Using blended learning to engage students: embedding employability awareness and career development skills learning in the curriculum

Career Development Services

Anita NorcottEmployability Learning Specialistanorcott@cardiffmet.ac.uk

Overview

• Your Career e-Module: the generic learning resource

• Blended learning modules: 4 case studies

• Impact and evaluation: evidence of student engagement

Your Career e-Module content – 13 e-lessons:

• Planning your career• Job Search• Work Experience• Skills and self- assessment• CVs and covering letters• Application forms• Interview skills• Assessment centres• Self-employment

PDP and Employability

Work Experience

Education

Personal Life

Career Development Skills

Personal Awareness

Reflection

Development

© Cardiff Metropolitan University Career Development Services

Cardiff Met’s definition of employability :

“an individual’s capability and confidence to enter and manage a career path* which fulfils both their potential and their aspirations, whilst enabling them to contribute fully and effectively to the economy and society.”

*“Career path” in this context is a lifelong and uniquely individual process which could include paid and voluntary work, self-employment, periods of learning, self-reflection and other self-development opportunities.

Case study 1: Cardiff School of SportPDP & Employability Modules

CSS blended learning model

• Collaborative module development team• Briefings on e-lessons and activities at

beginning of each term• Generic e-lessons customised for Sport sector• Individual and group meetings with personal

tutors• Access to Career Advisers

Module aims – year one

• Develop students’ awareness of employability and understanding of the personal, social, academic, reflective and professional skills required at HE level 4 (5)

• Devise an accurate evidence base for recording employability development

Year One - Term 1 e-lessons & tasksE-lessons:• 01: Information skills• 02: Academic style – academic English• 03: Referencing – Harvard system• 04: Learning styles questionnaires• 05: Reflective and summary writing

Activities/tasks:• Attend briefing and tutorials• 3 day outdoor residential early first term• Complete Brecon self-assessment and action plan• Undertake the academic skills e-test• Load outputs into e-portfolios

Year One - Term 2 e-lessons & tasksE-lessons:• 06: Your career interests and motivations• 07: Your career personality factors• 08: Your transferable skills• 09: Your career-specific skills• 10: Year two options

Activities/tasks:• Attend briefing and tutorials• Load reflective summary sheets into e-portfolios• Begin to build employability logs• Continue reflective log• Year two options choices

Learning outcomes of term 2 e-lessons :

• Increase your understanding of yourself and which career paths might suit you.

• Identify the skills and competencies employers generally regard as essential, and those which are necessary for your preferred career path(s).

• Evaluate which options choices for Year 2 will be most appropriate to your personal and career development.

Employability Logs

Transferable skills*: Career-specific (examples)

Communication Customer service

Team working Business sector awareness

Planning and organising Coaching

Interpersonal

Self-management

I.T.

Problem-solving

Numeracy

Other?

*descriptors in Logs*Source: CBI and Universities UK (2009) Future Fit: Preparing Graduates for the world of work

Learning outcomes: year two

• Further develop and reflect on action plans for personal and professional development

• Demonstrate an understanding of employer requirements of communication/presentation skills

• Evaluate and reflect on the benefits of work experience

• Demonstrate improvement in self-management and independent learning strategies to address study at HE level 5

Presentation (80%) - 10 mins maximum 6 slides:

1: Identification of possible professional career/pathway

2: Where I am know – skills, qualifications, knowledge and (work)experience

3: Further evidence to demonstrate strengths / skills etc

4: What development do I need to plan?

5: How will I go about this?

6: Summary development plan

Year two assessment

Activities for year two

• E-lessons and outputs:1. Learning reflection questionnaire2. Work experience3. CV writing

4. Researching your career path 5. Preparing for your presentation 6. Year three options

• Up-date employability and reflective logs• 3-4 personal tutor meetings in groups• Deliver and reflect on presentations

Case study two: departmental approach

• Year two Professional Employability module• One term – 10 credits• Humanities and Educational Studies programmes• Blended approach• x 4 e-lessons: Planning your career, skills &

self assessment, CVs and interview skills

Poster presentation assessment

Case study 3: programme approach

• Year two Professional Employability module• Environmental Health programme• Assessed CVs and application forms for ‘real’ roles and presentations• x 4 e-lessons: Planning your career, skills & self assessment, CVs and application forms

New Year New Start

• for recent graduates• 5 weekly structured learning units• Framework for Cardiff Met and external learning

resources• Mainly on-line with e-portfolios and discussion group• Blended element offered: workshops and Career

Adviser support• Certificated

Measuring impact – how?

• Achievement of module learning outcomes and assessment criteria

• Feedback from students and staff• Analysis of outputs from e-lessons• Feedback from Career Advisers• Feedback from Programme Directors• Usage stats – ‘hits’

2011-12 stats

• 1240 students engaged with embedded e-lessons (+ 34% on previous year - 925)

• Approx 34 hours of embedded e-learning delivered (+112% on previous year - 16 hours)

• 19,830 ‘hits’ on embedded e-lessons• 32,330 ‘ hits’ on the Your Career generic e-lessons

Summary - benefits of a blended approach for engaging students

• Enables learners to self-manage their learning at times/places of their choosing

• Supports development of range of employability skills and awareness

• Delivers more learning support than traditional workshop programme

• Improved module choices - learners research career path market requirements early

• Fits with Cardiff Met’s Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy