Boud and Symes (in Choy) stated nearly a decade ago
When learning challenges are created from the exigencies of work there is often on pre-existing map that represents the territory of knowledge being explored.
Exigencies are pressing or urgent situations, requiring immediate effort or action; it is intrinsic to circumstances; cases that demand prompt remedy; a cricis; a contingency; a predicament; a fix; a pinch.
- When organisations sponsor the education of staff, it is done with growing human resource capacity in mind and therefore only expected to be aligned with business goals. Something the university for industry succeeded in. It requires a paradigm shift from traditional higher education. It requires a profound shift in the academic approach.
- Service learning in the true sense of the concept cannot be prescriptive. Community needs are examples of exigencies.
- The advocates of problem-based/orientated curriculum design, argue for focussing on what challenges graduates would face and developing ability to and knowhow where and how to find the information and/or solutions to address the exigencies they would face as graduate.
Choy (2009: 143) states that "the origins of knowledge and their boundaries in a work-based learning context are a lot more nebulous compared to fixed disciplines of academia", which is a matter (I believe) a lot of academia have not grasped yet.
The proponents of organisation-centred curriculums (OCC) founded and agreed on a framework around three principles (Choy 2009: 144):
- partnerships between the educational institution and the organisation/s
- learning activities are based on the needs of the organisation/s and the worker-learners, therefore linked to work projects
- assessment and evaluation are in terms of both the agreed work outcomes and the academic learning objectives - both these inform the standards and measures
Choy reports on a case study in this regard and use terms such as a 'boutique curriculum' which is the result of interactions between disciplinary area, professional practice and workplace goals. Learners are obviously interested in immediate application and transfer of newly acquired knowledge and skills. Choy make reference to the Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes (SOLO) model and Hierarchy of Learning Outcomes (HLO) to accomplish constructive assessment. Another important notion mentioned is the compilation of resource folders (comprising tools and uasable materials acquired during the course of the learning process). Some real stimulating stuff here.
References:
Choy, S. 2009. Teaching and assessment for an organisation-centred curriculum. Journal of Workplace Learning, 21(2), 143-155.
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