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Work-Based Courses Section 3: Designing the Course

October 5, 2018

At a Glance

After determining the necessity of a work-based program and building your team, the third section of the *Work-Based Courses* toolkit shows community and technical colleges how to design the curriculum to best prepare student workers.

When designing a work-based course curriculum, the college must rethink existing coursework and expand on the concept of preparation for the workplace to include learning in the workplace. Because they are drawn from credit-bearing courses, work-based courses must continue meeting the requirements of the college’s manufacturing degree and certificate programs.

As they begin planning, colleges should talk to companies they have worked with before to discuss how work-based courses can enhance existing training activities. Based on the companies’ primary skill needs and the positions they have the most trouble filling, the college can select the most relevant courses from its catalog to adapt to a work-based delivery. The specific workplace knowledge, skills, and abilities to be mapped onto work-based courses can be identified collaboratively, with college and employers working together.

In a work-based course model, the workplace provides options to demonstrate, reinforce, and assess students’ skills on the job. Through an assessment process, these opportunities are documented and formalized, so the learning that takes place in each context is verified and acknowledged. Employers help inform faculty on how a student performs a particular skill on the job, and faculty can inform employers when a student is ready to put a new concept to work.

Mapping Work-Based Competencies with Curriculum

Questions to Ask before Watching This Video

  • Ask your employer partners how their companies document the knowledge, tasks, and skills that workers must master in their job.
  • How does a course curriculum that prepares students for the workplace differ from and complement learning in the workplace?
  • How well do your current course offerings simulate learning in the workplace or connect to real-world work experiences, such as internships?

Questions to Ask after Watching This Video

  • How do your employer partners expect that the process described in the video—doing a job-task analysis, documenting critical tasks and steps to complete them, and using this information to inform the work-based course design—would benefit their organization?
  • Identify any obstacles to doing a job-task analysis and leading a work-based course design process. How might you address these?
  • How do you think your faculty would respond to working with employers to modify the content, delivery, and scope of some existing course offerings and adapt them for work-based delivery?

Designing Outcomes and Assessment Instruments

Question to Ask before Watching This Video

  • How do supervisors at partner companies assess the readiness of incoming workers to determine if they understand current industry and plant practices?
  • How do they evaluate which workers are qualified to operate specific machinery?

Questions to Ask after Watching This Video

  • Why is it important that tools for assessing competencies have the buy-in and understanding of employer supervisors?
  • Describe a situation in which communication between the employer supervisor and community college faculty might improve worker performance, and give an example of how it might impact the way a topic is taught in the classroom.
  • What can college faculty learn with respect to designing outcomes and assessment instruments by visiting a job site?

Other Courses in the Toolkit

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Work-Based Courses Section 1: Assessing Your College's Compatibility

Work-Based Courses Section 1: Assessing Your College's Compatibility The first section of the *Work-Based Courses* toolkit explores how community and technical colleges can determine whether a work-based courses program is right for them and their…

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Work-Based Courses Section 2: Building the Right Team

Work-Based Courses Section 2: Building the Right Team The second section of the *Work-Based Courses* toolkit focuses on the importance of having a strong team to support the development of a work-based courses program and…

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Work-Based Courses Section 4: Training Work-Based Course Partners

Work-Based Courses Section 4: Training Work-Based Course Partners The fourth section of the *Work-Based Courses* toolkit discusses how participants must adjust to their expanded roles, particularly faculty and employers’ senior employees that will act as…

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Work-Based Courses Section 5: Course Delivery

Work-Based Courses Section 5: Course Delivery The fifth section of the *Work-Based Courses* toolkit offers guidance on how to ensure the work-based curriculum is consistent and supports student learning. Collaboration between Faculty and Employer Mentors…

October 5, 2018
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Work-Based Courses Section 6: Connecting Workers to College

Work-Based Courses Section 6: Connecting Workers to College The final section in the *Work-Based Courses* toolkit centers on how to provide the right supports that enable students to truly benefit from a work-based course. Connecting…

October 5, 2018