"21st Century Professional Development – Bridging the Gap Between Higher Education and Working Life". Full paper presentation with Hanna Teräs (www.hannateras.com) at AACE E-Learn 2010, Orlando Florida.

1. 21st Century Professional
Development
Bridging the gap between
higher education and working life
Tampere University of Applied Sciences Digital_Alpaca
Hanna Teräs Marko Teräs
AACE e-Learn 2010 – Orlando, Florida

2. Emergence of knowledge society
Paradigm shift

3. • Work
• Organizations
• Communication
• Management
• Careers
• Learning?
What is different?

6. 21st century skills
• Subject matter independent
skills needed in knowledge
society working environment
• Learning and innovation skills
• Digital literacy skills
• Career and life skills
Trilling & Fadel (2009)
Image: Seier+Seier

7. Image: bekibartlett
The issue of time

8. &%#!@ Facebook,
Twitter, Flickr, YouTube,
blog, wiki,
whatwasthatagain...
Image: megabn

10. WHO CAN HELP?
1. Inside universities: teachers who are skilled in
using new technology and have personal interest
towards it (good, but not enough!)
2. Expertise from outside the university: young
entrepreneurs and digital natives

11. ?
Writing the
project report
Preparing and
giving a
presentation
Independent
group formation
SWOT analysis
Topic selection:
Project management
/webconferencing
software
Authentic
project plan
Independent
team work,
free-choice tools
Online teaching
and mentoring
Project meeting
and consultation

12. Image: DustyReagan
Image: Matt Hamm
Image: Pink Moose
+
=

13. Image: Pink Moose
Image: Brittney Bush
+
Image: DustyReagan
Image: Matt Hamm
=

14. An integration of 21st century professional
development skills and social media to a study
unit on professional development

15. "Understanding social media and its efficient use is
something that should be taught to BBA students,
but we don't know how."
Why?

16. The changes have been more rapid outside than
inside schools (Downes 2005)
Why?

17. Starting point:
Teachers’ workshop – Dec 2009

18. How: Presentation + Workshop with coaching methods
Outcome: "We need to teach this, but don't know how."
Conclusion: Study module made by the entrepreneur.
University coaches included in the iteration process
through shared Google Docs.
Starting point:
Teachers’ workshop –
Dec 2009

19. The study module – 2010

20. ~100 BBA students divided into 6 groups,
each of them having their own coach from
the University
The Study Module – 2010

21. How: 3 presentations + 3 sessions in small
groups
The Study Module – 2010

22. Topics:
1. Basics in Social Media & 21st century skills,
Self-development
2. Personal branding & Networking
3. Social media in employment & How companies use
social media (from marketing to inner communications)
The Study Module – 2010

23. The Study Module – 2010
2 assignment examples
from the group sessions

24. “Gather your group's travel program
to a single Google Doc together with
the group.
You can determine what's in it, who
creates it, shares it to others and
how you share the responsibilities.
Only thing important is that you
manage yourself in the trip.”
1. A Field Trip to another country

25. • In most cases, the students were amazing and fast with
the assignment.
• Students helped each other in the group.
• Some coaches knew what to do and let go of telling or
directing the students too much. Some coaches acted like
teachers.
• Some coaches less familiar with Google Docs were
positively surprised how well it worked and wanted
themselves to learn it better in the future.
Outcomes

26. “Imagine the job of your dreams. Start planning your
strategy how to get it, through building your personal
branding base, e.g. showing what your interests are and
what you are good at.
Possibilities: blogging, searching and networking with
people through social media, participating in
professional online networks and creating for example
LinkedIn profile as your organic CV.”
2. Personal branding

27. • For some students (and coaches) the assignment seemed
a bit vague.
• A coach: "For me this kind of openness feels a bit uneasy.
People can see, if you are searching for a job and see
everything that you are doing."
• Some people don't want to create online profiles and leave
anything personal in the Internet.
Outcomes

28. Overall conclusions of the study module
?
? ?
?

29. • The guest trainer was someone from the "real world" and
knew the topic well from many angles.
• Possibility for the students to get mentoring during the
module through email & social media – could’ve used it
more.
• The coaches learned with the students.
• From every group there was someone who had used the
technology a bit more than others – group help.
Advantages

30. • Two groups got valuable information from the guest
trainer which they implemented in their projects for actual
companies.
• Some of the students got valuable information for self-
development. New contacts through the guest trainer
which started new projects.
These happened with students who were proactive and
had inner motivation
Real-life advantages

31. • The usual teaching method in the department is based on
regular teaching and classes. Coaching methods and open
ended assignments were sometimes hard to grasp.
• "Don't make me think" attitude.
• "Are we becoming the tech support?"
• Dialogue with the trainer and coaches – more
collaborative iteration could’ve occurred.
Challenges

32. Challenges
"This method is pedagogically right, but the
students need control and someone to tell
them clearly what to do."

33. CONCLUSIONS
The change is deeper than simply a set
of new tools: teaching technologies is
not enough.
Students don’t learn to use social media
for professional purposes on their own.
Expertise from outside the university
can be integrated in university teaching
in a meaningful way.
Staff in-work coaching and integrating
technology in existing activities -> more
sustainable outcomes than traditional
staff training and workshops
CONCLUSIONS

34. hanna.teras(at)tamk.fi
twitter.com/hannateras
www.hannateras.com
marko(at)digitalalpaca.com
twitter.com/markoteras
www.markoteras.com
Thank you!