Utilizing Student Centered Seminars as a Student Centered Independent Learning Tool to Develop Transferable Skills in Students

Abstract

Introduction Universities are expected to produce qualified graduates well equipped with knowledge, skills and attitudes. Knowledge is generated and shared through multiple disciplines in Universities. Skills would be many and vary. Skills development among students is timely important. Personal qualities and skills of students are the only selection criteria used by employers. Students need to be able to identify their personal skills and qualities, assess how well students can demonstrate them, determine how students can enhance those skills before they graduate, and communicate those skills to employers. In the process of distinguishing and selecting undergraduates for employment, employers take a keen interest in the personal qualities and personal skills of graduates, who will then be potential candidates. In a conventional teaching environment which types of skills and how those skills could be developed and transferred in students would be doubtful. Gibbs and Habeshaw (1989) pointed out: “There has been extensive research on the effectiveness of the lecture as a teaching method which has shown that; Lectures are as effective at conveying factual information as other methods, but not more so…Lectures are a very poor means of changing attitudes, inspiring students or inducing positive or professional attitudes towards the subject…” (p.44). This study adopts a new method to change the conventional teaching and learning approaches which consist of lectures, assignments and examinations. The change resulted in the change of learning approaches of students from conventional learning methods to student centered independent learning approach; Student centered seminar. Students learn well when they take responsibility for their learning (Gibbs & Habeshaw, 1989). Gibbs and Habeshaw (1989) further stated: “Effective learners are autonomous: learners make their own decisions about how, when and what to learn rather than passively following general advice” (p.176). In improving transferable skills, Gibbs (1995) stated that: “Teamwork can involve a wide range of transferable skills, and team projects are an ideal vehicle for building the demnd for the use of skills into learning tasks. Team projects can involve leadership, interpersonal skills, negotiation, oral and written communication, time and task management, research and information skills, chairing meetings and almost any other skill you want to build in” (p.5). Accordingly, based on the background, the researcher was interested to carry on a research, which would raise the research issue as: what types of transferrable skills would be developed among students through the student centered seminar series? (10th) Conference on Higher Education in Sri Lanka on 20 th June 2014, jointly organized by the Staff Development Centre (SDC) University of Colombo, Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka Association for Improving Higher Education Effectiveness ( SLAIHEE) The research issue is comprehensively addressed through answering the following research questions: - How the student centered seminar series were carried out? - What types of transferable skills were expected to develop among students? - What were the methods used to assess the types of transferable skills developed through the students centered seminar series? The broader purpose of the study is to get a deep understanding about the research issue. Following are the narrowed down objectives of this study: - To gain an understanding on the different types of transferrable skills which were expected to develop among students - To explore the impact of students centered seminar on students’ transferable skills