How can New Zealand teaching institutions equip learners to be more employment ready for the fastchanging world of future work? Which capabilities, or transferable skills, are priorities for employers / stakeholders when they consider graduates as employees?

These questions are central to the development of the Learner Capability Framework (LCF) at Otago Polytechnic. It has been internationally recognised during the previous two decades that the nature of the workplace, including the environment, technology, the economy and society, is changing. Key to supporting learners for this constantly changing environment is the development of capabilities, or transferable skills, that can be applied in multiple and fluid work situations.

In order to respond to these questions, the Research Team at Otago Polytechnic embarked on a multilayered research journey which connected lecturers and others with employers and stakeholders across fifteen identified clusters of degree programmes. This initial scope was extended to include certificate and diploma level programmes as well, with a view towards identifying what a wide range of employers and stakeholders value in terms of capabilities relating to vocational pathways. A further aim was then to map and consider employer priorities with regard to capabilities into effective curriculum development. Otago Polytechnic’s goal with this research is to equip our learners with prioritised capabilities, which directly relate to the world of work beyond the classroom. In doing so we will support them to develop these capabilities, understand their importance and be able to provide tangible evidence of having attained them in a format that is accessible to future employment opportunities. This work will help our students to thrive, adapt and be effective in their chosen professions, trades and workplaces.

This particular part of the publication, the first in a set of nine to disseminate a journey over three years, reflects the action research undertaken by Otago Polytechnic towards the development of a Learner Capability Employer Priority Index (LCEPI). The LCEPI is the keystone of the research and identifies for the learner and for educators the most desirable capabilities that have been indicated during semistructured interviews with employers and other stakeholders.

Copyright:
The Learner Capability Framework and iamcapable tool are owned by iamcapable (© iamcapable 2019).
Website: https://iamcapable.co.nz/ . All rights reserved.

Other content is owned by Otago Polytechnic and is available for use under a Creative Commons
Attribution licence 4.0

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
ISBN 978-0-908846-68-9 - Print

Learner Capability Framework: A Validation Study Project Documentation
ISBN 978-0-908846-69-6 - Online

Learner Capability Framework: A Validation Study Project Documentation
Cite this as:
Otago Polytechnic (2021). Learner Capability Framework: A validation study. Project Documentation.
Dunedin, New Zealand: Otago Polytechnic.

Download e-book at link > LCF - A Validation Study (Project Documentation) web .pdf