Social context and transferable skill development in experiential learning

ABSTRACT

Increasingly, employers are seeking candidates with transferable skills in addition to technical and educational requirements. Thus, university students seek opportunities to develop transferrable skills, often through extra and co-curricular programs. With this in mind, our research explores student assessments of their own development of transferable skills after participation in a co-curricular, experiential volunteer program (McMaster Children and Youth University) in Canada. Using pre/post-survey methods, we find statistically significant increases in participants’ self-assessments of leadership, problem solving, knowledge translation, and knowledge mobilization. Adaptability emerges as an unexpected skill several participants report developing as a result of working with young people. We conclude that co-curricular programs play an important role in transferable skill development. Further, we argue that social contexts of experiential learning opportunities play a significant role in shaping transferrable skill development.

KEYWORD:

• experiential learning
• transferable skills
• social context
• adaptability
• co-curricular

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Rebecca Collins-Nelsen

Dr. Rebecca Collins-Nelsen is a teaching and research lead at McMaster Children and Youth University. She also holds a Postdoctoral Fellowship at McMaster University in the School of Interdisciplinary Science. Her research focuses on social inequality, teaching and learning, and children’s rights.

Frank Koziarz

Frank Koziarz is a recent Bachelor of Health Sciences graduate and is currently enrolled in a Masters of Health Research Methodology at McMaster University. His research interests include the development network meta-analysis frameworks and the improvement of current clinical research practices.

Beth Levinson

Beth Levinson holds a M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction and has been an educator for over 30 years. She is currently an Educational Director with a focus on experiential education and inquiry based learning.

Erin Allard

Dr. Erin Allard is a Lead Educational Developer at McMaster University’s Paul R. MacPherson Institute for Leadership, Innovation and Excellence in Teaching where she oversees teaching development for Teaching Assistants, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows. Her research documents the impact of teaching training on participants’ teaching and transferable knowledge/skills.

Stephanie Verkoeyen

Dr. Stephanie Verkoeyen is an Educational Developer at McMaster University’s Paul R. MacPherson Institute for Leadership, Innovation and Excellence in Teaching. She spends much of her time supporting teaching in the Faculty of Social Sciences and helps to support teaching development for Teaching Assistants, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows.

Sandeep Raha

Dr. Raha is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at McMaster University and the co-founder and current Director of the McMaster Children and Youth University. His research focusses on the impact of inquiry-based teaching and learning on critical thinking in elementary school students.