Building block Education & Recruitment

#Curriculum development #Building blocks

One way to link education to the labor market better is by improving education. Including the improving education building block in a public-private partnership (PPP) increases its offer’s appeal and relevance, with up-to-date education that is in line with practice as a result. There are two options for Education & Recruitment: updating the educational content and updating teaching methods.

Option 1: updating the educational content

Educational institutions work  with companies to develop new demand-driven educational opportunities. These can take the form of guest lecturers or participating in education development teams. Promoting a continuous learning line, with special attention to intake promotion, is often an important topic when updating educational content.

What’s it all about?

• Updating the curriculum, so that it is more in line with the labor market. Both front-end technology and 21st century skills. 
• The PPP positions itself as a top educational institution that delivers excellent students along with top instructors. 

What happens next?

• Updating existing courses, for example with new themes, as well as developing new modules or courses. 
• Companies play an important role in specifying the requirements that the new options should meet. 
• The new curriculum will be embedded in the existing curriculum. 
• Other common activities include creating continuous learning lines as a result of new content in the education system, professionalizing teaching and promoting intake.

What kinds of partners are required?

• Companies and institutions that participate, for example on advisory boards, and contribute directly to the implementation of education in the form of guest lecturers, participating in curriculum development teams, supervising student projects, and internships.

What kinds of agreements do you need to make?

• Company and institutional contributions are mainly in-kind. Often, a one-off larger investment is needed initially to take the educational content to a higher level. This can be a quality impulse, also for teaching professionalization. A maintenance phase follows to keep the curriculum up to date. 
• For the school, it means freeing up teachers for development tasks.

Where can I find a good example?

• CIV Horticulture & Starting Materials/Horti Campus Westland: multidisciplinary educational development teams. 
• Master plan MEI: development of regional training profiles and assessment forms). 
• Center of Expertise High Tech Systems & Materials: application of applied research in education). 
• Center of Expertise HAN BioCentre: application of applied research in education).

Option 2: updating teaching methods

New teaching methods are often moving education into the workplace. Learning is working and working is learning. This shift often also requires an investment in a PPP’s infrastructure.

What’s it all about?

• Updating teaching methods

What happens next?

• Moving from education to the workplace, or vice versa: learning is working and working is learning in hybrid learning. 
• Learning takes place formally and informally in practice, for example around practical assignments that teachers, students, and employees work on.

What kinds of partners are required?

• Business partners willing to invest in a context-rich learning and working infrastructure and who are able to formulate and supervise concrete innovation assignments. 
• Flexibly organized schools.

What kinds of agreements do you need to make?

• Companies help to specify the requirements for the educational offer and play an important role in the implementation such as offering context-rich learning and working environment and guidance. 
• Agreements on continued in kind investments like guidance and organizing learning on the work floor, plus facilities.

Where can I find a good example?

• CIV agile craftsmanship in learning organizations at Nordwin College focuses on expanding the hybrid learning concept. 
• TechPack Flevoland develops special internships in combination with action learning or intervision, modern professional skills, and 21st century skills. The internship are group internships around company assignments, in specially equipped Skills Labs for education and business. 
   

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