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David Licht, Career Analyst 525 Buena Vista SE, Room TC-107 Albuquerque, NM 87106 (505) 224-4435

Portland Community College Lessons Learned from Seven Years of WorkKeys Skills Integration at Central New Mexico Community College June 2, 2009. David Licht, Career Analyst 525 Buena Vista SE, Room TC-107 Albuquerque, NM 87106 (505) 224-4435 dlicht@cnm.edu cnm.edu/depts/workkeys.

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David Licht, Career Analyst 525 Buena Vista SE, Room TC-107 Albuquerque, NM 87106 (505) 224-4435

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  1. Portland Community CollegeLessons Learned from Seven Years of WorkKeys Skills Integration at Central New Mexico Community CollegeJune 2, 2009 David Licht, Career Analyst 525 Buena Vista SE, Room TC-107 Albuquerque, NM 87106 (505) 224-4435 dlicht@cnm.educnm.edu/depts/workkeys

  2. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly!

  3. The amount of new technical information is doubling every 2 years. That means for a student starting a four-year technical or college degree . . . Half of what they learn in their first year of study will be outdated by their third year of study. Michigan Department of Ed http://www.league.org/league/projects/ccti/summit/2007/2007CIT-8.ppt#334,79

  4. Question for teachers How do we prepare our students for 14 different jobs & several different careers? We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist . . . Using technologies that haven’t been invented . . . In order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet. David Warlick – Connect Learning blog

  5. IS A SYSTEM !

  6. 5 4 4 3 4 3 3 3 5 4 4 4 3 3 3 has three Components Occupational Profiles What skills & skill levels are needed in today’s occupations? Skill Assessments What foundational skills & skill levels does the student currently have? Training Support How can any skill gaps be addressed in curriculum/training programs?

  7. Approach • Objective, standardized data that could allows comparisons between schools for Career Technical Education (CTE) programs • Comparable data between job/occupational profiles • & assessment results • Data is meaningful for both employers & education • Focus on basic, foundation skills needed for learning, • as well as in most jobs in today’s economy

  8. Applied Mathematics Applied Technology Business Writing Listening Locating Information Observation Reading for Information Teamwork Writing WorkKeysSkill Areas “Virtually every worker in the 21st century will need strong foundations in the eight basic skill sets measured by ACT’s WorkKeys.” - Richard Judy Workforce Development Director, Hudson Institute, Author of Workforce 2000 & Workforce 2020 www.act.org/workkeys www.act.org/workkeys

  9. Points to Remember • WorkKeys skills are fundamental, lifelong learning skills as well as critical employability skills! 2. Test takers may compare their current skill level to the skill level of the careers they are interested in.

  10. Points to Remember 3. WorkKeys test results provides objective, nationally validated information for assessing student academic achievement, for measuring exit competencies, for setting program entrance requirements, and for making data driven curriculum enhancements.

  11. Why WorkKeys skills • To remain technically competent. • To move up within a career ladder. • To be able to change careers. • Lifelong learning skills.

  12. 2005 Skills Gap Report-A Survey of the American Manufacturing Workforce (NAM) Figure 3: What Type of Skills will Employers Need More of Over the Next Three Years? Page 8 Strong Basic Employability Skills 53% WORKKEYS SKILLS Technical Skills 53% Reading/Writing/Communication Skills 47% RI, L, W, OB Ability to Work in a Team 40% Teamwork Strong Computer Skills 39% Observation & LI Ability to Read & Translate Demanding Diagrams/Flow Charts 39% Locating Information (LI) Math Skills 37% Applied Mathematics http://www.nam.org/~/media/Files/s_nam/docs/235800/235731.pdf.ashx

  13. National Career Readiness Certificate http://act.org/certificate/index.html

  14. National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC) The NCRC is based on three fundamental learning and employability skills. • Applied Mathematics • Locating Information • Reading for Information

  15. National Career Readiness Certificate There are four levels of the NCRC Platinum-scored at least a level 6 in each of the three core areas and has the necessary foundational skills for almost all of the jobs in the WorkKeys database. Gold– scored at least a level 5 in each of the three core areas and has the necessary foundational skills for 90 percent of the jobs in the WorkKeys database. Silver – scored at least a level 4 in each of the three core areas and has the necessary foundational skills for 65 percent of the jobs in the WorkKeys database. Bronze – scored at least a level 3 in each of the three core areas and has the necessary foundational skills for 35 percent of the jobs in the WorkKeys database. http://act.org/certificate/faq.html#a 15 15 15

  16. National Career Readiness Certificate The National Career Readiness Certificate verifies to employers anywhere in the United States an individual has essential core employability skills in Reading, Math, and Locating Information. ACT has researched over 16,000 occupations and these three skills are highly important to the majority of jobs in the workplace. The Certificate is an easily understood and nationally valued credential that certifies the attainment of these workplace skills.

  17. National Career Readiness Certificate The NCRC is used for Screening—Employers only interview applicants who have the skills required for the job. Hiring and promotion—A National Career Readiness Certificate can be used as a "plus" factor to help make selection and promotion decisions. Targeting employee training and development—Employers can save money by using their training budget on employees with skill gaps. 17

  18. National Career Readiness Certificate Why Is It Needed? The mismatch between the skills required for most jobs and the skills of the U.S. workforce is having a significant impact on productivity and revenue across all businesses and industries. Employers need reliable ways to measure foundational skills to ensure they are hiring the most qualified, trainable candidates. 18 18 http://act.org/certificate/need.html

  19. National Career Readiness Certificate Benefits of the NCRC • Based on objective, standardized results • Nationwide portability • An internationally recognized assessment organization • Available for immediate use

  20. The American Association of Community Colleges is pleased to support ACT's new National Career Readiness Certificate. The certificate will offer our member colleges a successful common assessment tool and language by which they can assist local constituents with their economic and workforce development needs. Working with more than 500 community colleges over 10 years, ACT has developed a unique set of assessment tools that have been particularly useful in assisting both individuals and employers in career and education/training decision-making. The National Career Readiness Certificate adds one more valuable assessment to the existing collection of tools that extends the value of community colleges in advancing the economic and workforce development process of their communities. George Boggs President American Association of Community Colleges

  21. ACT and the National Association of Manufacturers Collaborate on New Skills Certification System ACT’s National Career Readiness Certificate is at the heart of a new skills certification system designed to address America’s workforce crisis head on.

  22. The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), through The Manufacturing Institute, is partnering with ACT on a Manufacturing Skills Certification System to increase the number of qualified workers. A joint initiative will align industry-recognized skills certifications with career and educational pathways. The NAM is the nation’s largest industrial trade association, with a reach to more than 100,000 companies and 13 million workers. The Manufacturing Institute is the arm of the NAM focused on education, workforce, innovation support, and research. http://www.act.org/activity/spring2009/nam.html

  23. Beginning 2001 Central New Mexico Community College decided to begin implementing curricula enhancement to Career Technical Education programs emphasizing SCANS skills. Decision was made to utilize ACT WorkKeys to help accomplish this goal.

  24. RECOMMENDATIONS Define why you want to implement WorkKeys. What are the benefits to students? What are the benefits to the school? What are the benefits to the faculty? Develop a comprehensive implementation plan.

  25. RECOMMENDATIONS Get faculty senate and/faculty involved from the very beginning. Try to identify “champions.” Meet with deans, associate deans and chairs and explain benefits. Meet with curriculum teams, explain how WorkKeys can be used to help set exit competencies and objectively measure student academic achievement.

  26. RECOMMENDATIONS What problems will WorkKeys cause the students, faculty, and school? Realize this will involve a significant cultural change to the school’s method of assessment. What types of professional development and outside support will you need to help faculty teach & assess Listening, Observation, Teamwork, etc.

  27. RECOMMENDATIONS How will you help faculty integrate WorkKeys skills into their curriculum; and what obstacles do you expect? You may want to consider a curriculum specialist or consultant to help implement WorkKeys skills into every course and CTE program. WorkKeys assessments must be part of the grade, e.g., 10% for the class.

  28. Evolution of WorkKeys Usage at CNM GOAL: Wanted to verify SCANS skills were included in CTE programs. First tried Plato and John Hopkins programs and found those did not meet our needs. Found WorkKeys that directly related job skill levels to CTE programs.

  29. At CNM WorkKeys is a voluntary program, no faculty or program has to use it • First plan was to test students in final semester to determine if they had the skills at the needed skill levels. 2. If they did not then faculty would “tweak” curriculum to raise students skill levels. 3. If they did meet the skill levels then we would go on to other skills.

  30. CNM not have a plan on how to tweak curriculum. • CTE faculty are primarily SMEs, not highly trained educators. • Even if faculty member had level of skill, they may not have known how to teach it, e.g., listening, teamwork, etc. Answers-KeyTrain, professional development, and in class help.

  31. 7. After completing first job profiles for new CTE programs, faculty stated that the task list almost developed their curriculum for them. 8. Started doing job profiles for all new programs, but ran into problems with obtaining SMEs. 9. CNM decided to develop Exit Competencies for all classes and programs.

  32. 10. CNM decided to institute Student Academic Achievement Committee (SAAC) to develop rubrics to assess student academic success. 11. SAAC developed rubrics/goals for skill areas including Listening, Reading, Teamwork, and Writing. 12. CNM stated that faculty could either use SAAC rubrics or WorkKeys assessments for student academic success.

  33. 13. Began using WorkKeys for setting and measuring Exit Competencies. 14. Conflict regarding SAAC rubrics for CNM vs. WorkKeys skill level exit competencies for CTE programs. Still on going. TWO ISSUES RAISED Use CNM rubrics developed by faculty or use WorkKeys skill levels developed by ACT. Question of “Academic Freedom” and who owns the curriculum, including assessment!

  34. Began using WorkKeys as part of petitioning process into programs with long waiting lists. • Began providing graduates with CNM developed “WorkKeys Testing Award Documents.” • Began giving Awards to students at some Industry Advisory Committees. • Advisory Committee members began asking for updates for Awards and progress of enhancing curriculum so all students have correct skill levels.

  35. WorkKeys Strengths • WorkKeys process can objectively set and assess student success and exit competencies. • Tests are nationally validated. • Tests are nationally recognized. • Tests allow comparison between schools.

  36. Test results directly related to job requirements. • There is a direct correlation between job skill requirements and curriculum. • Tests objectively validate students’ skills vis-à-vis job requirements. • Tests allow objective, data driven decisions for both faculty and administration.

  37. Tests allow analysis of student success rates among faculty. • Tests help identify opportunities for Professional Development. • Tests remove instructor subjectivity and bias, e.g. what do grades mean? • Tests help identify and share among faculty “best practices.”

  38. 2002-Began Pilot testing Teamwork in BA 131, Business Interpersonal Skills.

  39. Business Interpersonal Skills, Spring 2002

  40. Business Interpersonal Skills Spring 2009 In 2004 we increased class from 2 to 3 credit hours and reworked curriculum. Weighted Mean for the WorkKeys Teamwork Skill Level 4.1 (vs. 3.5 for 2002). Mode for the WorkKeys Teamwork Skill Level 5 (vs. 3 for 2002) GREAT!

  41. BA 1131, Business Interpersonal Skills, WorkKeys TEAMWORK Testing Results, Spring 2006-Summer 2008 <=3 4 5 6 INSTRUCTOR 1 30% 40% 29% 2% INSTRUCTOR 2 30% 45% 24% 1% INSTRUCTOR 3 17% 40% 41% 1% (105%) INSTRUCTOR 4 28% 37% 35% 1% INSTRUCTOR 5 23% 41% 36% 0% INSTRUCTOR 6 20% 36% 43% 1% INSTRUCTOR 7 17% 50% 33% 1% (105%) INSTRUCTOR 8 31% 41% 27% 1% INSTRUCTOR 9 29% 39% 33% 0% INSTRUCTOR 10 35% 36% 28% 1% INSTR. 11-13 28% 35% 35% 2% ALL FACULTY 25% 40% 34% 1%

  42. Do we want objective data and the results?

  43. One part-time instructor had only 17% of his students scoring <=3 And the new Chair did not score well on the Teamwork test and the % of his students scoring <=3 was ? EFFECTIVE SUMMER 2008 NO LONGER USING WORKKEYS Of course there were other considerations.

  44. In three other programs students did not achieve WorkKeys test scores for two graduating classes. They are no longer using WorkKeys. Of course there were other considerations, e.g., • the amount of time the students were spending on KeyTrain that took away from their technical skills studies • student complaints they did not feel these skills were important and should not count towards their grade • the instructors were able to evaluate these skills.

  45. Real World Education GAP What Should be Taught What is Taught

  46. Should We Teach --  What we know best?  What we were taught?  What we enjoy teaching?  What we have experience with?  What the textbook happens to include? OR  What the student/worker most needs for successful employment?

  47. I have been teaching this subject for the last 25 years and I don’t need anybody tell me what or how to teach or how to assess my students!

  48. STUDENT: “I forget what I was taught, I only Remember what I’ve learnt.”

  49. Usage in Educational Institutions • To assist educational institutions to develop partnerships and more effectively collaborate with the workforce development needs of the communities • To provide students with an objective assessment of their level of job skills which are needed in the 21st Century labor force, and can be used for students to identify skill gaps for their chosen career

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