators, employers, and policy makers that take into account the cultural and contextual forces that shape student success in the workplace.