Work-integrated Education Research Articles

Constituting integration in work-integrated education and learning

ABSTRACT Common to the effectiveness of what constitutes work-integrated learning (WIL) and work-integrated education (WIE) is how students’ experiences in tertiary educational and work settings are integrated. WIL comprises how individuals come to reconcile and construct meaning, capacities, and dispositions from experiences encountered in both settings. WIE comprises the organisation of experiences and educational interventions to assist students in intentionally integrating the two sets of experiences as part of a planned educational process. These two forms of integration are ontologically and epistemologically distinct, yet central to their processes and outcomes, which are also ontologically discrete. This paper commences by rehearsing the distinction of WIE from WIL and the centrality of integrations to both conceptions. The bases by which such integrations progress are then discussed: the provision of experiences and the process of experiencing. Considerations of the tertiary educational processes and processes of promoting learning to realise effective outcomes for students follow. These draw on findings from projects that sought seeking to integrate the two sets of experiences. The sociocultural positioning draws on a distinction between zones of potential and proximal development that accommodate what is afforded and mediated by those experiences and how learners might mediate their integration.

The Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure the Learning of Context University Skills and Workplace-recognized Skills Test among Students WIE in Rural College Thailand

A questionnaire for measuring Context University Skills and Workplace-Recognized Skills (LCUS-WRS) requires a validated and reliable instrument. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a questionnaire to measure learning of context university skills and workplace-recognized skills, in order to carry out an advanced psychometric properties analysis of Work-Integrated Education (WIE) students and the skills of LCUS-WRS, including internal and external reliability. Methods: We conducted multi-stage random sampling, with a sample consisting of 728 students WIE from 20 rural colleges in Thailand. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed on a subset of the sample (n = 279), and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was conducted on another subset (n = 449), both in different subgroups. Additionally, the researcher analyzed the internal consistency and temporal reliability of the scale in the instrument.
 
 Results: Using exploratory factor analysis with 39 items 6 factors and accounted for 55.881% of variance was identified of the variance for the CFA model. The model achieved a goodness-of-fit of chi-square (c2 ) = 582.907, df = 308, p = .000, c2 /df = 1.90, GFI = .979, AGFI = .985, RMSEA = .030, SRMR = .030 
 
 Conclusion: LCUS-WRS scale has solid construct of validity and excellent internal consistency which to analyze psychometric properties It has optimum temporal reliability. Therefore, the indicated that the dimensions of measuring of LCUS-WRS guaranteed its use in higher education institutions.

АКТУАЛЬНЫЕ ПОДХОДЫ К ОРГАНИЗАЦИИ ПРАКТИКО-ОРИЕНТИРОВАННОГО ОБУЧЕНИЯ В ВЫСШИХ УЧЕБНЫХ ЗАВЕДЕНИЯХ

Despite the transition to multidisciplinary training of specialists, increasing the fundamental nature of education, and increasing the volume of specialized disciplines and elective courses, there are still significant shortcomings in the educational process of modern universities in terms of the mismatch between the content of education and the demands of companies. In this situation, the study aims to develop a model of work-integrated learning that promotes the formation of professional-applied competencies of students to meet the requirements of the labor market. During theoretical analysis, the current approaches to the organization of work-integrated learning in domestic and foreign universities were identified. To verify the results of the theoretical analysis, qualitative research was conducted through in-depth interviews with experts in work-integrated learning development. The results of the in-depth interviews were processed using qualitative content analysis. The analysis of experts identified the best approaches to the organization of work-integrated learning, as well as formats that promote the best integration of universities and companies. Weaknesses in providing work-integrated education in Kazakhstan were identified. Within the framework of the model, an algorithm for organizing work-integrated education is formed with division into the target, methodological, educational, organizational, evaluative and resultant modules. A flowchart has been developed to show the interaction process between the model's main components.

The management of cooperative and work-integrated education for academic institutions of higher education in Thailand

The management of cooperative and work-integrated education for academic institutions of higher education in Thailand

Improving Online Learning Design for Employed Adult Learners

With the growing need for developing competence at workplaces, the number of employed adult learners is increasing in higher education institutions to follow continuing education. Often they are educated and treated as traditional students. To satisfy the learning demands of employed learners, work-integrated education has emerged to spotlight the importance of the integration of work and education in contemporary education. Many studies show that employed adult learners have different and more complex ways of learning compared to traditional students. Furthermore, employed adult learners have lacked the attention of researchers and educators to enhance their learning in general and online learning in particular. Meanwhile, online learning is a preferred way for learners who work and study in tandem. This study aims to make the online learning design for employed adult learners more effective and adaptable to their circumstances by asking the research question “How can online learning design for employed adult learners be improved?”. The case study of a course for employed adult learners was examined with a mixed method approach including interview and learning analytics. The interview data laid the groundwork for developing assumptions and hypotheses for the examination of employed adult learners’ learning patterns. Learning analytics consist of data visualization, which revealed employed adult learners’ learning patterns, and statistical tests, which inspected the validity and reliability of the patterns revealed by the log data. The log data were extracted from the learning management system, which recorded the educational activities of the learners during the course. This study exposed the pitfalls of the learning design including average to low engagement not only in learning but also in the course. As a result, the indicators to improve the online learning design for employed adult learners comprise investing in learning materials and increasing online interaction to fortify learner engagement in the course, thereby enhancing course completion. The indicators are viewed as the first step in the process of developing a proper and effective online learning design for employed adult learners. Finally, the reflection on online interaction for employed adult learners is also discussed.

The Effects of Work-integrated Education and International Study Exchange Experience on Academic Outcomes

ABSTRACT In this paper, we report on the analysis of data collected from 684 students majoring in Accounting and Finance, to examine the relationship between academic outcomes and Work-integrated Education (WIE) and International Study Exchange (ISE) experiences. Both WIE and ISE are common elements of undergraduate business education because of the benefits to students’ skills development they provide, particularly in the areas of graduate attribute development. This study examined the relationship between the change in students’ academic performance and the amount and type of WIE a student undertook and whether or not they participated in an ISE. Findings showed that both completing a higher amount of WIE and undertaking an ISE are positive predictors of change in a student’s grade point average. In addition, students who undertook industry-relevant WIE or WIE sourced by the school had higher grades on graduation. As well as benefits to overall academic achievement, the results showed that students who participated in ISE had significantly higher grades in the final year, major project, as well as a higher grade on graduation. Furthermore, undertaking an ISE and also doing extra WIE had the greatest effect on change in GPA. These findings strongly suggest that relevant WIE and ISE experiences are valuable for helping students be academically more successful when they return to study at their home institution.

Personnel support for innovative economic development in the new normality

The concept of “new normality” is becoming popular among representatives of various scientific fields, and, above all, in the economy. It is rather controversial, however, the signs of stagnation observed in the Russian Federation, and corresponding to the signs in the framework of the concept of “new normality” clearly indicate the need for new solutions in the search for a way out to a new round of economic growth. Digital economy and innovation are the direction that can become a new driver on the way to growth and development. However, there are some factors that significantly affect the success of the implementation of state programs for the development of the digital economy in the Russian Federation. One of the significant factors is the training of qualified personnel who are able to solve problems in the mode here and now, capable of innovative activity, the creation of innovative products. This article examines the experience of the state university, the State University of Aerospace Instrumentation, on the introduction of the work-integrated education system in order to train innovative personnel for the economy of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region.

The International Telematic University UNINETTUNO A Model of Cooperative & Work-Integrated Education through the New Technologies

Internet has completely changed the ways of producing and communicating knowledge. Today it is possible to attend University without any space or time limitation. The International Telematic University UNINETTUNO (UTIU) has been developing an organizational and psycho-pedagogical model and a technological structure, which, thanks to Internet, give everyone the possibility to attend the University anywhere in the world. Thanks to this model, UTIU has been committed in supporting the national socio-economic environment, through bilateral agreements and joint projects with trade unions and companies, in order to update and upgrade workersâ?? competences and to help them entering into the global markets. It is shown here the results of the outcomes deriving from an agreement signed with the Italian biggest telecommunication company: Telecom Italia. This agreement, which offers to Telecom Italiaâ??s employees the opportunity to enrol at UTIU degree programmes with the economic support of their employer, represents an innovative example of collaboration among a Company, a University and the Trade Unions, with the purpose of fostering human resourcesâ?? training and professionalization. The agreement derives from Telecom Italiaâ??s need for training its personnel. Thus, with the aim of improving their competences, Telecom Italia has counted on the innovative technologies provided by distance learning, acknowledging UTIUâ??s psycho-pedagogical model as the best solution available. As an innovative element, for the first time in the negotiation history the Trade Unions and a Company has agreed on the possibility for the employees to enrol for a degree programme, thus improving their social and cultural status.

Teaching Engineering Surveying in a Civil Engineering Program: Curriculum, Pedagogy, and Assessment

As engineering surveying is highly concerned with its intensive involvement in the construction of roads and bridges, drainage systems, buildings, railways, and tunnels in civil engineering, the subject of engineering surveying is being offered by the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics to all undergraduate students who are taking the Bachelor of Civil Engineering Degree Program in the Department of Civil and Structural Engineering at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Under the new outcome-based curriculum and work-integrated education requirements, the curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment for the subject are described here by answering the questions of “what are the goals and objectives of the curriculum,” “what should students learn,” and “how should it be learned, taught, and assessed.”