Colin Van Ostern, Vice President of Workforce Solutions Southern …€¦ · Competency-based education improves on traditional educational model From… To: Time fixed, learning

© 2016 Southern New Hampshire University. All rights reserved.

Learning at Work: New Pathways in Higher Education Colin Van Ostern, Vice President of Workforce Solutions Southern New Hampshire University June 27, 2017


HOW DO WE LEARN?

2


Let’s begin with an experiment

Think of a time you learned how to do something new (not necessarily in a school setting).

Then take a few moments to consider:

How did you learn it?

• I learned from on instructor

• I learned on my own

How long did it take you to learn it?

• I learned it instantly

• It took multiple attempts

How did you know you had learned it?

• I took a test

• I could do it

3


Principle 1: Learning can occur in many ways


Principle 2: Time is not a good proxy for learning


Principle 3: Performance is a good indicator of learning


In other words…

Learning can be acquired in many ways and in many settings

Time to mastery is less important than demonstration of mastery

Developing competency can require multiple attempts

What someone can do with what s/he knows is usually more informative than how s/he

learned it

Assessing competency directly through performance can be more informative than inferring it

from tests of content knowledge

Establishing a clear goal makes it easier to know if it’s been reached

Competency-based education (CBE) is based on these ideas


Competency-based education

improves on traditional educational model

From… To:

Time fixed, learning undefined Time variable, learning defined

Faculty centered Student centered

Single faculty expert Robust academic support

Transcript is a black box Proof of learning

“Big chunk” courses Granular competencies

Learners come to the institution Learning comes to the student

• Focuses on the demonstration of articulated skills, knowledge and abilities • Is not based on credit hours or seat time


HOW DOES THIS PLAY OUT IN THE WORLD OF WORK?

9


Is this likely?

Let’s hire this

candidate … she

has a B+ in

Introduction to

Sociology!


Lack of information about what graduates can do

Black Box (even though it’s orange)

=

© 2016 Southern New Hampshire University. All rights reserved. 12

Higher levels of education are increasingly a requirement

-Georgetown Center for Education and the Workforce

Of all jobs in the US

will require education

and training beyond

high school by 2020

65%

Of jobs created during

the economic recovery

have gone to workers

with a college degree

95%


The Skills Gap

Business executives

surveyed reported a skills

shortage within the

companies National Network of Business

and Industry Associations, 2015

95%

Even during the height of the recession with 15 million

unemployed…2.1 million positions went unfilled because

employers couldn’t find applicants with the skills to fill them.

“ ” Monica Herk, “Fixing our Broken Colleges; Competency-Based Education and

Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act”, Committee for Economic Development

(www.ced.org), May 14, 2015

Do college graduates have the

necessary skills and competencies to

succeed in the workplace?

Gallup, 2015

96% COLLEGE

PROVOST

S AGREE

11% BUSINESS

LEADERS

AGREE

http://www.ced.org


How does CBE help bridge those gaps?

Establishes a common language between higher education and industry: employers already “speak competency”

Goals for learning are explicit and can be understood by all stakeholders (including students)

Provides a clear evidence base for assessment and evaluation

Facilitates linking to existing industry standards


PARTNERING WITH EMPLOYERS TO SERVE WORKING ADULTS

15


About Us

We were founded to use the power of learning to unlock

success in the workforce and transform people’s lives

Started with College for America: partnering with employers to bring working

adults a workplace-applicable higher education.

Using internal teams dedicated to academic development, workforce strategy, and learning insight, we connect learning

outcomes with workforce needs.

Support & oversight from: 100+ employer partners include:


Our curriculum is composed

of real-world projects that

require those skills to

be completed.

Everything is online.

Focus on what a degree

represents—skills and

competencies

(not credit hours).

Each degree starts with a

list of competencies. These

are informed by: labor

market research, industry

experts, and academic

experts.

Completing those projects

is our version of courses

and credits. Mastery is

required to progress.

AA and BA degrees from

Southern New Hampshire

University. Accredited,

transferrable and valuable.

Students receive in-depth

feedback on every project

they submit (as many times

as it takes).

Every student has a

personal learning coach

who supports them through

the entire program.


5,000 Students

served last year

1000+ Degrees

awarded

100+ Partners


What do we mean by a “competency”?

• A claim about what learners can do with knowledge and skills (“can do” statements)

• Agnostic as to how student acquired them, or how long it took

• Measureable and observable

• Reflects skills needed by employers

Examples: BA Level

• Can develop a marketing plan for a specific product or service

• Can evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of

different management styles

• Can support or refute an argument using quantitative evidence

Examples: AA Level

• Can negotiate with others to resolve conflicts and settle disputes

• Can speak effectively in order to persuade or

motivate

• Can convey information by creating charts and graphs


Projects

Students demonstrate mastery of

competencies by completing

Projects: authentic, engaging activities

that enable them to learn by doing

Examples:

Curating a virtual art exhibit

Create a marketing plan

Developing a budget for

international travel


Assessments

Reviewers—trained educators with

advanced degrees and subject-matter

expertise—evaluate projects.

Detailed feedback is returned to students

within 48 hours of a project being submitted.

Instead of traditional grade points, every

project is evaluated as “Mastered” or “Not

yet.”

Students can revise and resubmit projects

until they demonstrate mastery—there is no

failure.

Every competency must be mastered to

achieve degree.


Unbundling the faculty role

Project Reviewer

Curriculum and Assessment Development

Employer STUDENT Advisor


Serving populations underserved in traditional higher education

College for America Students

88% age over 24

77% Women

30% Black

15% Hispanic

U.S. College Students

56% Women

15% Black

17% Hispanic

34% age

over 24

70% First generation in their family to attend college

98% Employed in at least one job


Our offerings

120 advanced

competencies

Bachelor of Arts (BA) degrees (120 credits)

Communications (concentrations in Healthcare or Business)

Healthcare Management (concentrations in Communications

or Global Perspectives)

Management (concentrations in Insurance, Services Logistics/Operations,

Public Administration)

120 core competencies Associate of Arts (AA) degrees (60 credits)

General Studies, Business

Healthcare Management

60 core competencies Certificate (30 credits)

Healthcare Management Fundamentals


Case Study: Anthem-SNHU partnership

Their goals:

Improved employee satisfaction

Increased skills to build talent pipeline

Retain current employees


A workforce partner, not a benefits vendor

Co-branded & closely coordinated internal and external campaigns raise awareness for prospective students and generate great PR for the company: “benefits beyond salary”

Aligned with tuition reimbursement policies & processes


We work together to measure employee development, engagement, retention, and the impact

of workforce development.

Anthem Results in Year 1:

1,600 Enrolled Students 100+ Graduates

30% of Graduates Promoted (2x non-students) “very significant” increase in employee perception of

L&D opportunities as a result

Ongoing evaluation, and strong results


Scaling the operation

• Building on success of competency-based degree pathways and employer partnerships

• Adding full spectrum of SNHU learning solutions (online, on campus)

• Using competencies as common currency & staying focused on learning outcomes.

becoming

Physical

Campus

Micro-

credentials

200+ online

degree

programs

Project

Based

programs

Competency

-mapping &

career

pathways

Workforce

Partnerships Project-based,

competency-based

degrees


USING LABOR MARKET INFORMATION TO SHAPE PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

29


Our learning solutions are designed to build specific competencies to fill workforce gaps

Literature Review

Healthcare industry trends: technology, consumer expectations & regulatory changes (ACA).

Secondary Analysis

Occupational projections & gap analysis sees rise in jobs like medical office specialist & patient navigator.

Primary Analysis

Interviews, surveys, & focus groups with industry groups, practitioners & subject matter experts to identify key competencies.

Certificate in Healthcare Management Fundamentals

Learning projects help employees develop 60 competencies needed for key roles.

Graduates receive 30 college credits (1/2 of associate’s degree).

Example: worked with a large health care provider (65,000 employees) to identify key competency gaps facing frontline workers

due to nationwide industry changes, and fill them with a new Certificate in Healthcare Management Fundamentals


Example: Retail bank career path typically requires growth in skills & education level

Teller Customer Service

Representative

Responsible for meeting or exceeding sales goals

Assess customer information and suggest product solutions

Provides sound advice to ensure customer’s financial needs are met

Maintains strong product and sales knowledge

Leads, coaches and models quality customer interaction

Establish and solidify customer relationships

Resolves customer problems

Provides excellent customer service with support



Provides exceptional customer service with support


Responsible for meeting or exceeding sales goals

Assess customer information and suggest product solutions

Provides sound advice to ensure customer’s financial needs are met

Maintains strong product and sales knowledge

Leads, coaches and models quality customer interaction



Provides excellent customer service with support



Provides exceptional customer service with support

Sell Like a Professional

Connect with Customers

Analyze Customer Needs

Represent the Brand

Build Teamwork through Marketing

Competencies developed by these CfA learning modules*

* Each module = one college course. From two accredited degrees: AA in General Studies w/concentration in Customer Experience and BA in Management.

Teller Customer Service

Representative

Example: Retail bank career path typically requires growth in skills & education level


Workforce insights research as a service

Competency mapping

Career pathing

Informing new curriculum development to support worker advancement

Measuring impacts on students and business

Promising practice research

Thought leadership

33


OUR IMPACT


100

105

110

115

120

125

130

CriticalThinking

Reading Writing Mathematics Humanities Social Sciences NaturalSciences

SK

ILLS

SU

BS

CO

RE

ETS Proficiency Profile Scores (2015)

AA-SOPH CfA 60+ Comps

Our AA students

outperform students in

traditional 2-year

programs in 6 of 8

subject matter areas in

the ETS Proficiency

Profile test of core

skills.

CfA students’ total

score 439.5 is in the

67th percentile.

External validation of CBE approach

© 2016 Southern New Hampshire University. All rights reserved. Source: Internal CfA Survey, June 2016

• Tuition Assistance and Reimbursement College for America Students

Say their College for America

work helps build skills for their

current job

89% 89%

Would recommend College for

America to others

96%


Employers observe impact on student retention, engagement, and promotion

say CfA students are

more likely

to stay, with the

rest saying retention

rates will not be

eroded

48% 43%


less likely

to be absent, with the rest saying

there is no impact on

attendance


more likely

to move

laterally within

the company

33%


more likely

to be

promoted

43%

0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% Much more Somewhat more About the same Somewhat less Much less


Many employers already see an impact on the overall workforce

Believe their workforce is more

loyal

33%

Believe their workforce is more

satisfied

52%

… as a result of the CfA partnership

Much more

Somewhat more

About the same


5% 5%

24%

67%

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Pe

rcen

t o

f re

sp

on

din

g p

art

ne

rs

On a scale of 0-10,

how likely are you to recommend continuing to

offer College for America to employees?

0 - Not at all likely

10 - Extremely likely

Employers show very high satisfaction rates

Net Promoter Score

(N=21)

90.5


“As an employer, I know that when an employee finishes a

College for America degree, he or she will be able to

demonstrate specific competencies that are applicable to

the job. In terms of ROI, CfA is stronger than general

college courses, so becoming a partner was a no-brainer.”

President, Anthem, Inc.

“From my standpoint, people on the program gain a better skill of

analyzing data and can apply it to business. A definite connection.

That is so rare with education! Our employees learn something and

can

then immediately use it. It's positive for the business and the student.”

Executive Vice President, Human Resources, McDonald’s Corp


Questions and Discussion

Gryffindor or

Ravenclaw?

What skills do

businesses

need most in

new hires?

How can mature

schools pilot

innovation like SNHU

did with College for

America?


• Thank you!

Colin Van Ostern

SNHU Workforce Partnerships

Contact me at:

[email protected]

Learn more about College for America at:

collegeforamerica.org

Documents

Colin Van Ostern, Vice President of Workforce Solutions Southern …€¦ · Competency-based education improves on traditional educational model From… To: Time fixed, learning