Strategies to Increase the Velocity and Volume of Learners’ Skills

Skills-based learning?has developed beyond a conversation and has become the focus of many learning institutions from higher education to community colleges, career-specific educators, internal company training, and more. Why?

Because increasing the volume of learners’ skills and the velocity with which they acquire them results in better learner outcomes. In fact, alumni who developed key skills during college earned?just over $8,500 more in their first year after graduation?than peers who reported low levels of skill development throughout college.

As the debate rages about the value of a four-year degree (as we have previously discussed?here), surveys show that 58% of students choose higher education to achieve better work outcomes. While sometimes a degree is the key to moving ahead in employment, a 2018 survey found that 61%?of all full-time jobs seeking entry-level employees?require at least three years of experience.

As Kwame Yangame, CEO of Qwasar Silicon Valley, noted, “if you scan the job requirements for any active tech job, the words “skills,” “experience,” and “proven ability” are constantly repeated across postings.” But if you have to have experience and skills to get a job, how do you get the skills and experience?

Well, sometimes the ability to prove skills through an assessment can serve as a replacement for degrees or even experience. In fact,?36 percent of hiring managers said a job candidate who scores high on an assessment?but doesn't meet the minimum years of experience is very likely to make it onto the list of final candidates.

These studies make it quickly apparent: skills are the currency employers are looking for, and if learners are going to trade time and money for a degree or certification, skills-based programs will win out every time.

So how do we increase this velocity and volume of learners’ skills within current frameworks?

Remove the Accessibility Barrier

When we talk about accessibility, the conversation often begins with students who are disadvantaged in various ways, from discrimination to educators providing accommodations for those with various disabilities.?

However, all students often encounter issues when attempting to access the classes they need when they need them. For example, a student who needed a single course before being eligible to receive a software certification at the University of Idaho had to wait nearly nine months before the class was offered again.?

“It was frustrating,” Alan said. “I needed the certification to get a job, needed the class to get the certification, and there were no alternatives, I simply had to wait.” In the meantime, he continued to work at an entry-level job at a local restaurant.?

Students encounter the same friction when they want to transfer from one school to another, as requirements can be different, and courses already completed might not “count” at a different institution. In short,?often learners don’t have a clear path to graduation. Instead, it is filled with obstacles out of the learner’s control.

The solution? Creating better pathways. This can be done in a number of ways - including offering?alternative credentials or micro-credentials. Even if his graduation was delayed, Alan could have moved on to better employment sooner through a different credentialing system that would have enabled him to showcase his skills rather than waiting for a course to be offered by the learning institution he attended.

Inventing a Job Skills Centric Machine

Another common issue in learning institutions is the creation and maintenance of data silos which result in learning silos. In many cases, a similar course to the one needed by the learner which teaches the same skills may be available in another department, but might not “count” towards another department degree.

This involves a change in infrastructure, which is often painfully slow or doesn’t happen at all. Quite simply, they get used to their daily obstacles and simply work with them without even wondering if there is a solution.?

But there are those who are looking at solutions. In the US, in Texas, Michael Bettersworth, vice chancellor and chief innovation officer at Texas State Technical College, had created something called?SkillsEngine.

What does this tool do? Well, it takes a job or course description, one that often includes tech language and jargon that may make it confusing, and using an AI engine, translates it into the language of skills.?

In the case of course descriptions, an institution can, using Credentialate, find “duplicate” courses across departments and work to remove the data silo barrier. Prioritising skills not only benefits the learner, but makes the educational institution more efficient, and helps employers understand the?skills learners bring to the workplace.?

This is a great step in the right direction, but there is even more that can be done.

Increase relevance

As we stated in the introduction to this article, the majority of learners choose higher education to achieve better work outcomes. However, there is often a disconnect between what learners?expect to get from their education and what they actually receive. This results in a poor perception of the value of a four-year degree. In fact, regardless of the quality of instruction offered,?relevance to their work and daily lives matters more to learners than it ever has before.?

Closing this gap between expectations and actual learner outcomes is key to higher education. A shift to competency-based education (CBE)?enables learners to tap into opportunity?with increased velocity, and a greater volume and variety of skills. This involves changing the idea of the personal experience record to put an individual’s skills front and centre regardless of where and how they learned them.???

This changes the conversation from an educator and employer-centric conversation to a learner-centric one, as learners are the true end “consumers” of education. It helps them focus on the skills gaps they need to fill and competencies where they still need to earn a credential to move their career forward and increase their learning potential.

The Future of Educators A New Standard Increase Work-Based Learning Initiatives

Yet another strategy involves work-based learning (WBL) initiatives. This helps learners not only graduate from programs more quickly and with a greater volume of skills but to develop a foundation for lifelong learning and the ability to adapt in the workforce, both perhaps the most valuable skills in the labour market of today and the future.?

What’s fascinating about these outcomes is that while certain countries like Australia, Germany, and others have emphasised apprenticeships and training for years, WBL programs have increased in popularity in places like France, Finland, and other parts of Europe as their popularity and success have been proven in other areas.?

The data shows that those with work experience outside of curriculum and those who go through apprenticeships have similar employment rates near 90% one year after graduation. They also?tend to earn more and are more likely to be in jobs in their field, and therefore unlikely to be looking for other work.In short, WBL benefits educators through better learner outcomes, learners through enabling them to find more relevant and meaningful work and employers who hire employees who are not only more skilled but better suited for longer term employment.?

But how do we bring all these things together? What does the future of higher education include?

The Future of Higher Education

To change the?perception of the value of four-year degrees?and to attract younger learners, the?future of higher education must include more relevant, skills-based training. That means the addition of alternative and micro-credentials to existing curriculums.

For example, Coursera recently opened?Career Academy, a program they are selling to colleges so they can offer it to their students. It includes certification courses from tech companies like IBM, Meta, and Google to complement degrees rather than replace them.?

In other words, as Jeff Maggioncalda, Coursera’s CEO explained, “When [a learner] graduate[s] they have a college degree, and they have a professional certificate from Google,” Maggioncalda said. “That graduate is going to do better than one who just has a college degree, or someone who never went to college and just got a professional certificate.”?

For this to work long-term, credentials will have to align with the goals, language, mission, and values of traditional education. They will face scepticism from some, and learning institutions will need leaders who recognise the added value of micro-credentials and who advocate for their adoption.?

There is a certain amount of entrepreneurial risk involved with any such adoption, but this can be mitigated by businesses that partner with educators in the development, implementation, and acceptance of these credentials. This means that?academia and employers must work together?in ways rarely seen in today’s environment.?

And all of this must result in a better faculty and learner environment, one that does not create more work for already stretched educators, but instead makes their job more efficient and more meaningful to the learners they work with. This will not only result in better use of digital technology, but a new level of professionalism and job-preparedness across the board.

Read the full blog post at: https://www.edalex.com/blog/strategies-to-increase-the-velocity-and-volume-of-learners-skills

About the Author

Kristine Chompff, Marketing Manager at Edalex

Kristine has worked in competitive, dynamic and high-growth environments for over 20 years, primarily in professional development and higher education. She has an in-depth understanding of education technology, having spent much of her time working with leading international organisations in product development and in bringing cutting edge platforms to market. She is an avid lifelong learner and believes in the power of technology to improve learners' personal and professional lives.

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