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From university to working life: Graduates’ workplace skills in practice

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... This resonates well with the general assertion that the quality of decisions by human-AI systems depends crucially on the human expertise within such systems (Ninaus & Sailer, 2022). However, both the development and preservation of expertise require practicing domain-specific problem-solving capabilities (Elvira et al., 2017;Tynjälä, 2008;Tynjälä et al., 2006). ...
... Learning by purposive doing and by engaging in discovery via the natural processes of trial and error would further provide ample opportunity to reflect on both, experiential and conceptual knowledge to further improve drawing capabilities and thus, understanding geometry. Papert's pedagogical approach (1980), hence, naturally nurtured all three learning processes involved in developing expertise (Elvira et al., 2017;Tynjälä, 2008;Tynjälä et al., 2006). Not only became children able to produce images and experiences of meaning for themselves, but they did so just inasmuch as they improved in their geometrical understanding, programing capabilities, and computational thinking. ...
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This perspective piece explores the transformative potential and associated challenges of large language models (LLMs) in education and how those challenges might be addressed utilizing playful and game-based learning. While providing many opportunities, the stochastic elements incorporated in how present LLMs process text, requires domain expertise for a critical evaluation and responsible use of the generated output. Yet, due to their low opportunity cost, LLMs in education may pose some risk of over-reliance, potentially and unintendedly limiting the development of such expertise. Education is thus faced with the challenge of preserving reliable expertise development while not losing out on emergent opportunities. To address this challenge, we first propose a playful approach focusing on skill practice and human judgment. Drawing from game-based learning research, we then go beyond this playful account by reflecting on the potential of well-designed games to foster a willingness to practice, and thus nurturing domain-specific expertise. We finally give some perspective on how a new pedagogy of learning with AI might utilize LLMs for learning by generating games and gamifying learning materials, leveraging the full potential of human-AI interaction in education.
... Moreover, a study by Tynjälä et al. (2016) discusses the concept of constructive alignment, which emphasizes the alignment between teaching, assessment, and learning outcomes. The authors argue that continuous assessment and revision are essential for ensuring that the teaching and assessment methods are aligned with the intended learning outcomes. ...
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The objective of this research was to explore the alignment between the institutional vision, program objectives, and student learning outcomes in graduate education. A case study approach was employed to gather data from various stakeholders, including faculty, staff, students, and administration. The analysis revealed several key themes regarding the importance of strong alignment and the alignment status in graduate education. Stakeholders recognized the significance of alignment in providing a cohesive and meaningful educational experience. Collaboration and communication were identified as crucial factors for effective alignment, requiring a shared understanding and commitment among stakeholders. Ongoing assessment and evaluation were emphasized as necessary for monitoring alignment and making necessary adjustments. Staff support was acknowledged as playing a significant role in maintaining alignment. Based on the themes derived from the analysis, it can be concluded that alignment was high and crucial for the success of graduate education. Collaboration, communication, ongoing assessment, and staff support were key factors in achieving and maintaining effective alignment. Clear and specific connections between the institutional vision, program objectives, and learning outcomes should be established. Institutions should foster a culture of collaboration, provide ongoing assessment and evaluation, and support staff in alignment efforts. By implementing these recommendations, institutions could enhance the alignment between the institutional vision, program objectives, and student learning outcomes, resulting in a more cohesive and meaningful educational experience for graduate students.
... And, truthfully, it does. Indeed, the kinds of competencies outlined here are similar to those hiring managers and the career world seem to be looking for and requesting from higher education programs (Burning Glass Technologies, 2015;Tynjala et al., 2008;Association of American Colleges & Universities, 2018;Workforce Solutions Group, 2019). However, leader development has a much broader focus than the narrower careeroriented emphasis and is not mutually exclusive to liberal education. ...
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This article explores the implications of focusing on leadership education as a process of developing fundamental skills, like the way fundamental skills are developed in sports. Effective leaders need to develop high levels of proficiency in relation to increasing awareness, making decisions, managing attention, building relationships, and communicating. Like the fundamental skills associated with sports, these skills require sustained and intentional practice over time. This demands educational processes that place greater emphasis on affective and behavioral outcomes with an emphasis on deeper learning. Consequently, learners need to move through levels of proficiency from acquisition to compilation to automaticity. To support such progress, educators need to place more emphasis on teaching processes, providing more opportunities for scaffolded practice, and encouraging and supporting greater application beyond the classroom. This necessitates greater collaborative efforts in program design across the curriculum and with cocurricular partners that challenges the current emphasis on academic freedom.
... Students trained at HE institutions and entering the working life are confronted with increasingly complex tasks, problems, and ambiguous information (e.g., Barnett, 2012). Interdisciplinary understanding is particularly important for dealing with these challenges as solving them often calls for insights and modes of thinking from several disciplines (Tynjälä et al., 2006). In the context of HE, the development of students' interdisciplinary understanding "requires a learning process through which learners integrate insights and modes of thinking from a number of disciplines to advance their understanding" (Kidron & Kali, 2015, p. 1). ...
... And, truthfully, it does. Indeed, the kinds of competencies outlined here are similar to those hiring managers and the career world seem to be looking for and requesting from higher education programs (Burning Glass Technologies, 2015;Tynjala et al., 2008;Association of American Colleges & Universities, 2018;Workforce Solutions Group, 2019). However, leader development has a much broader focus than the narrower careeroriented emphasis and is not mutually exclusive to liberal education. ...
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This study focuses on the issue of names with diverse flavors and whether having these diverse names can affect an applicant being hired for managerial or non-managerial positions. The specific names utilized in this study are Caucasian versus African-American names. The respective names were put on copies of résumés and evaluated by post-secondary students who aspire to someday become hiring managers. One of the unexpected results from the study was that participants were more likely to hire applicants with African-American names for managerial positions and applicants with Caucasian names were deemed a better fit for non-managerial positions.
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Purpose This paper seeks to investigate the differences in the teachers’ professional development (TPD) by mentorship in workplace. The authors examined the role of mentorship in the PD of teachers and conducted a meta-analysis of pertinent empirical data. Design/methodology/approach Using data from over 2,900 individuals, 66 experiments and 12 countries, the authors presented a meta-analysis of the association between workplace mentorship and TPD. Findings The authors concluded that mentoring activities could boost the TPD to some extent. It contributes positively to the discipline of science and language, kindergarten, individual mentoring and curriculum research. In addition, the periodicity should not exceed 1 year. Research limitations/implications The results of the meta-analysis are restricted to short-term mentorship activities, and the sample size is modest. Building upon the findings from the literature review and meta-analysis, the authors delineated a research agenda for prospective investigations. This includes an imperative for further exploration into the nexus between mentoring and the PD of educators. Practical implications Based on the available literature and meta-analysis findings, the authors developed a framework for the “Experts in the classroom” TPD pattern. Originality/value This is the first meta-analysis evaluating the association between mentorship and TPD.
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The industry's modern workplace is rapidly evolving due to the energy transition. This transformation focuses on advanced technology, and solutions to energy- related challenges. Aligning the skills taught in higher education with the demands of the workplace is a critical challenge for academia and industry. In today's job market, being innovative is a crucial skill for university graduates to enhance their employability. One effective approach to achieving this is through work-based learning (WBL) opportunities integrated into engineering education. WBL is essential for integrating education and workplace skills. Oil and gas companies are working with higher education institutions to develop an effective WBL framework that enhances competences. The paper introduces successful WBL pedagogical models integrated into engineering education to meet industry requirements. These models have utilised technology to expand Merrill's instructional principles and developed blended learning corporate programmes to enhance learning outcomes, engineering skills, innovativeness, and employability skills. WBL enables students to gain practical experience in a real-world work environment, applying the knowledge and skills acquired in the classroom to actual projects and challenges. This hands- on experience not only enhances students' technical skills but also helps them cultivate essential 4C soft skills (collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and communication) and prepares them for future success. WBL is a valuable tool that enhances workplaces, increases productivity, and introduces innovative work methods. It equips engineering students for successful careers by enhancing their employability. Partner organisations have experienced enhanced technical and economic value by integrating WBL engineering education models into industry projects. This has led to innovative products, solutions to technical challenges, employee skill development, career advancement, and increased access to higher education opportunities.
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This study explores the complexity of generic graduate attributes, including soft skills, qualities, competencies, and capabilities in order to pinpoint how graduate attributes are cultivated in practice during the university experience. Few studies have examined the active and formative role of universities in cultivating generic graduate attributes. Even less have examined which skills and related subskills are developed according to graduates themselves, much less the extent to which those acquired specific skills mindsets and subskills are attributable to micro-level pedagogical practices, meso-level university experiences or macro-level, institution-level frameworks, vision, or mission statements. Additionally, there is a paucity of research on the attributes of graduates from transnational higher education institutions and specifically from Sino-foreign cooperative universities. This study thus aims to address these gaps and is also timely as it coincides with the twentieth anniversary of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, established in 2004, which is the first Sino-foreign higher education institution. This study adopts an overarching exploratory research methodology mobilizing both quantitative survey data collection and qualitative in-depth, semi-structured interviews. This research is innovative because it is a bottom-up retrospective mapping to localize exactly where, within the entire university experience, graduates attribute the acquisition of their skills/graduateness, including across both curricular and extracurricular experiences.
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The article emphasizes the importance of developing teachers' social competence in response to contemporary societal challenges. The key role of teachers' social competence in creating a favorable educational environment for learners is emphasized. It is the postgraduate education system itself that is capable of integrating, adapting, and modernizing teachers' conceptual/theoretical and experiential/practical knowledge, as well as fostering self-regulation of this knowledge and the development of reflective skills. The discourse focuses on the necessity of working and implementing an educational environment model that would promote the development of teachers' social competence, especially concerning their work with learners who have found themselves or may find themselves in difficult life circumstances. The article analyzes recent research and publications on the theory of knowledge and skills integration, as well as educational environment modeling. The significant impact of integration on personality development and the formation of integrity and harmony in learning and development is identified. It is crucial in working with learners who have found or may find themselves in difficult life circumstances. The concept of integrative learning is substantiated as a key instrument for creating an integrative model of educational environment for working with learners who have found or may find difficult life circumstances. The concept relies on the model of integrative learning developed by Finnish researchers Hannu L. T. Heikkinen and Päivi Tynjälä. As a result, an integrative model of educational environment for developing teachers' social competence has been developed, taking into account elements such as conceptual/theoretical, practical/experiential, and sociocultural knowledge, as well as self-regulation of knowledge, which are integrated to achieve a more effective outcome. All components of the model and their connections are at great length justified. Adaptation was also carried out the developed integrative model of educational environment for developing teachers' social competence for working with learners who have found themselves or may find themselves in difficult life circumstances.
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Purpose This study examines the working skills of Vietnamese librarians in terms of technical, human and conceptual skills. Then, this study suggests recommendations to improve their working skills. Design/methodology/approach To attain this objective, the study surveyed 243 Vietnamese librarians. Several statistical tests, including analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the paired t -test, were used to investigate differences in respondents' responses based on demographic variables such as gender, age, education and managerial level. Findings Gender appears to impact the working skill of Vietnamese librarians. In detail, the findings indicate that male librarians have higher technical skills than female librarians. Research limitations/implications This study opens the scope of working skill literature, particularly in the library sector. Notably, this is the first study investigating this issue in Vietnam. Given the current circumstances, suggesting practical recommendations to enhance the working skills of Vietnamese libraries is essential. Originality/value This is the first study examining Vietnamese librarians in technical, human and conceptual skills. Therefore, this research is essential in this field.
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