Recognition Of Prior Learning Practice Research Articles

Recognition of prior learning in professional education from an organisational perspective

ABSTRACT Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is often said to facilitate lifelong learning and occurs when already-acquired learning outcomes are officially valued. The education system is a central arena of RPL, allowing facilitated access to or shortening of study programmes. This study explores RPL practices in Switzerland. We ask the following research question: How do professional education institutions regulate, practice, and justify RPL? We start from the premise that RPL practices in higher education institutions are shaped by national RPL policies, professional bodies, and the nature of the respective labour markets. However, within these framework conditions, higher education institutions also create their own organisational policies, thereby promoting or hindering RPL. In addition, the study programme’s knowledge domain and the responsible persons’ pedagogic agency, shaped by their pedagogic concepts and individual attitudes, are also guiding factors. To answer our research question, we conducted qualitative comparative case studies and compared the RPL practices of professional education institutions that offer study programmes for hospitality management and social education. Our results show that organisations offering the same professional study programmes regulate, practice, and justify RPL differently, indicating the importance of organisational gatekeepers’ pedagogic agency.

Call for papers for the Special Edition, JOVACET 5(2), 2022

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), referred to, inter alia, as APL in other contexts, has been recognised by South African and international policies as a critical means of access to, and certification of further and higher learning, especially for mature learners. While there is general acknowledgement of the importance of RPL for lifelong learning and social inclusion, learning institutions have not embraced RPL equally across the board, and implementation practices vary greatly, often leading to learner frustration. While there have been some local studies and a growing international literature, RPL is by and large under-researched in South Africa.
 In light of the above and its long tradition of RPL provision, the University of the Western Cape’s Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) unit will be hosting a conference on 30 and 31 March 2022, with the theme ‘Implementation, Assessment and Articulation of Recognition of Prior Learning’. As one of the intentions of the conference is to ‘build the scholarship of RPL’ (also known as APL in other contexts), JOVACET will be partnering with the UWC RPL Unit to produce a Special Issue of the journal in 2022 for publication of relevant papers that fall within the scope of our journal.
 Topics broadly covered by the conference include (but are not limited to) the following:• RPL policy research• Sharing RPL practices• Capacity building for RPL• Innovative RPL models• RPL assessment for undergraduate and postgraduate access in higher education• Articulation models for RPL in post-schooling
 Submissions for paper presentations at the conference should be made directly to the conference organiser, Dr Rekha Rambharose, email rrambharose@uwc.ac.za, but additional, relevant topical papers seeking publication in this JOVACET Special Issue may be directed to Dr Catherine Robertson, email cathy@trobertson.co.za.
 Please note that all submissions considered for publication, whether presented at the conference or not, will undergo the JOVACET double blind review process towards publication in November 2022 or earlier if possible.
 Due date for full paper submissions (Special Issue): 30 April 2022

The Use of Principles of Good Assessment in Recognition of Prior Learning Practice in Library and Information Science in South Africa

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) practice offers sound benefits to library and information science (LIS) schools. Despite these envisaged benefits, very little is known about RPL practice in LIS schools in South Africa. This study sought to establish whether principles of good assessment were being followed in the LIS schools to ensure the integrity of the RPL outcomes. A combination of a questionnaire and document analysis were used to collect data from the ten LIS schools in the South African higher education and training landscape. The questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data through a survey method. In addition, the researcher employed content analysis to collect qualitative data from institutional RPL policy documents. The findings indicate that RPL assessment processes across LIS schools in South Africa were largely subjected to principles of good practice. The study found that in accordance with the SAQA RPL policy the purpose of assessment was clarified to the candidate upfront, the quality of support to be provided to the candidate in preparing for the assessment was established, an appeals process was made known to the candidate, and the choice of assessment methods was fit for purpose to ensure credible assessment outcomes. It is therefore recommended that other disciplines or departments use LIS schools’ experiences as a benchmark to improve their own RPL endeavours.

Recognition of prior learning: the tensions between its inclusive intentions and constraints on its implementation

ABSTRACTThis article provides some insight into the constraints on the potential of recognition of prior learning (RPL) to widen access to educational qualifications. Its focus is on a conceptual framework that emerged from a South African study of RPL practices across four different learning contexts. Working from a social realist perspective, it argues that RPL needs to be seen as a specialised form of pedagogy that enables navigation across different cultures of knowledge; this is inevitably a contested process because it questions dominant forms of knowledge and modes of knowledge production. The research found that a range of contextual factors impact on the feasibility of RPL, including the nature of the disciplinary domain and its associated knowledge structures, but the ‘inner workings’ of the practice also need to be taken into account. Drawing on Cultural Historical Activity Theory , the article presents a conceptual model of RPL as a specialised, boundary-crossing practice for engaging complex sociologies of knowledge, and it offers three generic configurations of practice, each requiring its own ‘artistry of practice’. It concludes that further theoretical work is required in order to adequately conceptualise what is identified as the ‘specialised discourses of experiential knowledge’.

Recognition of Prior Learning Practices in a South African Institution of Higher Learning: Implications for Academic Development

Recognition of Prior Learning Practices in a South African Institution of Higher Learning: Implications for Academic Development

Recognition of Prior Learning: Are We Bridging the Gap between Policy and Practice in the Workplace?

The study examines the implementation of recognition of prior learning (RPL) in the workplace, its effectiveness and impact on improving the lives of the previously disadvantaged groups and its contribution towards enhancing a culture of lifelong learning in South Africa. The Northern Region of the Eskom Distribution was used as a case for the purposes of this study. The study adopted a mixed method research approach in which a questionnaire was administered to a randomly selected sample of 242 employees. In addition, interviews were conducted with three purposively selected (information rich) participants. The findings reveal that Eskom has policies and guidelines on RPL and a clearly stipulated purpose which is in line with the National Qualifications Framework (NQF), however, the current RPL policies and procedures have not been piloted within the Northern Region, the information has not yet reached everyone in the business, and employees’ level of awareness is still low. Findings also reveal that RPL does exist in Distribution and efforts to implement it are traceable. A number of milestones and achievements are noted in the business as a whole as well as in the region, although a lot still needs to be done to ensure full and effective implementation. The last finding shows that there are a number of gaps and challenges impeding the success of RPL. These range from capacity building to quality assurance. On the basis of the findings, a number of recommendations to strengthen the RPL practice in the workplace are proposed and suggested. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n1p249

The Portuguese case of RPL new practices and new adult educators: some tensions and ambivalences in the framework of new public policies

This article reports the main contributions of an original empirical research project whose primary objective was to understand some of the complexities of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) practices in general and those referring to the Portuguese RPL case in particular. The main purpose of this study was to reflect critically upon the contemporary RPL practices and policies. Of particular relevance was the discussion of some aspects of (i) the form and mission of RPL as well as some aspects of (ii) the role and profile of RPL adult educators. These concerns were taken within the framework of a new adult education and training (AET) strategy and the ‘new educational order’, originating in late modernity. The four models used to capture ways of seeing RPL practices, proposed by Judy Harris, were theoretically revisited (as heuristic devices). However, this was assumed only as one possible route to better problematise the empirical findings. The results allow us to establish, for instance, that the need for outcomes with regards to the number of adults certified became progressively more important in the Portuguese case; that these practices tended to view learning as a cognitive process instead of a reality embedded in social practice; that this RPL was more about individual advancement than about collective advancement; or even that this RPL structure can be seen as a strategic device whose social purpose was more about constructing a new invisible form of exclusion than an innovative way of inclusion.

The interpretation of a knowledge claim in the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and the impact of this on RPL practice

The question addressed in this paper is: what does a knowledge claim consist of in the context of the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)? The research comprises a case study of RPL applicants' entry into a postgraduate diploma (a fourth-year programme) in project management. The focus is on the knowledge claims made as part of the RPL application by experienced project managers and leaders. Three different aspects of the knowledge claims are analysed: what the knowledge claim consists of; what the academic interpretation of the claims is; and how the interpretation of the claims impacts on the RPL approach. The findings deal with the knowledge of the project management cycle prior to entry into higher education. It is found that knowledge claims not only consist of theoretical knowledge but also mainly situational knowledge, ability and attitude. In addition, the knowledge claims made in the RPL application based on the relevant and substantial knowledge are acknowledged by the academic institution in question. The RPL approach that results from the interpretation of the knowledge claims does conform to one RPL approach, within the paradigm of project management.

RPL practice and student disposition – insights from the lifeworld

This paper draws on research into student experiences of recognition of prior learning RPL in the context of work-based learning (WBL) in a community services sector setting. WBL in this context is heavily reliant on recognition of prior learning (RPL). Looking at the student disposition towards RPL and access to higher education, the paper argues that developmental forms of RPL are more useful than credentialist forms, in that they sustain important, lifeworld-derived expertise. Using a critical theory-based framework, it is suggested that a form of RPL that undermines existing, potentially oppressive relations of knowledge production has benefits for non-traditional students’ access to higher education. Drawing on the practice experiences from this research and contemporary commentary on RPL, specific suggestions are made as to how such a form of RPL might be accomplished. These include continued facilitation of access, vigilance against complicity in coercive practices and developing criticality. The paper concludes by drawing attention to the importance of ontological and epistemological clarity in developing RPL.

Achieving flexible learning through recognition of prior learning practice: a case‐study lament of the Canadian academy

Although the recognition of learners' experiential learning toward postsecondary credentials holds the promise of increased flexibility and opportunity for many, especially in the current climate of labour shortage, Canadian universities have been slow to adopt recognition of prior learning (RPL) systems. This case study of one Canadian institution showcases its RPL practice against the framework of the challenges that face RPL in traditional academic settings; and presents some of the lessons learned by Canada's foremost open and distance institution's RPL practice.

Revisiting the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): A Reflective Inquiry into RPL Practice in Canada

The recognition of prior learning (RPL/PLAR) has been on the margins of Canada’s educational and economic scene for many years. A series of recent developments across Canada prompted this writer to reflect on whether a combination of forces may be moving RPL toward its “tipping point.” In examining this possibility, the article situates the issue educationally, socially, and economically. A developing societal and educational trend is identified and the use of the portfolio as an appropriate response tool is considered. Concluding remarks highlight anticipated and existing areas of resistance to moving the RPL agenda forward.

Recognition of prior learning (RPL): from principle to practice in higher education

Significant developments in RPL are taking place in the formal education and training systems in South Africa alongside other policy and curriculum initiatives towards access, equity, flexibility and lifelong learning. Demands to have learning gained informally from experience recognised will be great. This raises questions regarding the kind of RPL practices that could exist within higher education. Offering RPL could pose a big challenge to education and training systems, especially in terms of the absence of learner-centredness and the lack of curriculum flexibility in many parts of the higher education system. The problem, however, does not lie in the acceptance and adoption of the notion of RPL, but in the measurement and evaluation of learning that has taken place in varied ways and circumstances. The consideration of RPL requires a new commitment by higher education institutions to rethink some accepted meanings of higher education learning and particularly of higher education programmes. This article aims to contextualise RPL as a principle and to show the implications of recent developments in education for implementing RPL in higher education in South Africa. South African Journal of Higher Education Vol.16(2) 2002: 75-82 Title

The recognition of prior learning: early lessons, challenges and promise

The article is a descriptive and illuminative account of two recognition of prior learning (RPL) projects conceived within specific institutional contexts in higher education in South Africa. The two projects are treated as separate case studies in which a "developmental" model of RPL was piloted. Each case study provides a profile of the students and programmes in the institution, the RPL practices which were developed, and the difficulties encountered in the process of articulating, assessing and accrediting students' prior learning. The article ends with some questions and tentative conclusions concerning the further development of RPL policy and practice in the field of educator development. South African Journal of Higher Education Vol.15(1) 2001: 54-60

Ways of seeing the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): What contribution can such practices make to social inclusion?

This paper is an exploration of RPL practices. It was written following empirical work and concerns raised regarding the efficacy of RPL as a mechanism to enhance social equity and social inclusion in the South African higher education context. An attempt is made to position RPL within the changing socio-economic and cultural conditions of late- or post-modernity and to see it as a social practice rather than as a set of seemingly innocent and benevolent procedures. Four illustrative ‘models’ of RPL are presented and analysed in such a way as to reveal more about existing practices (particularly the social functions they perform) and to suggest possibilities for practices capable of making optimal contributions to social inclusion. It is argued that RPL practices are capable of multiple significations and that those concerned with the design and implementation of RPL could benefit from being aware of the various ways of seeing the practice and could combine this with a critical reading of the discourses of societal, institutional and curricular contexts in order to reveal possibilities for inclusive approaches.