Context Of Work-based Learning Research Articles

Disciplinarity and Work: Work-Based Learning as an Emergent Transdisciplinary Mode of Study

Work-based learning (WBL) is a pedagogy focused on learning through work, and has been described as an emergent “transdisciplinary” mode of study. Professional Studies is a name given to practice-based research degrees which operationalize WBL. Thus, Professional Studies can be considered transdisciplinary. But what does transdisciplinarity mean in practice and how does it relate to academic disciplines when applied in a WBL context? This paper explores the characteristics of “disciplinarity” and its relation to WBL in Australia. The paper provides evidence of transdisciplinarity through case examples of research projects, with an emphasis on addressing work-based problems and futures studies.

Social interactivity as driver and digital technology as vehicle

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the perceptions of the integration of digital technology into a Pre-Registration Nursing degree programme. This process illuminated student perceptions of the impact of the digital technology platform on the context of work-based learning and also potential employability in the future.Design/methodology/approachAdopting design research as an overarching methodological approach for this study enabled application of the phenomena of complex curriculum justification, design and development to an observable context. In its rawest form, this was a pragmatic and relatively a theoretical approach, nevertheless underpinned by robust mixed-methods framework, incorporating anecdote circles. Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phase approach to thematic analysis was adopted as a systematic, yet recursive, approach to inductive qualitative analysis.FindingsResults of this pedagogical study were consistent with the stance that technology enhanced learning has a tangible impact on the socio-cognitive learning of students by providing a mechanism for engaging with decision making, problem solving and reflexive praxis. In particular, the Nurse Navigator System was perceived as a mechanism of enhancing the potential for the establishment of communities of practice in which the co-construction of meaningful knowledge about patient care could be established.Research limitations/implicationsThis pedagogical study was context specific to the curriculum model operationalised at the University of Sunderland and as such the perceptions captured are not generalizable but rather provide an insight into student perceptions of the implementation of the digital technology in the context of work-based learning and also the perceived impact on employability that this might have in the future.Practical implicationsPivotal to the success of this, though, is the capacity of clinical and academic staff who can facilitate this sufficiently well in practice and a period of preparation for students so that they can understand the distinction between cognitive, psychomotor and affective domain learning and the places and integration of each across an academic curriculum.Social implicationsThe study revealed the concept of social interactivity for affective domain learning was impacted positively upon by the integration of technology enhanced learning (i.e. the Nurse Navigator System).Originality/valueThis pedagogical research provides a fundamentally unique consideration of the perceived potential impact of a digital technology platform to affective domain learning. Since this is imperative to the tacit knowledge nursing students gain during their education and training for this specific vocational and academic field this is of great value to educationalists in the nursing and allied health fields. The methodological approach adopted also has capacity for transferability to these professions.

Tying knots: an activity theory analysis of student learning goals in clinical education.

Learning goal programmes are often created to help students develop self-regulated learning skills; however, these programmes do not necessarily consider the social contexts surrounding learning goals or how they fit into daily educational practice. We investigated a high-frequency learning goal programme in which students generated and shared weekly learning goals with their clinical teams in core Year3 clerkships. Our study explores: (i) how learning goals were incorporated into the clinical work, and (ii) the factors that influenced the use of students' learning goals in work-based learning. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 14 students and 14 supervisors (attending physicians and residents) sampled from all participating core clerkships. Interviews were coded for emerging themes. Using cultural historical activity theory and knotworking as theoretical lenses, we developed a model of the factors that influenced students' learning goal usage in a work-based learning context. Students and supervisors often faced the challenge of reconciling contradictions that arose when the desired outcomes of student skill development, grading and patient care were not aligned. Learning goals could function as tools for developing new ways of acting that overcame those contradictions by facilitating collaborative effort between students and their supervisors. However, for new collaborations to take place, both students and supervisors had to engage with the goals, and the necessary patients needed to be present. When any one part of the system did not converge around the learning goals, the impact of the learning goals programme was limited. Learning goals are potentially powerful tools to mediate interactions between students, supervisors and patients, and to reconcile contradictions in work-based learning environments. Learning goals provide a means to develop not only learners, but also learning systems.

Assessment in work‐based learning: investigating a pedagogical approach to enhance student learning

Work‐based learning (WBL) is undertaken in a wide variety of higher education contexts and is increasingly viewed as a valuable, and increasingly essential, component of both the undergraduate and postgraduate student learning experience. However, the development of rigorous pedagogies to underpin WBL and its assessment is still embryonic. This paper presents a case study of how one medium sized institution, with experience of offering WBL for more than 20 years, has developed a pedagogical approach for both supporting and assessing WBL. The WBL model examined is based on the inter‐relationship and inter‐dependency between understanding learning, critical reflection and the identification and development of capability within a WBL context. The paper considers each of the three areas in relation to its individual contribution and most importantly, in relation to the WBL process, as a means of developing a framework for academic, personal and capability development within a workplace setting. Critical to this discussion is an analysis of the contribution of related pedagogic theory and the use of appropriate assessment approaches to support WBL and to enhance the student learning experience.

An exploration of Biggs’ constructive alignment in the context of work‐based learning

The paper will explore Biggs’ concept of constructive alignment in the context of work‐based learning (WBL). In his book Teaching for Quality Learning at University Biggs quotes Tyler making the claim that ‘Learning takes place through the active behaviour of the student: it is what he does that he learns, not what the teacher does’. Biggs’ model is student‐centred and outcomes focused, and has been very influential in the area of staff development relating to learning and teaching. The model emerged and has mostly been considered in the context of formal education. However, the strong emphasis on the student and the nature of the learning (as opposed to the location in which the learning takes place) lends itself well to the area of WBL. With the rapid expansion of awards such as the Foundation Degree, many academic colleagues are becoming involved in the supporting and assessing of WBL. For those staff whose background has been in formal teaching, it can prove difficult to achieve the change in perspective which is necessary to effectively support work‐based students. Biggs’ model, which has been very influential inside HE, potentially offers a way of providing guidance to colleagues when they are required to engage with the evaluation and assessment of WBL. The intention here is to consider the constructive alignment model and explore the extent to which it can be applied in a WBL context.

Work‐based learning in the UK: scenarios for the future

PurposeAims to consider scenarios created by work‐based learning (WBL) providers in the Tees Valley in the UKDesign/methodology/approachThe context of WBL is examined in relation to the notion of the skills gap. The method of scenario development is describedFindingsA key task of WBL is to raise the skills levels of young people. WBL providers who deliver over 80 per cent of work‐based, vocational learning across the UK. However, the future of such providers is becoming very uncertain and already their numbers are declining as funding cuts and quality inspections begin to bite. The context of WBL is examined in relation to the notion of the skills gap. Four scenarios are presented of the future of WBL with implications for the present.Practical implicationsOf major concern is the persistence of the low skills equilibrium in UK which will continue to affect the attitudes of learner and the decisions of employers. It becomes necessary to work with employers to consider how skill formation can be deepened.Originality/valueThis paper provides an insight into the views of WBL providers, caught between government requirements to tackle the UK skills problem and employers who define the skills required.