Perfectio - Recognition (Autumn 2023)

votre référence en formation des adultes

RECOGNITION

AUTUMN 2023

Table of contents EDITORIAL. . ................ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..................... 4 GENERIC SKILLS: DEFINITIONS AND CONTEXTS. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..................... 5 Why are we interested in generic skills?.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..................... 6 Culture and Generic Skills: Do Generic Skills vary from one culture to another?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...................... 7 Understanding Generic Skills and Skills for Success. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 10

MEASUREMENT TOOLS AND FRAMEWORKS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................. 12 Thoughts on Measuring Generic Skills.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................... 13 ESAT – A Formative Approach to Developing Socio-Emotional Skills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 16 Our skills for self-fulfillment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................... 18 The COFA Competencies Framework: a framework to support the professional practices of LBS organizations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 20 Nos compétences fortes (Online), a Pilot Project.. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 22 Generic Skills in OALCF. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 26

COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT FRAMEWORKS. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................. 29 Skills for Success, Essential Skills and OALCF - A Comparison. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 30 Generic Skills and Skills for Success: an exercise in comparison. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 34

DIGITAL BADGES..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................. 48 A short guide to Digital Badges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 49 Open Badges and COFA: Making skills visible for adult learning.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................... 51 Let's Badge LBS. . ...... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ................... 53

CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS EDITION.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .................. 54

EDITOR IN CHIEF: Gabrielle Lopez

COORDINATOR: Laurence Buenerd

GRAPHIC DESIGNERS: Salma El Mahdati & Chantal Carrière

TRANSLATION: Lauraine Teodoro

PRINTING: Bradda Printing Services inc.

The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Coalition ontarienne de formation des adultes (COFA).

introduction

A word from the editor in chief Gabrielle Lopez

Why devote an issue to generic skills? Because these skills are essential for navigating a constantly changing world, with ever-accelerating work rhythms, ever-increasing performance requirements and increasingly complex living contexts, in which we have to interact with others.

In this issue, we dive into the heart of generic skills, exploring their definitions and contexts of use. What are we really talking about? How do they differ from specific skills? How do they fit into the fabric of the professional world? Do they vary from one culture or identity group to another?

What about identifying and evaluating them? A far from simple task. Brigid Hayes sheds light on this assessment challenge, explaining just how complex it is. The various competency frameworks incorporate generic skills in more or less subtle ways. We present a few of them, explaining the generic competencies associated with them. Special mention is made of the ICÉA's "Nos compétences fortes" (NCF) approach, with its Competencies Framework and workshops, which is attracting growing interest as an accessible tool for identifying them. COFA is actively working on the development of the online version of NCF, which will soon be available.

Finally, we discuss the learning and acquisition of these essential skills. Futureworx's ESAT emerges as a tool for assessment and feedback in an employment context, aimed at facilitating the acquisition and appropriate use of what Futureworx prefers to call "socio-emotional skills." Digital badges also enter the scene, offering a contemporary way of identifying and valuing these skills in an increasingly digital world.

In short, this issue is an exploration of the essential role that generic skills play in our professional and personal lives. In an ever-changing world, it is imperative to understand, assess and cultivate these skills, not only to adapt, but also to thrive.

PHOTO: Mélanie Provencher

4

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

GENERIC SKILLS:

Definitions and contexts

5

6

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

WHY ARE WE INTERESTED in generic skills?

By Isabelle Coutant//Development and Liaison Agent, Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA)

Every day, throughout our lives, we learn. Some of our learning takes place formally and consciously: academic, technical or professional knowledge is passed on to us, enabling us to perform certain types of tasks. In the same way, we learn new things voluntarily, through readings, workshops or video clips.

But all this does not constitute the totality of our learning, because our life experiences are also formative and essential.

To live and flourish in society, we have to adapt to a variety of complex environments: at school, in the community, at work, in training or in family life, we have to learn, communicate, solve problems and collaborate with others. These ways of being, which define our personality, are another kind of learning, developed by the force of our experiences, our interactions, our projects and our failures, and we reinvest them in new experiences or new projects.

These soft skills acquired through practice and manifested differently from one person to the next are generic skills. We can use them and mobilize them on different occasions and in different spheres of our lives. We can develop our creativity in community activities, and use it in professional projects. These skills enable us to act relevantly and appropriately in different life contexts.

“Taking an interest in generic skills is another way of working to promote the autonomy of adults in training, whatever their level of schooling and literacy skills!”

Before these tools are available, we can account for the generic skills we have developed by self-assessment, reflecting on our experiences and sharing them with others.

Knowing generic skills and recognizing your own can help you gain self-confidence, build on your strengths and use vocabulary that makes sense in the world of work. Becoming aware of this type of skill is useful for everyone, but even more so for people who have few diplomas or certifications from the school system.

Taking an interest in generic skills is another way of working to promote the autonomy of adults in training, whatever their level of schooling and literacy skills!

Since these skills are learned and developed, they can also be assessed and evaluated: as an individual, we can determine whether we have improved our teamwork skills through our experiences, for example. It is, however, more difficult to use traditional assessment tools when measuring this type of skill. By their very nature, generic skills are a sum of abilities, aptitudes, which are demonstrated in action: to measure them precisely, individuals would have to perform everyday tasks several times in a controlled environment. It's theoretically possible, but not adapted to the reality of our training environments, and above all totally artificial. However, several research projects aim to create reliable measurement tools for assessing generic skills. Technological advances in artificial intelligence could be used to develop tests to measure creativity, for example.1 1

Hernandez, J. (2021) Des psychologues tentent de mesurer objectivement la créativité. Futura Sciences. https://www.futura-sciences.com/sante/actualites/psychologie-psychologues-tentent-mesurer-objectivement-creativite-92200/

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

Culture and Generic Skills

DO GENERIC SKILLS VARY FROM ONE CULTURE TO ANOTHER?

By Laurence Buenerd // Writer and Coordinator

On November 1st , 2023, Gabrielle Lopez, Executive Director of the Coalition ontarienne de formation des adultes (COFA), Hervé Dignard, researcher at the Institut de coopération pour l'éducation des adultes (ICÉA) and Donald Lurette, specialist and consultant in andragogy, were brought together by videoconference to discuss generic skills and identity belonging. The conversation covered several aspects of the issue, drawing on Hervé's experience as the person responsible for developing the “Nos compétences fortes” (NCF) tool1 and ICÉA's Competencies Framework, and Donald's experience as an andragogy and training facilitator of the NCF.

ICÉA (2014). "Nos compétences fortes," Tools section, Website page of the Institut de coopération pour l'éducation des adultes, updated January 28, 2014. Online: https://icea.qc.ca/fr/services/ nos-compétences-fortes.

1

7

8

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

DO WE NEED TO ADAPT TOOLS In response to a question about the origins of the term AND FRAMEWORKS? "generic skills," Hervé recalls the research that led to the A QUESTION OF VOCABULARY

creation of “Question de compétences: un outil au service des femmes”, 2 in the late 80s, to help housewives enter the job market. It talked about generic skills, defined as being part of a person's personality, useful in all walks of life and capable of being developed, used and transferred equally well in all walks of life or work. But the term "generic skills" is not universal: comparing over 40 competencies frameworks produced by dozens of French- and English-speaking count ries, he found that the terms transferable or transversal skills were very often used. As he recalls, the CAEL3 organization in the USA and the Hay Group were already using the notion of generic skills in the early 80s, i.e., skills not linked to a specific context of action. Donald adds that English speakers were already talking about "soft skills" or "life skills" and the need to value them as early as the 70s. For him, these skills have always been present in the world of work, as they support the performance of professional tasks in the same way as specialized or technical skills. The way in which they are named varies from era to era, but they remain perfectly relevant.

For the past few months, the ICÉA has been evaluating the possibility of deploying the NCF approach in Indigenous communities. Donald took part in the first meetings and points out that members of Indigenous communities don't speak with one voice. For example, in the context of a construction training project, some representatives would have liked to see the desired learning aligned with the "Seven Sacred Teachings"4 while others preferred a less holistic adaptation, more focused on generic skills and the world of work. Points of view varied according to individual realities: life within or outside Indigenous communities, employment outlook, etc. Donald points out that, while the ICÉA competencies framework is not necessarily representative of Indigenous cultures, there are similarities and overlaps with the "Seven Sacred Teachings."

ADAPTING TO MINORITY LANGUAGE CONTEXTS? Gabrielle then wondered about the relevance of designing approaches more specific to minority contexts: could a framework created by an English-speaking majority be used by a French-speaking minority, and vice versa? Hervé reminds us that the NFC approach is based on identifying a person's skills through past successes. In his opinion, this inclusive approach doesn't require any particular adaptation, even if the workshops given in Quebec, Manitoba or Saskatchewan each take on different "colours". For him, a simple translation of the tools and reference framework would suffice: the approach was developed for people who were not very comfortable with the written word, and who wanted to enter the job market. The NCF approach was originally designed for use with people and groups likely to experience exclusion. It has been successfully used throughout French-speaking communities in Canada and in several French-speaking European countries. He points out, however, that while the workshops are designed to enable individuals to recognize their own strong generic skills, those of others, and the situations in which these skills are useful. The NCF approach does not represent an actual assessment of generic skills using external normative standards. In this sense, the value and transferability of strong generic skills are determined by the group and implicitly recognized by the ICÉA.

COFFRE, Relais-femmes, ICÉA (1989). Question de compétences : un outil au service des femmes, 191 p.

The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) is a national, non-profit membership organization working to improve education-to-career pathways for adult learners. www.cael.org 4 The Seven Sacred Teachings are the traditional values shared by Aboriginal communities: humility, honesty, respect, courage, wisdom, truth and love. Depending on the communities, these values are personified by an animal or a legendary character, but they are common to all of North America. The Legislative Assembly of Ontario has created a document that presents them: https://www.ola.org/sites/default/files/common/pdf/Seven%20Grandfather%20Teachings%20WEB%20Eng%20.pdf 2

3

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

“All three agree that, in recent years, generic skills have been recognized and at last valued.”

Donald also believes that the approach has no linguistic or minority specificity. As a long-time facilitator of the NCF training workshops, he has never experienced a problem with the relevance of either the approach or its competencies framework, even though skills vary from one person and community to another. However, he acknowledges that RESDAC is exploring the possibility of adapting the Government of Canada's latest competencies framework (Skills for Success), which includes several generic skills, to minority contexts.

A CULTURAL DIMENSION TO SKILLS DEVELOPMENT On the other hand, he claims to have identified an important factor of difference for communities in a minority context, that of skill development paths. He points out that these paths are not neutral, and may be more demanding for certain groups, such as cultural and linguistic minorities. Learners will then need to be able to develop a range of generic skills to perform more complex tasks, but in a plurilingual context. It is therefore at the stage of developing or reinforcing these skills that additional resources should be deployed. As for frameworks, which are almost always designed for unilingual environments, it would be very demanding to adapt them to the multiple plurilingual contexts of minority communities. Indeed, all these communities have variable-geometry uses of the minority language, depending on the forces of the linguistic market in place.

What needs to change is the way they are interpreted and used in a minority context, with these andragogical actions more within our grasp. But are financial backers ready to recognize this cultural and linguistic dynamic in a minority context? To grant funding that takes into account the andragogical challenges this dynamic raises? To allow more time before seeing the results?

5

Lydienne Guidoin's article on page 20 explains the NCF online tool.

THE ETERNAL QUESTION OF FINANCING Thanks to new funding and strategic partnerships, the NCF tool will be translated into English as part of the project with Indigenous communities in Quebec, and in Ontario, trainers from the Canadian Platform for Distance Learning (CPDL) are learning how to use the online tool.5 However, all three participants agree on the importance of funding for the sustainability of the tool and its use. Donald believes that other strategic partnerships would undoubtedly enable the NCF tool to be developed further and deployed on a wider scale.

All three agree that, in recent years, generic skills have been recognized and at last valued.

HOW WILL THE NCF TOOL AND ITS FRAMEWORK EVOLVE? Hervé believes that even if the skills required from one context to another will vary, the NCF recognition process will remain relevant. Nine new skills have been added to the latest version of the ICÉA Competencies Framework (going from 13 to 22), to reflect the changing diversity of today's population. In conclusion, Hervé emphasizes that the “Nos compétences fortes" (NCF) approach can be adapted to all kinds of contexts, depending on needs and communities.

9

10

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

W Understanding

GENERIC SKILLS AND SKILLS FOR SUCCESS

By Hervé Dignard // Researcher, Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA) This article is the first part of an article entitled Compétences génériques et compétences pour réussir : un exercice de comparaison, which was first published in the January 2023 publication “Apprendre + Agir” of the ICÉA1 – (available in French only) Generic Skills and Skills for Success: an exercise in comparison.

QUESTIONING SKILLS Even today, many questions remain unanswered about the skills that are useful in everyday life. One of these questions concerns the different designations these skills receive from the people and organizations who decide on their importance.

In the mid-1990s, the federal government began promoting essential skills, a set of fundamental and transferable competencies whose mastery contributes to our independence. In 2021, these essential skills became the Skills for Success. 2 On the international scene, the OECD began thinking about key competencies in the early 2000s. The aim was to provide a conceptual framework to guide the long-term development of useful skills for adults.3 In Quebec, the Commission des partenaires du marché du travail (CPMT) recently implemented the Référentiel québécois des compétences du futur.4 This framework presents ten non-technical competencies that would be useful for developing and enhancing workforce skills.

In terms of skills, three major international surveys (conducted since the 1990s) have measured adults' key information processing skills: literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technological environments. These surveys underline the importance of developing a set of basic skills, such as reading, writing, numeracy, using digital tools, etc.5 These frameworks, reflections and surveys paint a picture of the skills needed to access information and interact in a knowledge-based society, in order to ensure our independence.

These skills foster versatility in the workplace. They help us to act as parents, learners, citizens and socially committed individuals. Finally, these skills guide our decisions in areas such as consumption, taxation and financial planning.

In addition to the basic skills that enable our independence, this portrait is made up of various transferable skills that contribute to the affirmation of the many social roles we will play throughout our lives. By their very nature, these transferable skills are strongly linked to our personality and evolve with

Online : https://icea-apprendreagir.ca/competences-generiques-et-competences-pour-reussir-un-exercice-de-comparaison EDSC (2021). "The new Skills for Success model," Employment and Social Development Canada Web page, updated May 18, 2021.

Online: https://www.canada.ca//en/services/jobs/training/initiatives/skills-success/new-model.html 3 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), (2005). The definition and Selection of Key Competencies Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development - OECD, Online: https://www.oecd.org/pisa/definition-selection-key-competencies-summary.pdf.

4 La Commission des partenaires du marché du travail - CPMT (2022). Se préparer à un marché du travail en transformation : Référentiel québécois des compétences du futur, Québec, Commission des partenaires du marché du travail, 26 p. Online: https://www.cpmt.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/fichiers_cpmt/Publications/RA_referentiel_CPMT.pdf.

5 Dignard, H. (2022). "Les littératies, pour aller plus loin", Apprendre + Agir, Édition 2022. La publication en ligne de l’ICÉA. Online: https://icea-apprendreagir.ca/les-litteraties-pour-aller-plus-loin/.

1

2

C

o

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

11

WHAT ARE THESE SKILLS? WHICH ORGANISATION DEFINES THEM MOST ACCURATELY?

Can the skills of different frames

of reference be compared?

WHAT TOOLS CAN BE USED TO IDENTIFY RECOGNISE OR MEASURE THESE SKILLS? us, developing throughout our lives. These transferable skills are also referred to as "generic skills" by some organizations, including the ICÉA. Whether they're called generic skills, transferable skills or something else, these life skills are the source of many questions. What are these skills? Which organization defines them most accurately? Can competencies from different frames of reference be compared? What tools can be used to identify, recognize or measure these skills?

These are questions for which no definitive answer has yet been found. Why not? Quite simply because every reference framework designed to date to present transferable skills relates to a specific and distinct universe.

These frameworks respond to different reference systems, and their aims are not the same. Some frameworks are geared towards identifying and recognizing adults' strengths, such as the framework of the ICÉA. Other frameworks aim to concretely measure these strengths and assess competencies. This is the case with the Skills for Success framework and several other reference frameworks presented and compared in this issue of Perfectio.

“These are questions for which no definitive answer has yet been found. Why not? Quite simply because every reference framework designed to date to present transferable skills relates to a specific and distinct universe.”

12

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

MEASUREMENT TOOLS and frameworks

Measurement tools and frameworks

Thoughts on

MEASURING GENERIC SKILLS

By Brigid Hayes// Manager, Brigid Hayes Consulting

In this article, Brigid Hayes, a specialist with 35 years of experience in adult literacy and training policy, is sharing her thoughts on the challenges of assessing soft skills.

Generic skills, those skills that can be used in a variety of situations, differ from technical skills which are specific to a particular task.

Generic skills go by a number of different names – key skills, core skills, essential skills, key competencies, transferable skills, and employability skills. Employers, governments, and educational institutions employ different labels but in essence these skills relate to what is now referred to as Skills for Success here in Canada.

The federal government’s new Skills for Success model attempts to define generic or soft skills. Some of these nine skills1 – reading, writing, numeracy – are well established with both quantitative and qualitative assessment tools. But some of the Skills for Success are what we might call ‘soft’ skills – Adaptability, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity and Innovation, and Engage with Others.

These ‘soft’ skills are more challenging to teach and to assess.

Frameworks ensure that what is important, what is to be taught and what is to be assessed are all linked. Unfortunately, none exists for soft skills. “A competency framework is an instrument for the development, classification and recognition of skills, knowledge and competencies.”2 For example, the Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework (OALCF) describes six

broad competencies, 3 but does not provide complexity levels for Engage with Others – you either demonstrate the skill or you don’t.

The seminal document, “Building a Pan-Canadian Soft Skills Framework”4 prepared by Futureworx, calls for a national skills framework which would, among other things, create agreed upon definitions from which teaching and training practices could flow. As with best accepted practices, these skills should be embedded in authentic learning activities. In my opinion, a national framework, while nice to have, is not essential. What is essential is having a framework even if it only exists at the program level or the provincial level.

I have been skeptical about whether soft skills can be taught.

A report by The Conference Board of Canada concluded that while these skills could be taught, significant challenges exist such as the various and ambiguous definitions of social and emotional skills, little consensus on how to best define and measure these skills (particularly in the college setting which was the focus of the report), and recognition of the diversity of how people exhibit these skills.5

For details of these 9 skills, see Table 2 on page 37 of Hervé Dignard's article.

Gyarmati, David, Jane Lane et Scott Murray. Competency Framework and Canada’s Essential Skills. Novembre 2020. Page 4. https://fsc-ccf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Competency-Frameworks-PPF-Nov2020-EN.pdf 3 See the article written by Robyn Cook-Ritchie on page 30 comparing OALCF and the Skills for Success Frames.

4 Futureworx. Building a Pan-Canadian Soft Skills Framework. 2018. https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/programs/essential-skills/research-reports.html#y21 5 The Conference Board of Canada. Can Social and Emotional Skills Be Taught? An Analysis of Adult Training Programs. Page 4. https://fsc-ccf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/can-social-and-emotional-skills-be-taught.pdf 1

2

13

14

Measurement tools and frameworks

“We need to define and understand these skills in a way that avoids bias.”

Soft skills by their nature are subjective. For example, employers may have a different expectation of what “adaptability” is than workers have, differences that may be in part due to the nature of the industry (for example, how creative should a front-line worker be who assembles an airplane) or from their own personal approaches to work.

Teachers and practitioners may bring their own biases to the classroom based on their lived experiences and not those of their learners. Adult learners have a lifetime of experiences that need to be recognized and honoured. People from different generations, cultures or even parts of the country may have divergent views on what it means to be “adaptable.” This is why we need to define and understand these skills in a way that avoids bias.

Standalone quantitative measurement tools for soft skills exist. The Conference Board of Canada identified three which it believes are the most appropriate for adult students and employees – Emotional and Social Competency Inventory (ESCI), Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) and Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT). 7 I wonder, however, how you would use these in a learner-centred literacy program. They would not necessarily connect to what was being taught.

ESAT – Employability Skills Assessment Tool, developed by Futureworx, is more of a process than a specific tool. ESAT is based on a framework and skill definitions,8 and while it appears to be more complex than completing a single assessment form, from what I’ve seen, the multiple lines of inquiry seem to help avoid subjectivity and bias.

“Teachers and practitioners may bring their own biases to the classroom based on their lived experiences and not those of their learners.”

THE QUESTION OF ASSESSMENT FOR SOFT SKILLS IS CHALLENGING. I found the following best practice useful in thinking about assessing soft skills: Explicitly connect soft skills with performance goals (educational or organizational), and clarify what good performance is; Be comprehensive; Balance both qualitative and quantitative measures; Concern with both observable behaviour and a learner’s perceptions of their behaviours; Be fair, giving equal and objective treatment to all; Technically sound, using valid and reliable observations, data and inferences, quality information; Provide feedback that is useful, opportunities to close the gap between current and desired performance; Inclusive of self-assessment; reflection in learning; Adaptable to new and evolving skill needs, provides information to teachers that can be used to help shape teaching; Encourage positive motivational beliefs and self-esteem around learning.6

From “Soft Skills assessment: theory development and the research agenda,” Gibb, S., International Journal of Lifelong Education, Vol. 33, No. 4, 2014 cited in Futureworx, Employability Skills Assessment Tool. https://futureworx.ca/employability-skills-assessment-tool/ 7 The Conference Board of Canada. “Ways to measure social and emotional skills.” https://www.conferenceboard.ca/in-fact/ways-to-measure/.

8 See Paul Brinkhurst’s article on the ESAT assessment tool on page 16.

6

Measurement tools and frameworks

Assessment is an area fraught with politics and multiple interests. The learners need to know if they’ve progressed along their own goal paths, instructors are keen to learn of their learners’ progress but also need to demonstrate results to their superiors, programs need to justify their funding based on successful assessments, governments want to show that their investments have paid off. Using the wrong tool for the wrong purpose does no one any favours.

Generic skills and soft skills are best demonstrated in real life situations. Developing appropriate demonstrations for the assessment of soft skills takes time. The use of multiple observers of the learner’s acquisition of the skill seems to be an excellent way to avoid bias. As with any assessment, the approach used must link back to what was taught. Not linking what was taught to what is being assessed is a recipe for disaster.

A well-developed framework with clear definitions of skills will inform practice and assessment. Otherwise, these skills will potentially reflect a majority viewpoint and not recognize the myriad of ways that people can and do demonstrate these skills.

“Generic skills and soft skills are best demonstrated in real life situations. Developing appropriate demonstrations for the assessment of soft skills takes time.”

15

16

Measurement tools and frameworks

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS ASSESSMENT TOOL (ESAT) A Formative Approach to Developing Socio-Emotional Skills B y P a u l B r i n k h u r s t / / I n n o v a t i o n s D e v e l o p e r / E S AT S u p p o r t Futureworx

The growing recognition of socio-emotional skills as key development targets, for both work and life in general, is a positive development, but it also brings various challenges for those who deliver skills-based training. This short article considers these challenges and offers the reader an approach to helping clients develop socio-emotional skills in a respectful and intentional manner using the on-line Employability Skills Assessment Tool, ESAT.

Developing socio-emotional skills need not be the challenge it first appears to be. In most ways these skills, like adaptability, communication, and personal management are the same as more academic skills in that they can be observed, taught, practiced, and evaluated using formative techniques. They also differ in important ways as well. Two main differences are how environmental circumstances (who one is with, what one is doing, the space one is in, etc.) can greatly influence competence, and how difficult it currently is to actually measure that competency as one can a math or reading level. The former leads to situations where someone who is otherwise competent can find themselves in circumstances that trigger behaviours which repeatedly place success at risk.

Addressing such risks requires that the practitioner be able to identify these triggers and behaviours and work with the client to resolve them. The latter means that formative assessment approaches must be used which take time and careful observation.

The challenge, therefore, in developing socio-emotional skills effectively and respectfully, lies in giving the practitioner and client enough time, and enough variability in terms of environment, to properly observe, coach, and practice the skills desired.

While this is generally accepted as good practice, it tends to run counter to desires for employment programming to be rapid and results measurable. The former desire significantly limits the ability for challenging behaviours to be identified and addressed, while the latter seems to be encouraging the use of self-assessments for socio-emotional skills which we would not rely on for assessing any other type of skill that is important to success (a college degree, nursing license, or welding certificate for example). It may be that some way to measure socio-emotional skills can be developed that takes into account the client’s level of self-awareness and ability to manipulate results, but perhaps we should not rely on such tools for skills which so directly impact on an individual’s ability to succeed in life as a whole.

Measurement tools and frameworks

If the aim is to help people identify behaviors that impede success and then develop alternative behaviours, then one’s approach must be based on several key principles. The most important, in our experience, are:

THE COACHING SEQUENCE Define Expectations

• Create a common language that details behavioural expectations for each skill in its target environment; • Create coaching teams that integrate inputs and feedback from all those who have the opportunity to observe and support an individual in programming; • Observe client behaviours across all program activities, including social ones, to identify problem areas and strengths that can be addressed; • Assess skill competencies using both self-assessment and external observer assessment processes (the latter within a consensus-based framework) to identify areas of both alignment and misalignment; • Provide instruction and practice opportunity for those areas identified and agreed by the lead coach and client as being necessary for increasing the chances of client success.

Of course, applying these principles successfully involves many subtleties and competencies for program staff. Critical, however, is the provision of tools to support the creation of coaching teams, the management of observations, the completion of assessments, and the generation of information in forms that support dialogue and the development of trust between the client and their coaching team. ESAT was developed by Futureworx to do these tasks; to support both the client and the coaching team in a way that is easy and encourages a respectful and honest approach to addressing socio-emotional challenges.

ESAT first allows you to create coaching teams by linking the client with a lead ‘coach’ and others who are engaged with that client. This team can vary as the client moves through a program, ultimately including an employer to support the client in work placements or even probationary employment. The team can select, or develop, skills that are defined in terms of behaviours, both those desired and those to be avoided. This ensures a clear and consistent language is used with and by the client.

ESAT allows for recording the coaching team’s observations of socio-emotional behaviours as the client completes all phases of a program, whether they be class-based, hands on skill development, social interactions, etc. These observations are the basis on which the team assesses skill competency and reaches a consensus, while the client does their own assessment. The contrast between these two scores reveals those areas where self-awareness needs to be developed, and those where action

Establish Coaching Teams Build Trust Participants demonstrate Team observes / feedback ID patterns/feedbacks Assessment (self & team) Analyse Results Debrief Assessment Deconstruct Expectations?

SUPPORTED EXIT

Continue?

Activate Action Plan

GRAD

can be taken to enhance skill, technique and resolve problem areas. The resulting plots support the lead coach in developing dialogue and trust with the client leading to action plans and subsequent support by the team as the client strives to adopt new strategies to counter old behavioural issues.

Using ESAT is an effective and respectful way of developing social-emotional skills for those who have struggled to overcome behavioural barriers to success. It is not a quick fix, nor a rapid pre-post program assessment, but rather a respectful approach based on observation and trust which, when applied correctly, helps people succeed in the rapidly changing world of work.

17

18

Measurement tools and frameworks

OUR SKILLS FOR

self-fulfillment B y Ma rc L . Jo h n s o n / / C o n s u l t i n g - s o c i o l o g i s t , PGF Consultants

The Skills for Success model, launched by the Government of Canada (ESDC) in 2021, is aimed at all Canadians who want to "participate, adapt and thrive in learning, work and life". The French-speaking minority contributes to Canada's social life and economic prosperity, and we can assume that, in general, French-speaking people feel the needs expressed in this model. But... does this model cover all the needs of Francophones living in a minority situation? RESDAC and its partners at the Table nationale sur l'éducation (TNÉ) don't think so.

A TNÉ working group, which I accompanied with my colleagues from PGF Consultants, looked at the situations faced

by Francophones who want to work and live fully in their own language and culture, while coping with the linguistic demands of a predominantly English-speaking society.

the governance of their organizations; living together in fragile communities that are becoming increasingly complex; the need to constantly create and innovate to survive as a community; the fight for Francophone language, culture and identity; and the low literacy levels that plague these communities.

The group identified the following issues that are little or not taken into account by Skills for Success: community resilience and the need for collective action by Francophones;

The group identified four complementary individual competencies that address the specific needs of Francophones. These Skills for self-fulfillment are described as follows:

LANGUAGE SKILLS

SOCIAL INVOLVEMENT

Your ability to lead your personal, family, professional and social life in French, while having language skills in English or other languages that enable you to evolve in society and perpetuate your cultural heritage.

Your ability to get involved in your Francophone community, by participating in its activities and exercising leadership or governance roles.

AFFIRMATION OF IDENTITY

LIVING TOGETHER

Your ability to define and redefine yourself and to assert yourself as a French-speaking person living in a minority context, at least as one facet of your identity, and to demand the conditions that favour living in French.

Your ability to facilitate living together in your Francophone community, by participating in the community's efforts to include its diverse members and in the efforts of its members to integrate into the community.

Measurement tools and frameworks

“This reflection on skill development, in the context of what is known as lifelong learning, calls for a new social project.”

These individual skills relate to the individual's relationship with his or her community. They reflect the capacities required of a French-speaking individual to act in his or her specific minority context, drawing on knowledge, know-how and interpersonal skills.

The Competencies for self-fulfillment enable self-fulfillment "by and for" French-speaking people, but to do so, they must also draw on collective competencies. Collective competencies are the responsibility of organizations or communities and, like individual competencies, they translate into the ability to act, either at the level of an organization or at the community level through the collaboration or cooperation of several organizations.

This reflection on skill development, in the context of what is known as lifelong learning, calls for a new social project.

The notions of a learning organization, a learning city and a learning community are tools to guide and mobilize the efforts to be deployed, not only by adult education organizations, but by any French-speaking organization that wants to ensure that its staff, members, volunteers and clientele develop their individual skills and those of their community.

This thinking process continues. From an innovative perspective, it is challenging models of thought and action that were shaped during the industrial era. It concerns all those involved in skills development. That's why RESDAC and its partners are inviting the leaders of our Francophonie to the Sommet national sur l’apprentissage pour la francophonie canadienne in Ottawa, March 4-5-6, 2024.

19

20

Measurement tools and frameworks

The COFA Competencies Framework: A FRAMEWORK TO SUPPORT THE PROFESSIONAL PRACTICES OF LBS ORGANIZATIONS B y Ly d i e n n e G u i d o i n / / A s s i s t a n t P r o g r a m M a n a g e r , P ro g ra m m e d e f o r m a t i o n à d i s t a n c e ( F @ D ) , C O FA

The COFA is developing a tool to promote the professionalization of the Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) network, as well as a micro-recognition approach to skills developed in professional practice, captured in digital badges.

This project is supported and funded by the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD).

Many of the frameworks that support policies and programs for Adult Literacy and Training Services in Canada are competencybased. These include the HRSDC (Human Resources and Skills Development Canada) Essential Skills Framework, which provides a framework for adult training programs in several provinces, the OALCF (Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework) which is based on broad competencies, the generic skills framework of the ICÉA (Institut de coopération pour l'éducation des adultes), the occupational skills frameworks that determine vocational training for many trades across the country, the literacy and numeracy skills framework that underpins international surveys on literacy and skills, etc.1 There's no denying that "competency" is increasingly present in the world of adult training across Canada and Ontario, and more specifically for adults with lower literacy levels. It is in this context that COFA is committed to the development of this Competencies Framework.

1

Just as we aim to develop multiple skills in learners to meet their complex and varied needs, we take a similar approach in the development of organizations and their employees, to meet their complex and varied professional needs.

“This Competencies Framework can therefore be seen as part of the answer to the question: "What competencies does my organization need to support the implementation of andragogical practices within the context of the CLAO framework?”

Lurette, Donald; Développement des compétences des adultes du Nouveau-Brunswick : Document de réflexion pour l’élaboration d’une vision andragogique; CODACNB, 2014.

Measurement tools and frameworks

HOW DO WE DEFINE THIS COMPETENCIES FRAMEWORK? This resource is first and foremost a competency framework that provides organizations with benchmarks for the development of their professional practices, in the context of an andragogical approach based on the competency-based approach proposed by the OALCF (Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework).

This Competencies Framework can therefore be seen as part of the answer to the question: "What competencies does my organization need to support the implementation of andragogical practices within the context of the CLAO framework?"

As such, it is designed to meet four major network objectives.

Initially, the Competencies Framework aims to recognize and enhance the skills of practitioners in the COFA network.

The development of the Competencies Framework will be accompanied by a process of micro-recognition of the skills developed in professional practice, based on a system of recognition of the professional skills of practitioners in the COFA network through digital badges.

This form of recognition will serve as the basis for the second objective of the framework, which is to foster the professional development of LBS network practitioners. Recognition of professional skills developed on the job (in professional practice) will provide a better framework for professional development in order to develop new skills.

Thirdly, the framework aims to foster the organizational development of the COFA network members. Indeed, the framework will facilitate certain organizational management activities such as: • support for professional development initiatives; • support for hiring processes; • support for evaluation processes; • etc.

A final objective of this Competencies Framework is to develop an approach to facilitate access to micro-training programs in partnership with institutions offering this type of opportunity, for example, with the Université de l’Ontario français (UOF).

In addition, the framework will be used not only by members of the COFA network, but may also be consulted by strategic partners or government agencies.

HOW IS IT BUILT? The skeleton of this resource came into being thanks to a literature review based on various publications on existing frameworks for practitioners of adult learners, mainly in Western countries.2 This literature review served as a guide both in terms of content and form, which made it possible to create a first draft of this Competencies Framework.

It therefore takes the form of a skills chart. It is built around the four essential roles (management role, administrative role, training role, design role) for the smooth running of LBS (Literacy and Basic Skills) organizations. These roles have been chosen to categorize the types of functions and skills inherent in an LBS organization.

Each role comprises the functions and skills listed in these tables, and is intended to guide the many professional tasks within the OALCF context. It has been developed according to the logic of competency levels to be mobilized to perform tasks of varying complexity (level 1 to perform simple tasks, level 2 to perform moderate tasks, level 3 to perform complex tasks). For each role, each function and each skill, there are three levels defined according to the complexity of the tasks. These different levels have been applied with reference to Bloom's Taxonomy. Each level shows technical skills, typical activities and generic skills, which are skills that are relevant to all the typical activities of a level.

There is also a common core that groups together a number of professional development activities of a more generic nature for all roles.

Here is a list of some of the documents they consulted: • Le référentiel de certification du titre professionnel : Formateur professionnel d’adultes Niveau III, • Le référentiel emploi activités compétences du titre professionnel : Formateur professionnel d’adultes Niveau III, • Le référentiel professionnel : Diplôme professionnel de Formateur d’Adultes – Certificat de Spécialisation « Former à distance » - Niveau III 2

21

22

Measurement tools and frameworks

WHO'S WORKING ON IT? An initial work team was set up, consisting of Carole Bonin (Practitioner at the Moi j'apprends training centre in Cornwall), Louise Lalonde, Linda Garant (General Director of the Centre de formation des adultes Inc.), Jacqueline Gauthier (General Director of the Centre FORA), Yassmine Khayat (Administrative Assistant at COFA), Lydienne Guidoin (Assistant Program Manager of COFA's Programme de formation à distance), and consultant Donald Lurette. This team worked to improve the content and form of the Competencies Framework.

Subsequently, members of the network (managers, practitioners, administrative support staff) joined this small committee to evaluate, revise, validate and improve the work that had been done. To date, there is a committee for each of the following roles: management role, administrative role, training role and design role. To these four committees have been added two others: a revision committee, whose role is to clarify the statements and standardize the language, and a committee whose role is to put in place a user guide that will facilitate the use of the framework.

A LINK WITH THE DIGITAL BADGES PROJECT This framework will be a considerable asset to the digital badges project for the recognition of the professional experience of LBS practitioners, and eventually, an asset to the development of the UOF adult training certification already initiated by COFA.

THE LIMITS OF THIS FRAMEWORK In conclusion, it's important to note that this Competencies Framework is merely a framework designed to establish guidelines and organize the development of professional skills for organizations and their stakeholders. In this sense, it represents a starting point, not a final step. The professional competencies of those involved will have to be modified, adapted and fine-tuned in line with the new realities imposed on adult education by the increasingly rapid evolution of society.

In this respect, the framework is also intended to be a dynamic tool. That's why a review committee will periodically revise it, because the framework, like the professional practices of LBS practitioners, will continue to evolve.

Nos compétences fortes (Online), A PILOTE PROJECT B y Ly d i e n n e G u i d o i n / / Assistant Program Manager, Programme de formation à distance; C O FA

The Institut de coopération pour l'éducation des adultes (ICÉA) and the COFA are working in partnership on a pilot version of the online "Nos compétences fortes" (NCF) approach. The intention of this online version is to broaden the scope of the NCF approach by making it more accessible to a larger number of people.

Measurement tools and frameworks

WHY THIS PROJECT?

WHAT FORM DOES NCF TAKE ONLINE?

Following the success of the in-person "Nos compétences fortes" (NCF) approach (Our Strong Skills) over the past thirty years, the emergence of digital technology in the world of andragogy has led to an interest in an online version.

The NCF online approach follows the same structure as the NCF in-person: a series of 8 two-hour online workshops during which participants deepen their understanding of generic skills, and discover their own skills and those of others. The series begins with an introductory activity, an awareness/recruitment session, during which an overview of the approach is given and participants' interest in volunteering for the pilot project is explored.

So we can't talk about this online version without first briefly defining the NCF approach.

For nearly thirty years, the NCF approach has been successfully used in the Canadian Francophonie, in Europe, by various organizations (literacy, adult education, local development, employability, social integration, etc.) offering government training or socio-professional integration programs.

Launched in 1995 by the ICÉA, this training tool offers three formal learning opportunities: • Recognize strong generic skills; • Recognizing strong generic skills in others; • Recognize generic skills useful in work situations.

This approach is aimed at adults who wish to identify their own generic skills and develop them within the framework of a group approach that emphasizes their strengths. It is based on a group facilitation approach and a dynamic of collective exchanges that encourage the development of people's capacity for action. It has been designed for easy use in most learning contexts.

The COFA, in partnership with the ICÉA, decided to embark on this project with a view to experimenting online with the success of the NCF in the classroom. To this end, the COFA solicited the participation of its members and partners of the PCFAD (Plateforme pancanadienne de formation à distance).

In keeping with the essence of the NCF approach, the online process includes interactive activities, group and small-group discussions, questions and answers, debriefings, group landings and personal introspection (reflection, visualization, listening and observation activities).

During the online NCF process, participants design and carry out an online group project in which they pool their generic skills.

Co-facilitation is carried out by two facilitators whose role is to guide participants and ensure they have the information they need.

For the trial period, facilitators are practitioners from the COFA and the PCFAD networks who have completed both the NCF in-person training and the NCF online facilitation training. The latter is a series of six online workshops that enable participants to acquire NCF animation strategies online. One cohort of practitioners has just completed its training, and another is currently taking the training. It is important to emphasize that it is recommended that participants first take the in-person approach before following it online.

PROJECT UPDATE To date, two trials have been completed: the first with participants from the Équipe d'alphabétisation de la Nouvelle-Écosse (Nova Scotia's Literacy Team) and the CODAC-NB network in New Brunswick, the second with participants from F@D in Ontario, the Équipe d'alphabétisation Nouvelle-Écosse and the CODAC-NB network in New Brunswick.

A third trial is underway with practitioners from the Équipe d'alphabétisation Nouvelle-Écosse and New Brunswick's CODAC-NB network. These practitioners have completed the NCF online facilitation training.

The comments and feedback that emerge after each trial run will be used to draft the final version of the online NCF approach.

23

24

Measurement tools and frameworks

The “Nos compétences fortes” approach: testimonials

TRAINING “NOS COMPÉTENCES FORTES” Linda Garant is the General Manager of the Centre de Formation des Adultes in Kirkland Lake,1 Ontario. She took part in a COFA workshop in September 2023, and reports on her experience in this article.

recognize practical, transferable skills that can help each person move forward in life. By taking part in these workshops of six to twelve people, participants can increase their self-confidence, their ability to work in a team and offer their services with greater conviction. Moreover, NCF workshops can be adapted to suit individual and group needs, making them extremely flexible.

For several years, I'd been hearing about the training “Nos compétences fortes” (Our Strong Skills), but had never been able to offer it at our Centre as it requires specialized training.

Last September, COFA offered this two-and-a-half-day training in Ottawa. What an opportunity! You can probably guess that I took part with all my enthusiasm. I was part of a very small group of dynamic people from Nunavut, Alberta and, of course, Ontario. It was an enriching and unforgettable experience.

Taking part in NCF workshops can be a transformative experience for learners: the collective approach helps participants recognize their skills, grow and develop. People who take part in NCF workshops can receive two types of digital badges: a badge for their participation in the NCF process, and badges highlighting the value of the strong generic skills they have been recognized for during this process. An asset for their job search.

"Nos compétences fortes" (NCF) is an approach aimed at all adults who wish to recognize and develop their generic skills, focusing on oral communication and sharing their experiences.

These workshops restore the confidence of people wishing to integrate socially, find a job or cope better with a situation of social transition.

On a personal level, this NCF training will enable me to offer a new service to learners, as I am now qualified to run NCF workshops in person.

Skills are essential for success in both professional and personal life. That's why the workshops NCF are so valuable: they help

If you're looking to develop the skills of your learners, NCF workshops are an excellent choice. By learning to recognize and build on their strong generic skills, they'll have the tools to reach their full potential. In short, if NCF training is offered to you, I urge you to seize the opportunity. Live the experience and you'll come out of it fulfilled.

MY NCF TRAINING: AN ENRICHING AND TRANSFORMING EXPERIENCE An article by Caroline Vandal Last September, I had the privilege of taking the training called “Nos compétences fortes" (Our Strong Skills) along with 12 other participants. This three-day facilitation course was led by consultant Donald Lurette. My enrolment was prompted by a request from the team at Le Réveil, a French-language production company. 2 This team is committed to training creators through the “Académie du LIVE” and the “Programme des Pilotes,” in which I'll be playing a key role this fall in the integration of the program “Nos compétences fortes” (NCF).

1 2

My main motivation for getting involved in the vast Reveil project through the program “Programme des Pilotes” was to use my experience as a retired teacher to actively contribute to the training of French-speaking youth. I wanted to meet young creators and guide them in acquiring new skills, while stimulating their personal, cultural and professional development.

The NCF training represented an exceptional opportunity for me to get involved in the French-speaking community.

https://cfakirklandlake.wixsite.com/formation Le Réveil is a production company that creates digital content to awaken Francophone identity in Canada. Its team's mission is to develop young talent, inform, entertain and awaken young people to the arts, culture and Franco-Canadian identity. To find out more, visit: https://reveil.ca

Measurement tools and frameworks

During this NCF training, I had the opportunity to meet people from all over Canada, which greatly enriched my own FrancoCanadian culture. The exchanges with the other participants were sincere, and we willingly shared our previous experiences to better understand our individual skills, including our strong ones.

The NCF training course was demanding, not least because the final project required a considerable investment of energy on the part of everyone involved. However, despite our fatigue at the end of the course, we came away with new perspectives and renewed energy.

My NCF training proved to be a real springboard for exploring new experiences, putting acquired skills into practice, and discovering new ones. It also made me realize that there's never a time when learning stops, even when you're exploring new career directions after retirement.

It's a rewarding experience to see that a thirst for learning can last throughout one's professional and personal life. In the near future, I'll have the opportunity to give this training, in collaboration with Lydienne Guidoin, to a new team of young talents of le Réveil. My goal is to give them an experience similar to mine during the NCF training.

In conclusion, the NCF training is a transformative experience for those who take it. It offers the chance to develop new skills, meet people from diverse backgrounds, and embark on new professional adventures. As a future trainer, I look forward to passing on this enriching experience and inspiring other young creators to pursue their development in the field of animation.

The NCF training has been a valuable opportunity for me, and I'm determined to share it with enthusiasm.

“My NCF training proved to be a real springboard for exploring new experiences, putting acquired skills into practice, and discovering new ones. It also made me realize that there's never a time when learning stops.”

25

BECOMING AWARE OF ONE'S GENERIC SKILLS, AN NCF WORKSHOP AS SEEN BY A PARTICIPANT From February 7th to March 21st, 2023, the first trial run Online of "Nos compétences fortes" (NCF) (Our Strong Skills) took place; a training program consisting of seven workshops for a total of 14 hours, targeting people on the employability path.

The training was led by consultants Donald Lurette, Adult Educator, and Vienna Blum, Collaborative Experience Designer and Facilitator. Fairouz, one of the nine participants in this workshop, gave a very positive assessment of her experience.

1. WHY DID SHE DECIDE TO TAKE THE NCF ONLINE TRAINING COURSE? WHAT WERE HER MOTIVATIONS? Fairouz was looking to make a career change and wanted to take stock of her generic and transferable skills so she could adapt to her future employment.

2. HOW DID THE TRAINING GO? Fairouz was surprised by both the content and the course. She felt it enabled her to identify her own generic skills, but also those of others, as well as those used in work situations. She particularly appreciated the flexibility and availability of the facilitators, and is very proud of the group's collective project, a children's cookbook.

The training was divided into workshops that enabled participants to work on their strong skills. The first workshop asked them to describe their own qualities, which were then transcribed into skills for specific fields of action. Fairouz mentions that the various workshops enabled her to discover that she possessed some skills of which she was not aware.

3. WHAT IMPACT HAS THIS TRAINING HAD ON HER PLANS TO CHANGE CAREER? DOES SHE FEEL BETTER PREPARED TO FIND A NEW JOB? Fairouz believes she has achieved her objectives, which were to leave the professional field in which she had been working for 15 years. She says she gained confidence thanks to a good understanding of her skills, both those she already possesses and those she needs to improve. This improved knowledge of her skills facilitated her career change, which she began by going back to school. She feels that the training also facilitated this important step.

26

Measurement tools and frameworks

Generic Skills in OALCF

A REMINDER OF WHAT THE ONTARIO ADULT LITERACY CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK (OALCF) IS

“The OALCF links the LBS program to the requirements of employers, educational and training service providers, and community partners in an easy-to-understand way and furthers the EO service promise of building a highly skilled, highly educated workforce in Ontario.”

- Government of Ontario (2016)

Measurement tools and frameworks “The OALCF is a competency-based approach that aims to facilitate the execution of tasks considered ‘authentic’. These tasks are used to develop and assess targeted competencies in contexts of application that are as close to real life as possible. This competency-development system comprises the use of documents and situations drawn from adults’ daily life, in order to develop and assess the ability to mobilize the competencies needed to execute tasks (forms, work schedule or a memorandum to accomplish a task that requires efficient use of such documents).

However, it is noteworthy that in environments where Ontario’s Francophones living in minority settings work, documents are mostly written in English. Occasionally, bilingual documents do exist, or document are available in both languages.”

(Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities of Ontario, March 2011) The LBS program is built on foundations established by the OALCF, which proposes six (6) competencies. “This approach extends literacy instruction beyond discrete skill building and focuses, instead, on the interaction of skills, knowledge, and behaviours that reflect learners’ needs, goals, and interests.”

(Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, 2015)

These competencies relate to authentic tasks that carry a specific objective allowing for the transfer of one learning to another. These competencies are:1

In addition to defining the competencies from which the LBS program is derived, the OALCF is also a reference document for the purpose of assessing learners, since it divides task complexity into three (3) levels. These are the levels where people with low literacy skills and clients of the LBS program can be found. In order to function in a modern society such as ours, it is beneficial to have a literacy level of 3 or higher. 2 The three levels of the OALCF's major skills describe the complexity of the tasks and the learner's increasing ability to perform them. It also provides examples of tasks for each level.

These tasks are also classified by increasing level of difficulty, to help practitioners develop and implement their LBS programs.

For example, for competency A. Find and use information, task group A1 is: Read continuous texts, task group A2 is: Interpret documents and the third and final task group A3 is: Extract information from films, broadcasts and presentations.

For task group A1, three indicator levels have been defined, corresponding to increasing levels of difficulty: • Level 1: Read brief texts to locate specific details • Level 2: Read texts to locate and connect ideas and information • Level 3: Read longer texts to connect, evaluate and integrate ideas and information An example of a task that a learner would be able to perform at the end of Level 1 would be: Read brief texts to locate specific details, or read a brief e-mail confirming the date and time of a meeting.

The last two competencies, E and F, are strongly based on generic skills:

A. Communicate ideas and information B. Find and use information C. Understand and use numbers D. Use digital technology

E. Manage Learning captures the elements that contribute to successful learning. This competency is about helping learners develop the abilities necessary to manage not only in literacy programming, but also in other learning situations, both formal and informal.3 F. Engage with Others rests upon a series of interactions and collaborations between individuals extended over an indeterminate period of time.4

E. Manage learning F. Engage with others

A full description of each of OALCF Framework's major skills can be found in the document describing the OALCF as a whole, which can be consulted online at: https://www.tcu.gov.on.ca/eng/eopg/publications/OALCF_Curriculum_Framework_Mar_15.pdf 2 This text is taken from "Together to succeed! LBS Changes Lives", p. 13, published by COFA in 2023. It can be accessed here: www.coalition.ca/afb 3 Its full description can be found on page 79 of Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (2015), OALCF | Curriculum Framework, available online: https://www.tcu.gov.on.ca/eng/eopg/publications/OALCF_Curriculum_Framework_Oct_11.pdf 4 Its full description can be found on page 85 of Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (2015), OALCF | Curriculum Framework, available online: https://www.tcu.gov.on.ca/eng/eopg/publications/OALCF_Curriculum_Framework_Oct_11.pdf 1

27

28

Measurement tools and frameworks The Centre FORA has created a table of correspondences between each of the competencies of the Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework (OALCF) and the list of generic competencies it established in its Guide to Generic Competencies entitled “Guide sur les compétences génériques”, published in 2013.5 This table shows the generic skills involved in each of the six OALCF competencies.

Skill

Tasks group

A1 - Read continuous text

Self-confidence • Teamwork • Initiative • Maturity • Observation skills Creativity • Communication skills • Integrity • Attention to detail • Organizational skills • Efficiency • Adaptability • Emotional intelligence • Motivation Willingness to learn • Analytical skills • Reliability and accountability Leadership • Perseverance

A2 - Interpret documents

Analytical skills • Attention to detail • Perseverance • Emotional intelligence Organizational skills

A3 - Extract information from films, broadcasts and presentations

Self-confidence • Emotional intelligence • Perseverance Organizational skills • Adaptibility • Motivation • Observation skills

B1 - Interact with others

Self-confidence • Analytical skills • Reliability and accountability Leadership • Perseverance • Creativity • Teamwork • Initiative • Maturity Observation skills • Resourcefulness • Communication skills • Integrity Attention to detail • Organizational skills • Efficiency • Adaptibility Emotional intelligence • Motivation • Willingness to learn

B2 - Write continuous text

Self confidence • Adaptability • Emotional intelligence • Motivation Analytical skills • Initiative • Leadership • Willingness to learn Communication skills • Integrity • Maturity

B3 - Complete and create documents

Self confidence • Analytical skills • Reliability and accountability Leadership • Perseverance • Creativity • Teamwork • Initiative • Maturity Observation skills • Resourcefulness • Communication skills • Integrity Attention to detail • Organizational skills • Efficiency • Adaptability Emotional intelligence • Motivation • Willingness to learn

B4 - Express oneself creatively

Creativity • Perseverance

C

C1 - Manage Money

N/A

C2 - Manage Time

Understand and Use Numbers

Resourcefulness • Efficiency • Reliability and accountability Organizational skills

C3 - Use measures

N/A

C4 - Manage data

Attention to detail

A Find and Use Information

B Communicate Ideas and Information

D Use Digital Technology

E Manage Learning

F Engage with Others

5

Generic skills

N/A

Creativity • Efficiency • Communication skills • Organizational skills Resourcefulness • Analytical skills • Motivation

N/A

Self-confidence • Analytical skills • Reliability and accountability Leadership • Perseverance • Creativity • Teamwork • Initiative • Maturity Observation skills • Resourcefulness • Communication skills • Integrity Attention to detail • Organizational skills • Efficiency • Adaptability Emotional intelligence • Motivation • Willingness to learn

N/A

Self-confidence • Analytical skills • Reliability and accountability • Maturity • Creativity • teamwork • Emotional intelligence • Observation skills Resourcefulness • Communication skills • Leadership

This guide is available at https://centrefora.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Guide_competences_generiques.pdf

Measurement tools and frameworks

COMPARISON OF

different frameworks

29

30

comparison of different frameworks

SKILLS FOR SUCCESS, ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND OALCF

A Comparison

By Robyn-Cook Ritchie // Executive Director, Laubach Literacy Ontario

The Office of Literacy and Essential Skills recently updated the Essential Skills (ES) framework. The framework is now called Skills for Success and the Office of Literacy and Essential Skills is now known as the Office of Skills for Success. This article will provide a brief overview of the original Essential Skills framework, and the connection of the Essential Skills framework to the Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework. The new Skills for Success framework will also be highlighted.

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

31

THE SKILLS IN THE ESSENTIAL SKILLS FRAMEWORK WERE AS FOLLOWS:

THE ORIGINAL ESSENTIAL SKILLS FRAMEWORK

Reading Text: Reading text involved reading materials written in sentences or paragraphs. It involved reading a variety of materials including notes, letter, books, reports, and journals.

In 1993-1994, the Government of Canada launched the Essential Skills Research Project (ESRP). The goal of this project was to identify the skills needed for work, learning and life. It was meant to provide a baseline for an individual to know if they had the skills they needed for a particular job. A framework that would help identify skill gaps, would encourage training and in turn improved labour market outcomes. Each of the Essential Skills that were identified during the project had a description of proficiency on a four or five point scale. Complexity levels could then be assigned to example tasks performed by a worker on the job. This set the stage for the development of the Essential Skills Profiles. Between 1995 and 1997, data collection and pilots for the Essential Skills Profiles took place between 1995 and 1997 with the writing of the profiles starting in 1998.

Document Use: Document Use included tasks that involved different types of information displays where words, numbers, icons, and other visual characteristics are given meaning by how they are arranged. It included print and non-print media. Examples included lists, tables, drawing, and signs.

The original Essential Skills framework was comprised of nine skills. The nine skills were identified as the foundation skills required to successfully participate in the Canadian Labour Market. They were “enabling” skills to help people perform tasks required in occupations and everyday life. They provided a foundation to learn other skills and adapt to change.

The Essential Skills were often likened to the “Velcro” to which all other learning sticks.

“The Essential Skills were often likened to the ‘Velcro’ to which all other learning sticks.”

Writing: Writing encompassed communication through words, numbers and symbols on paper or computers.

Writing texts, writing within documents, and typing on a computer were included.

Numeracy: Numeracy involved using numbers across the four settings of money math, scheduling or budgeting and accounting, measurement and calculation, and data analysis. Tasks included handling cash, managing time, measuring in the physical word, and determining trends or statistically significant events.

Working With Others: Working With Others involved interaction between people to complete tasks. This could be direct interaction like a phone call or indirect interaction like a phone message.

Oral Communication: Oral Communication involved using speech to exchange ideas and information. The levels of complexity used in the oral communication scale were compatible with the levels in Canadian Language Benchmarks, English as a Second Language for Adults, 1996.

Thinking Skills: Thinking skills covered finding and evaluating information to make decisions and to organize work tasks. It covered problem solving, decision making, critical thinking, job task planning and organization, and use of memory.

Computer Use: Originally called computer use, and later relabelled digital technology, this Essential Skill involved using computer and other forms of technology such as software.

Continuous Learning: Continuous Learning focused on the ongoing process of improving skills and knowledge.

Learning was categorized by type (e.g., in-job, updating credentials) and how learning occurred (e.g., as part of regular work activity, self-study).

32

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

THE CONNECTION BETWEEN ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND THE ONTARIO ADULT LITERACY CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK (OALCF) The Ontario Adult Literacy Curriculum Framework (OALCF) was part of the 2007 Ontario Plan which stated that under a Smarter Ontario, Ontario would work together with the college sector and non-profit groups to design and deliver an adult literacy curriculum. The first phase took place in 2008-2009 with the final development taking place in 2010-2011. The Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) field was involved in the development work of the initiative through a series of funded projects to the support and service organizations.

The Curriculum Framework was designed to help practitioners make clear connections between literacy development and the real-life tasks learners perform in work, learning and community contexts. The OALCF competencies were established by synthesizing responses from the literacy service providers in Ontario to the question, “What should learners learn in literacy programs?”

Development team members representing the interests of learners in Francophone, Deaf, Indigenous, and Anglophone programs, in addition to representatives from community-based, school board and college service providers each independently identified potential competencies. Through discussion, the team reached

consensus on the set of competencies that would comprise the Framework.

The OALCF uses three levels to describe a learner’s proficiency.

These levels are informed by the same factors that drive complexity at Essential Skills levels 1, 2, and 3. The OALCF developers relied heavily on the Essential Skills (ES) research and scales in the development of the OALCF. Other frameworks were also consulted during the research process including: • The Manitoba Stages of Literacy • The Australia Core Skills Framework • The Canadian Language Benchmarks • England’s Adult Literacy and Numeracy Core Curricula • US – Equipped for the Future While the OALCF scale is consistent with the interpretation of the ES complexity scales for several ES, it departs from the ES framework because it has a different purpose: to support adult learning. It does not draw exclusively on the ES for the conceptualization of levels. The OALCF only draws on the first three levels of the ES framework because the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) indicated that adults with Level 3 skills can meet most of the ES demands of daily life and transfer skills from one context to another. Reading text and Document Use scales are compatible with IALS. One additional difference between the OALCF and the ES framework is the fact that the OALCF is organized by competencies instead of skills.

6 OALCF COMPETENCIES/9 ESSENTIAL SKILLS – A COMPARISON OALCF COMPETENCY

ESSENTIAL SKILL DOMAIN

Find and Use Information

Reading Document Use

Thinking Skills

Communicate Ideas and Information

Writing Oral Communication

Document Use Thinking Skills

Understand and Use Numbers

Numeracy

Thinking Skills

Use Digital Technology

Computer Use/Digital Skills

Thinking Skills

Manage Learning

Continuous Learning

Thinking Skills

Engage with Others

Working with others Oral Communication

Thinking Skills

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

THE NEW SKILLS FOR SUCCESS FRAMEWORK

“Skills for Success mean to ‘provide Canadians with everyday skills needed for work, learning and life’.”

Skills for Success mean to “provide Canadians with everyday skills needed for work, learning and life”. The premise behind the skills identified in this new framework is that improvement of these skills will help Canadian’s success in the workplaces of today and tomorrow.1 Although the new framework still identifies nine skills, there are significant differences. Skills for Success includes more focus on soft skills and socio-emotional skills as well as technology use.

SKILLS FOR SUCCESS AND THE OALCF The focus of the OALCF is how adult learners use the skills they have acquired outside of the program setting. The competencies in the OALCF are broad and connections can be made with the new Skills for Success.

OALCF COMPETENCY

SKILLS FOR SUCCESS

Find and Use Information

Creativity Communication Digital skills

Problem solving Reading Writing

Communicate Ideas and Information

Creativity Collaboration Communication Digital skills

Problem solving Reading Writing

Understand and Use Numbers

Digital Numeracy

Problem solving

Use Digital Technology

Adaptability Collaboration Communication Creativity Digital

Numeracy Problem Solving Reading Writing

Manage Learning

Adaptability Collaboration

Problem solving

Engage with Others

Collaboration Communication

Creativity Problem solving

The information is taken from the Research Report in Support of the Launch of Skills for Success written by The Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC) and published in May 2021: Final report – pages 1-2: https://www.srdc.org/publications/Research-report-to-support-the-launch-of-Skills-for-Success-Structure-evidence-and-recommendations-Final-report-details.aspx 1

33

34

comparison of different frameworks

GENERIC SKILLS AND SKILLS FOR SUCCESS:

an exercise in comparison

By Hervé Dignard // Researcher, Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA) This article is the second part of an article entitled Compétences génériques et compétences pour réussir : un exercice de comparaison, which was first published in the January 2023 publication “Apprendre + Agir” of the ICÉA1 – (available in French only) Generic Skills and Skills for Success: an exercise in comparison.

OBJECTIVES AND TARGET AUDIENCE Whether we call them generic skills, transferable skills or something else, these skills that are useful in everyday life are still the source of many questions, particularly concerning their definitions and comparisons from one framework to another.

This article answers a specific question: is it possible to establish formal links between the ICÉA Generic Skills framework and the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Skills for Success framework? If the answer is an unequivocal "yes", the validity of this "yes" depends on taking into account a set of characteristics that differentiate the ICÉA framework from the ESDC framework. Analysis of these characteristics enables us to place these two reference tools in comparable and complementary universes in terms of their form, content and target audience.

However, we shall see that the intent of these tools is different.

Answering this question also serves other purposes. In particular, this article will equip individuals and organizations in Canada's Francophonie who are seeking funding from the federal government to use ESDC's Skills for Success framework.

These individuals and organizations will be able to use the results of this exercise in comparison to identify, measure and even recognize Skills for Success from the ESDC framework using the ICÉA generic skills.

As such, this article is likely to be of interest to any individual or organization wishing to draw parallels between some of the federal government's Skills for Success and the notion of Generic Skill.

will provide these individuals and organizations with the opportunity to use the ICÉA Generic Skills framework to identify important dimensions of some of the federal government's Skills for Success.

AN EXERCISE OF COMPARISON The exercise in comparison presented here reveals the similarities and parallels that can be drawn between the ICÉA Generic Skills sand six selected Skills for Success. Formal links have been made between the ICÉA framework and the ESDC framework. It is possible to recognize the presence of a generic skill in a skill for success, and even to measure its presence on a scale ranging from "low" to "high".

Alongside the measurement of the presence of ICÉA Generic Skills in six Skills for Success, this article presents resources and a tool for identifying, valuing and recognizing ICÉA Generic Skills. This tool is called “Nos compétences fortes” (NCF) (Our Strong Skills), and we'll be taking a closer look at it later in this article.

This exercise in comparison will help individuals and organizations involved in the development of Skills for Success tools to successfully complete their task. In particular, they will be able to use the “Nos compétences fortes” (NCF) tool to recognize Generic Skills that will be attested to in the ESDC Skills for Success framework.

This article will also be of interest to individuals and organizations working on the creation of tools focused on Skills for Success, particularly within the Canadian Francophonie. It

1

Online: https://icea-apprendreagir.ca/competences-generiques-et-competences-pour-reussir-un-exercice-de-comparaison/

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

ICÉA GENERIC SKILLS The first reference tool used in this exercise in comparison is the ICÉA's Competencies Framework. 2 Released in 2012, this framework presents twenty-two Generic Skills (Table 1). It should be seen as part of a much larger work. It is in fact associated with the “Nos compétences fortes” (NCF) tool3 (Box 1), which is mainly used to facilitate NCF workshops.

The NCF tool is based on a group facilitation approach that promotes the valorization and recognition of people's strong generic skills. People taking part in NCF workshops are called upon to recognize their own strong generic skills, to recognize the strong generic skills of other members of their group, and to recognize action contexts where their generic skills will be useful.

The competencies in the ICÉA framework have therefore been selected on the basis of their usefulness in all spheres of a person's life (family, citizen, community, professional, etc.). They relate to concrete practices and known contexts of action, and cover all dimensions of work,4 whether paid or unpaid (ICÉA, 2013).

TABLE 1 - THE 22 GENERIC SKILLS OF THE ICÉA FRAMEWORK Trusting others

Self confidence

Creativity

Resourcefulness

Team spirit

Initiative

Ease to learn from experience

Ease of communication

Ease of performing repetitive tasks

Ease of problem solving

Ease of setting goals

Ease of working under pressure

Ease of adaptation

Ease of perseverance

Ease of persuasion

Leadership

Self-control

Sense of observation

Sense of organization

Sense of interpersonal relationships

Sense of responsibility

Sense of a job well done

Source: the ICÉA Framework, available online at: https://icea.qc.ca/sites /icea.qc.ca/files/NCF_Referentiel-ICEA_septembre2018_0.pdf

Box 1

THE “NOS COMPÉTENCES FORTES” (NCF) TOOL "Nos compétences fortes" (Our Strong Skills) is a tool for recognizing and promoting generic skills. It is based on a group facilitation approach. It is aimed at adults of all ages and backgrounds, and enables them to carry out three formal learning processes: 1. recognize strong generic skills in themselves; 2. recognizing strong generic skills in others; 3. recognize generic skills useful in work situations.

Achieving these three objectives contributes to the development of the person's know-how.

Know-how is a non-linear process by which people discover, express, value and integrate their strong generic skills.

In this way, the individual develops the ability to draw on past experience to claim strong generic skills.

Source: The NCF tool developed by ICÉA: https://icea.qc.ca/fr/services/nos-compétences-fortes Dignard, H. (2018). Identifier des compétences génériques pour favoriser l’autonomie des adultes, Un référentiel de l’ICÉA, Montréal, 36 p., Online: https://icea.qc.ca/sites/icea.qc.ca/files/NCF_Referentiel-ICEA_septembre2018_0.pdf 3 ICÉA (2014). "Nos compétences fortes", Tools section, page on the Institut de coopération pour l'éducation des adultes Website, updated January 28, 2014.

Online: https://icea.qc.ca/fr/services/nos-compétences-fortes.

4 The NCF tool documentation presents an original conception of work, which is not limited to paid activities since it is possible to work with people, things, bodies and ideas in all spheres of our lives (ICÉA, 2013; ICÉA, 2018).

2

35

36

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS The concept of generic skills put forward by the NCF tool is based on a long process of reflection at ICÉA. This reflection draws on several sources, in particular “Question de compétences”,5 a tool designed to help women. This tool, created in 1989, proposes a definition of generic competence that remains as relevant and current today as it was thirty years ago:

“Generic skills are abilities that are part of a [person's] personality and are useful in all life settings. They are skills that can be developed in one’s life or working environment, and transferred or used in another living or working environment.”6 Recent work by the International Bureau of Education confirms that generic skills "transcend disciplines" and are "not associated with disciplinary situations or concrete tasks" .7 These observations are also present in the ICÉA's early work on generic skills. These skills refer more to action contexts or everyday situations. They are more closely linked to our personality and to families of contexts, compared to specific skills, which are linked to particular situations and defined tasks (ICÉA, 2013).

Another characteristic of generic skills, highlighted by both the ICÉA and the International Bureau of Education, is that they are developed throughout life, according to our experiences and the situations in which we use them: "We are constantly becoming more or less curious, more or less assertive, more or less creative. Generic skills such as analysis, synthesis, observation, attention to detail, etc., develop with age, but above all through contact with various stimuli and interactions between the individual and his or her environment."8

These elements of definition highlight three fundamental aspects of generic skills (ICÉA, 2013): 1. generic skills are linked to our personality rather than to a specific context or situation; 2. generic skills are developed in action, through all our life experiences, whether professional or not; 3. generic skills are transferable to the extent that we can mobilize them in different situations and environments to achieve similar goals.

Generic skills thus have a distinct character within the larger group of skills. They fall into the category of skills that are easily transferable from one context of action to another, and into the category of skills that are useful in all life situations.

ESDC'S SKILLS FOR SUCCESS The second reference tool used in this exercise in comparison is Employment and Social Development Canada's (ESDC) Skills for Success framework. This new framework, introduced by the federal government in the spring of 2021, replaces the Essential Skills framework that has been in use since the 1990s.

In the report supporting the launch of Skills for Success, this renewal is presented as a necessity. Given the changing economy and labour market, it appeared "urgent" to provide a "modernized skills framework, adapted to a changing world and offering a consistent language and common understanding of skills concepts."9 We are all witnessing the combined effects of a number of factors (technological advances, artificial intelligence, automation, etc.) that are transforming the way things are done, particularly in the job market. New skills are now required, in particular for employment.

According to the report, people who are working or looking for work "struggle to keep up with the changing skills required by the modern labour market".10 With this in mind, the federal government has introduced a new framework that reflects "evolving skills needs" and is "designed to be more sustainable".11

COFFRE, Relais-femmes, ICÉA (1989). Question de compétences : un outil au service des femmes, 191 p.

Ibid.

7 Roegiers, X. (2016). A conceptual Framework for Competencies Assessment, In-Progress Reflection No. 4 on key current issues in curriculum and learning, UNESCO International Bureau of Education, 45 p. Online: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000245195_fre 8 Ibid.

9 SRDC (2021). Research report to support the launch of Skills for Success: Structure, evidence, and recommendations, Ottawa, 118 p.

Online: https://srdc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/sfs-srdc-final-report-en.pdf 10 Ibid.

11 Ibid.

5

6

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS This new framework incorporates skills that were previously referred to as "essential" and introduces new ones. It proposes nine Skills for Success (table 2, page 37), whose concepts and definitions have been developed on the basis of six criteria: • Work-oriented and transferable: skills had to be both applicable to the needs of the labour market and capable of being mobilized in non-professional contexts, so that their importance was not limited to a person's employability; • Sustainable: skills had to adapt to the changing needs of the labour market, particularly with regard to technological and digital advances;

TABLE 2 - SKILLS FOR SUCCESS Reading

Find, understand and use information presented in words, symbols and images (essential skill: reading).

Writing

Share information using written words, symbols and images (essential skill: writing).

Numeracy

Find, understand and convey mathematical information presented in words, numbers, symbols and graphs (essential skill: numeracy).

Digital

Use technology and digital tools to find, manage, apply, create and share information and content (essential skill: computer use).

Problem solving

Analyze, propose solutions and make decisions. Follow up on successes and learn from experience (essential skill: thinking).

Communication

Receive, understand, consider and share information and ideas by speaking, listening and interacting with others (essential skill: oral communication).

Collaboration

Contribute and support others to achieve a common goal (essential skills: working with others).

Adaptability

Achieve or revise goals and behaviours as changes occur. Plan, maintain focus, persevere and overcome setbacks (essential skill: continuous learning).

Créativity & innovation

Imagine, develop, express, encourage and apply ideas in innovative, unexpected ways, or challenge existing methods and standards (new skill).

• Evaluable: skills should be easy to demonstrate, assess and compare, using qualitative or quantitative methods; • Teachable and assimilable: skills had to be aligned with learning objectives and job-related training contexts; they had to be easy to improve in a quest for adequacy; • Widely recognized: competencies had to draw on different frames of reference (from home and abroad) and reflect recent innovations in skills; • Flexible and inclusive: skills had to reflect the diversity of experiences a person can have, and promote inclusion.

These criteria represent added value, insofar as they testify to a desire to build up a set of skills that can be adapted to a constantly evolving educational demand. However, as was the case with essential skills, this educational demand remains focused on work and employment.

Indeed, the ESDC framework's mainstream presentation emphasizes the fact that the world and work have changed dramatically, that having the right skills helps you grow at work and in life, and, finally, that skills for success are skills that employers are looking for.12 In short, ESDC's promotional video focuses more on the employability of individuals than on the general development of their skills.

That said, the skill descriptions presented in Table 2 (page 37) show just how useful skills can be for success in fields of action other than employability.

The report supporting the launch of Skills for Success also distinguishes between two challenges for adults, namely to encourage the updating of basic skills associated with literacy and to define a set of soft and socio-emotional skills.13

Source: ESDC (2022). "Skills for Success," Employment and Social Development Canada Web page, updated January 28, 2022. Online: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/jobs/training/initiatives/skills-success.html.

These distinct challenges illustrate the fact that the ESDC framework consists of at least two different types of skills for success. It quickly becomes apparent that reading, writing and numeracy are the basic skills associated with literacy, which need to be kept up to date. It also becomes clear that digital skills should also be considered as basic skills.

EDSC (2022). "Skills for Success," Employment and Social Development Canada Web page, updated January 28, 2022.

Online: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/jobs/training/initiatives/skills-success.html 13 SRDC (2021). Research report in support of the launch of Skills for Success: Structure, evidence and recommendations, Social Research and Demonstration Corporation, Ottawa, 118 p.

Online: https://srdc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/sfs-srdc-final-report-en.pdf 12

37

38

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

COMPARABLE REFERENCE TOOLS

“The idea of establishing The reference tools used here share common characteristics, formal links between the ICÉA making them easy to compare. These tools are not simply a list of skills. They are both accompanied by descriptive documentation framework and the ESDC that introduces and describes each competency. framework involves In the Competencies Framework of the ICÉA, the wording of generic skill is followed by a summary paragraph that asking whether the presence each presents a summary of the competency as well as explanatory paragraphs that present a description of the competency. In of Generic Skills can be the ESDC reference framework, the wording of each skill for observed in all Skills success is followed by a summary paragraph that presents the definition of the competency, as well as various explanatory for Success.” statements that present the components of the competency.

14

15

16

Finally, it appears that the other competencies in the ESDC framework (problem solving, communication, collaboration, adaptability, creativity & innovation) are to be considered as non-technical and socio-emotional competencies.

These differences in the nature of the skills needed to succeed have been taken into account in this comparative exercise.

17

As Table 3 illustrates, the documentation in these two tools follows a similar descriptive logic: first, naming the skill, then presenting the general idea behind it, and finally describing actions and operations linked to its mobilization in everyday life.

In this way, it is possible to view the ICÉA framework and the ESDC framework as comparable reference tools. The general idea behind each skill is presented by the ICÉA summaries or the ESDC definitions, while the descriptions found in the ICÉA Competencies Framework and the components presented in the ESDC framework describe actions and operations linked to the mobilization of these competencies.

TABLE 3 - DESCRIPTIVE DOCUMENTATION LOGIC FOR REFERENCE TOOLS ICÉA Generic Skills

ESDC Skills for Success

1. Naming the skill

Skill wording

Skill wording

2. Presenting the skill

Skill summary (one paragraph)

Skill definition (one paragraph summary)

3. Describe actions and operations related to the mobilization of skills

Skill description (several descriptive paragraphs)

Skill components (several descriptive paragraphs)

Although an integral part of the Nos compétences fortes (NCF) tool, the ICÉA Competencies Framework is available online at https://icea.qc.ca/sites/icea.qc.ca/files/NCF_Referentiel-ICEA_septembre2018_0.pdf.

15 Ibid.

16 To access the definition and components of each skill for success, please consult the research report supporting the launch of "Skills for success". The online description of the Skills for success is a synthesis of the elements presented in the final report of May 2021 (see next note).

17 SRDC (2021). Research report to support of the launch of Skills for Success: Structure, evidence and recommendations, Social Research and Demonstration Corporation, Ottawa, 118 p: https://srdc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/sfs-srdc-final-report-en.pdf.

14

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

DIGITAL SKILLS CHOOSE CERTAIN SKILLS FOR SUCCESS INCLUDE The Skills for Success framework also proposes a renewed version The idea of establishing formal links between the ICÉA framework and the ESDC framework involves asking whether the presence of Generic Skills can be observed in all Skills for Success.

This question is all the more pertinent given that the comparative exercise demonstrated the difficulty of establishing similarities and parallels between generic skills and certain skills for success, notably the basic skills of reading, writing and numeracy.

The experiment conducted here necessitated the selection of certain Skills for Success within the ESDC reference framework and, necessarily, the exclusion of others. It is important to explain these choices and, above all, to underline the fact that the Skills for Success that were not selected as part of this exercise are no less important in the life of an adult.

EXCLUDE READING, WRITING AND NUMERACY Let's recall here that the ESDC reference framework is made up of at least two different types of skills for success: basic skills associated with literacy, and soft and socioemotional skills.18 The basic skills associated with literacy include reading, writing and numeracy. These skills are as important today as they were yesterday. A person's autonomy and ability to intervene in the course of his or her life are intimately linked to his or her ability to carry out reflexive operations such as reading, writing, counting, using documents, using mathematical formulas, etc. These skills are just as important today as they were then.19 That said, these three basic skills are largely based on theoretical knowledge. They require us to memorize concepts and think.

They are strongly linked to a cognitive process. 20 The cognitive dimension of these three skills for success is at the forefront of the elements that describe them (whether in their definition or their components).

of the "computer use" essential skill: digital skills. Whereas in the past, the essential skill of "computer use" appeared optional, today digital skills have become "an essential element of successful participation in the labour market".23 Like reading, writing and numeracy, digital skills also underpin reflexive operations. That said, the cognitive dimension of these skills did not hinder the exercise in comparison carried out here. Enough links and similarities could be established during the exercise, making it possible to measure the presence of generic skills in this competency to succeed.

INCLUDE NON-TECHNICAL AND SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS Finally, the Skills for Success framework proposes five so-called "soft" and "socioemotional" skills: problem solving, communication, collaboration, adaptability, creativity & innovation.

As stated in the report supporting the launch of Skills for Success, "these skills are generally viewed as complex capabilities or personal attributes, rather than as independent, teachable and assimilable competencies that can be acted upon through targeted interventions".24 So, although these Skills for Success call for reflection, they appear to be much less cognitive than the others, and all the more action-oriented. The exercise in comparison worked very well with these skills. Many links and similarities were established in the course of the exercise, enabling us to measure the presence of numerous Generic Skills in these Skills for Success.

As a result, it was not possible to include reading, writing and numeracy in the exercise in comparison carried out here. The exercise was attempted, but it proved difficult to identify descriptive elements of generic skills21 in the definitions and components of these three skills for succes. 22 Few links and similarities could be established, which limited the possibility of measuring the presence of Generic Skills in these Skills for Success.

Ibid.

Dignard, H. (2022). "Les littératies, pour aller plus loin", Apprendre + Agir, 2022 Edition. The online publication of ICÉA. Online: https://icea-apprendreagir.ca/les-litteraties-pour-aller-plus-loin/.

And Dignard, H. (2015). "Lire pour apprendre, comprendre et agir,", Apprendre + Agir, 2015 Edition. ICÉA's online publication.

Online: https: https://icea-apprendreagir.ca/lire-pour-apprendre-comprendre-et-agir 20 Roegiers, X. (2016). A Conceptual Framework for Competencies Assessment, UNESCO International Bureau of Education, 45 p. Online: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000245195 And UNESCO (2017). “Target 4.4 | Skills for work”, Global Education Monitoring Report, UNESCO online resources: https://gem-report-2016.unesco.org/en/chapter/target-4-4-skills-for-work 21 As will be explained in the rest of the text, the "descriptive elements" mentioned here are the textual cues that will enable us to conduct the comparison exercise and establish similarities between the descriptions of Generic Skills and those of Skills for Success.

22 Details of the methodology used to link the Competencies Framework of the ICÉA to the EDSC framework are provided in the section entitled "Linking Generic Skills and Skills for Success".

23 Social Research and Demonstration Corporation - SRDC (2021). Research report to support the launch of Skills for Success: Structure, evidence, and recommendations, Ottawa, 118 p.

Online: https://srdc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/FINAL-Evidence-Brief_Skills-for-Success.pdf.

24 Ibid.

18 19

39

40

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

LINKING GENERIC SKILLS AND SKILLS FOR SUCCESS

solving" is comparable to the skill for success "problem solving" (simple in appearance). Establishing such a comparison with a minimum of certainty and credibility is quite another (more complex and less obvious than you might think).

The main objective of this text is to establish formal links between the ICÉA Generic Skills Framework and the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Skills for Success framework.

Formal links were thus made between twenty-one CÉA Generic Skills and six ESDC Skills for Success. In addition, the list of comparisons drawn up during the exercise not only attested to the presence of Generic Skills in Skills for Success, but also measured this presence using a three-level scale: low, partial and high.

Meeting this challenge meant finding a way to identify similarities and draw parallels between the ICÉA Generic Skills and the ESDC Skills for Success. The most promising starting point for meeting this challenge was to use the descriptive documentation provided by both ICÉA and ESDC. The ICÉA framework documentation was used to construct between three and five descriptive elements for each generic skill. These descriptive elements were then used to identify possible comparisons between the ICÉA Generic Skills and the ESDC Skills for Success. The exercise identified both textual and notional comparisons.

The search for textual comparisons enabled links to be made between the descriptive elements of a generic skill and a significant portion of text taken from the definition or components of a skill for success.

For the purposes of this exercise, a "significant portion of text" corresponded to either a sentence or an independent part of a sentence (a statement comprising subject, verb and complement) taken from the definition of a Skills for Success or one of its components.

The search for notional comparisons made it possible to establish links between the idea suggested by a descriptive element of a generic skill and the idea suggested by a sentence taken from the definition of a skill to succeed, or the idea suggested by the statement of one of its components.

Each comparison made between the ICÉA framework and the ESDC framework was recorded in an Excel file.25 This file lists the constituent elements of each skill for success: all the phrases found in the definition and the components of this competency.

From this list, it was possible to link the descriptive elements of several Generic Skills to one or other of the Skills for Success.

Ultimately, it was possible to obtain a portrait of all the descriptive elements of a generic skill likely to correspond to the definition or a component of a skill for success. The aim was to guarantee the integrity of the exercise carried out here.26 It seemed important to ensure that the comparison between a generic skill and a skill for success was as far removed as possible from a logic based on subjective assessment. It's one thing to believe that the generic skill "Ease of problem

25 26

These comparison lists are used to count the number of descriptive elements of a generic skill that are likely to correspond to a skill for success. Three measures of the presence of a generic skill have been defined on the basis of this calculation: • high presence when all the descriptive elements of a generic skill are found in the definition or components of a skill for success; • partial presence, when several descriptive elements of a generic skill are found in the definition or components of a skill for success; • low presence when only one descriptive element of a generic skill is found in the definition or components of a skill for success.

Reference Table 1 presents the results of this exercise.

This table sheds unique light on the presence, attested at different levels, of twenty-one ICÉA Generic Skills in one or other of the six Skills for Success drawn from the ESDC framework.

This table suggests that the mobilization of certain generic skills would contribute to the mastery of skills for success where their presence is attested.

As an example, we observe the high presence of Ease of Learning from Experience in Skills for Success such as Adaptability or Creativity & Innovation. This strong link suggests that a person who regularly and easily mobilizes this ICÉA Generic Skills would be more likely to demonstrate a high level of mastery of the Skills for Success that are Adaptability or Creativity & Innovation.

Another example is the presence (low and partial) of Initiative in the six Skills for Success selected for this exercise in comparison.

Even if low or partial, this presence suggests that the person for whom Initiative is a strong competency readily carries out actions and operations that are linked to the mobilization of these six Skills for Success. Based on this observation, it is possible to believe that this person could more easily demonstrate mastery of these Skills for Success, compared to a person for whom Initiative is not a strong skill.

The Excel file is available online at https://icea.qc.ca/fr/annexe-1-compétences-génériques-et-compétences-pour-réussir-lier-le-référentiel-de-licéa-et-le-cadre.

Ibid.

41

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

REFERENCE TABLE 1 ICÉA Generic Skills in Six Skills for Success (ESDC)

▼ 

Adaptability

▲

▲

Creativity & innovation

▲

▼ 

▲

▼

▼

▼

▲

▲ ▼

▲



Sense of a job well done



Sense of observation



Self-confidence



Self-control



Ease of working under pressure

▼

▼





▼

 

▼







▼

▼ ▼ 

▼





▼ ▼

▼

ICÉA 2023 - Reproduction authorized provided ICÉA is credited. / ICÉA (2018), Identifier des compétences génériques pour favoriser l'autonomie des adultes, un référentiel de l'ICÉA, Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA). Online: https://icea.qc.ca/sites/icea.qc.ca/files/NCF_Referentiel-ICEA_septembre2018_0.pdf. / ESDC (2022), "Skills for success", Employment and Social Development Canada Website, updated June 2, 2023, Canada. Online: www.canada.ca/en/services/jobs/training/initiatives/skills-success.html

DIGITAL

The results of the exercise in comparison reveal the presence of six ICÉA Generic Skills in the ESDC’s digital skills. ▲ High presence We note the high presence of Sense of organization in ESDC’s digital skills. This ICÉA Generic Skills appears to be an important dimension of the Digital skills (ESDC), which is linked to carrying out actions27 such as identifying and using basic functions common to several devices, choosing digital tools according to tasks and objectives, keeping digital tools up to date, carrying out online searches, finding digital content, evaluating this information (relevance and reliability), organizing and storing it, as well as using social and communication media, sharing platforms and online forms.  Partial presence We note the partial presence of a Sense of responsibility in the ESDC’s Digital skill. This ICÉA Generic Skill appears to be a dimension of the Digital skills (ESDC) relating to the implementation of safe and responsible online practices, in particular to protect personal information and privacy, as well as digital devices.

27

▼ Low presence Finally, we note the low presence of four other ICÉA Generic Skills in the ESDC’s Digital Skills for Success: • Ease to learn from experience, which is linked to the idea of updating and reinforcing digital skills in order to acquire new ones; • Ease of setting goals, which is linked to the idea of identifying the purpose and goals of a digital task; • Initiative, which is linked to the idea of acting autonomously in adopting safe and responsible online practices; and • Resourcefulness, which is linked to the idea of using digital tools to overcome obstacles, particularly in terms of access for oneself and others.

These actions correspond to the actions and operations linked to the mobilization of a Skill for Success, which are described in the components presented by the EDSC reference framework.

Only one ICÉA Generic Skill is missing from the selected Skills for Success.

▼

▼

▼

Ease of performing repetitive tasks

Collaboration

▲

Ease of persuasion

▼

▼

Resourcefulness



Communication





Trusting others





Ease of problem solving

▲ ▼

▼

Leadership



Sense of responsibility

Problem solving

Initiative

▼

Ease of perseverance

▲

Creativity

▼

Ease of setting goals

Sense of organization

Digital

Only one element of the ICÉA Generic Skills is found in the description of the ESDC Skills for Success.

Ease of adaptation

▼ Low presence

Ease to learn from experience

Many of the descriptive elements of the ICÉA Generic Skills are found in the description of the ESDC Skills for Success.

Ease of communication

 Partial presence

Team spirit

All the descriptive elements of the ICÉA Generic Skills are found in the description of the ESDC Skills for Success.

Sense of interpersonal relationships

▲ High presence

42

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

PROBLEM SOLVING

The results of the exercise in comparison show the presence of ten ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC’s problem solving. ▲ High presence We note the high presence of the Sense of organization in ESDC’s problem solving. This ICÉA Generic Skills appears to be an important dimension of the ESDC problem solving, linked to actions such as analyzing and understanding a problem situation, and using thinking tools to optimize and facilitate decision-making.  Partial presence We note the partial presence of five ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC’s problem solving: • Ease of problem solving, which appears to be a dimension of problem solving (ESDC) relating to actions such as gathering information to define a problem situation, understanding it and making choices when taking action; • Team spirit, which appears to be a dimension of problem solving (ESDC) relating to actions such as seeking the help of others and encouraging their participation and collaboration to achieve a goal; • Initiative, which appears to be a dimension of problem solving (ESDC) relating to actions such as developing action plans and examining the effects of different action options;

• Ease of setting goals, which appears to be a dimension of problem solving (ESDC) relating to actions such as defining goals and objectives to be achieved, as well as the decision to be taken. ▼ Low presence Finally, we note the low presence of four other ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC’s problem solving: • Adaptability, which is linked to the idea of modifying a decision-making or problem solving process to obtain the best results; • Sense of responsibility, linked to the idea of adopting a critical and reflective stance when analyzing a problem situation; • Leadership, linked to the idea of evaluating the effectiveness of a solution or decision; and • Sense of observation, which is linked to the idea of identifying possible links between cause and effect when analyzing a problem situation.

• Ease to learn from experience, which appears to be a dimension of problem solving (ESDC) relating to actions such as understanding what works (and what doesn't), and identifying best practices and lessons learned; and

COLLABORATION

The results of the exercise in comparison reveal the presence of twelve ICÉA Generic Skills in the ESDC’s Collaboration. ▲ High presence Team spirit is highly present in ESDC’s Collaboration. This ICÉA Generic Skill appears to be an important dimension of collaboration (ESDC), linked to actions such as collaborating and working as a team, understanding others and their needs, offering them the opportunity to participate, using their feedback, making suggestions and thinking about team performance.  Partial presence We note the partial presence of seven ICÉA Generic Skills in the ESDC’s Communication: • Sense of responsibility, which appears to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as respecting social and organizational rules, performing tasks to contribute to a project, and assessing risks and mitigating their effects;

• Ease of communication, which appears to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as managing difficult interactions with others, listening to them, understanding them and not judging them for their opinions or ideas; • Leadership, which appears to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as creating a climate conducive to collaboration, encouraging what contributes (behaviours, language, attitudes) to support and cooperation, and assessing risks and mitigating their effects in order to achieve a goal; • Ease of adaptation, which appears to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as valuing diversity, recognizing and accepting difference, and adapting to different styles of interaction according to needs and people;

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

• Sense of interpersonal relationships, which appear to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as understanding the customs, values, ways of thinking and acting of people from different cultures, backgrounds and abilities, as well as valuing integration and managing difficult interactions with others; • Initiative, which appears to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as anticipating obstacles, exploring them and performing tasks to voluntarily contribute to a project; and • Trusting others, which appears to be a dimension of collaboration (ESDC) relating to actions such as adopting confidence-building behaviours and assessing strengths and weaknesses, both one's own and those of others.

▼ Low presence Finally, we note the low presence of four other ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC’s Communication: • Ease to learn from experience, which is linked to the idea of adopting a reflective posture aimed at improving and strengthening teamwork; • Sense of organization, linked to the idea of making the best possible use of resources; • Self-confidence, which is linked to the idea of assessing one's own strengths and weaknesses, as well as those of others; and • Ease of persuasion, which is linked to the idea of influencing others in such a way as to encourage what contributes (behaviours, language, attitudes) to support and cooperation.

COMMUNICATION

We note the high presence of Ease of communication in ESDC’s communication. This ICÉA Generic Skill appears to be an important dimension of communication (ESDC), linked to actions such as listening attentively, seeking to understand others, speaking clearly and objectively, and adapting to others' communication modes and tools. ▲ High presence We note the high presence of Ease of communication in ESDC’s communication. This ICÉA Generic Skill appears to be an important dimension of communication (ESDC), linked to actions such as listening attentively, seeking to understand others, speaking clearly and objectively, and adapting to others' communication modes and tools..  Partial presence We note the partial presence of five ICÉA Generic Skills in the ESDC’s communication: • Ease of problem solving, which appear to be a dimension of communication (ESDC) relating to actions such as defining and understanding contexts, adapting to the communication modes and tools of others, and making the best choices (structure, approach and content) to optimize communication (modes and tools); • Ease of persuasion, which appears to be a dimension of communication (ESDC) relating to actions such as understanding the intentions of others, preparing a response in reaction to what is said, using examples and facts to persuade, and ensuring that our communication goal is understood; • Sense of organization, which appears to be a dimension of communication (ESDC) relating to actions such as analyzing arguments and positions and making the best choices (structure, approach and content) to optimize communication (modes and tools); and

• Sense of interpersonal relationships, which appears to be a dimension of communication (ESDC) relating to actions such as understanding information in the context of communication (intentions and gestures of the others) and adapting to the communication modes and tools of others ▼ Low presence Finally, we note the low presence of four other ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC’s communication: • Ease of setting goals, which is linked to the idea of making strategic choices (tone, language, approach) according to people and context; • Initiative, linked to the idea of acting independently in defining and understanding contexts; • Sense of responsibility, linked to the idea of understanding and managing the risks and consequences of sharing confidential information and the reputation of others; • Trusting others, which is linked to the idea of determining a degree of trust when assessing the reliability and validity of information; and • Sense of observation, linked to the idea of interpreting different perspectives and making connections between observations.

43

44

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

ADAPTABILITY

The results of the exercise in comparison reveal the presence of eleven ICÉA generic Skills in ESDC’s Adaptability. ▲ High presence Four of ICÉA's Generic Skills are highly present in ESDC's Adaptability:

 Partial presence We note the partial presence of two ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC's Adaptability:

• Ease to learn from experience appears to be an important dimension of adaptability (ESDC), which is linked to actions such as reflecting, evaluating and adopting a reflective posture towards change (past or future), improving oneself, exploring one's skills and resources, identifying opportunities to learn, and learning from setbacks and mistakes;

• Ease of working under pressure, which appears to be a dimension of adaptability (ESDC) relating to actions such as time management in a context of limited resources; and

• Ease of adaptation which appears to be an important dimension of adaptability (ESDC), linked to actions such as preparing for change, knowing when to adopt a different mindset, adapting goals and expectations, or modifying plans and approaches as circumstances change; • Ease of setting goals appears to be an important dimension of adaptability (ESDC), linked to actions such as setting goals and expectations based on skills, available resources and support, or defining what is needed to achieve goals (expectations, standards, tasks, long-term strategies, etc.); and • Ease of perseverance appears to be an important dimension of adaptability (ESDC), which is linked to the performance of actions such as voluntarily putting in the effort required by a task, persevering when faced with the unexpected, and pulling oneself together when unable to remain calm.

• Self-control, which appears to be a dimension of adaptability (ESDC) relating to actions such as controlling emotions, being positive and optimistic, and remaining calm. ▼ Low presence Finally, we note the low presence of five other ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC's Adaptability: • Initiative, which is linked to the idea of acting autonomously by adopting a reflexive posture with regard to changes (past or future); • Sense of responsibility, linked to the idea of demonstrating reliability by carrying out assigned tasks, fulfilling duties and respecting commitments; • Leadership, which is linked to the idea of encouraging others to remain calm; • Self-confidence, which is linked to the idea of reflecting on one's skills and resources in order to know what one can do; and • Sense of a job well done, linked to the idea of setting expectations and standards to achieve objectives.

WHY AND HOW TO USE THE RESULTS? The initial question of this article was whether it is possible to establish formal links between the ICÉA Competencies Framework and the ESDC Skills for Success framework. The answer to this question is "yes": the exercise in comparison carried out here shows that twenty-one ICÉA Generic Skills are present (to varying degrees) in six ESDC Skills for Success. Formal links have therefore been established.

Now that this initial question has been answered, new questions arise, particularly concerning the use of the results of this exercise in comparison: "Why would a person or organization use the results of this exercise?" and "How is it possible to use the results of this exercise?".

As emphasized in the introduction to this text, the validity of this exercise in comparison depends on taking into account all the characteristics that differentiate the Competencies Framework and the ESDC reference framework. Analysis of these characteristics enables us to place these two reference tools in comparable

and complementary universes, whether in terms of their form, content or target audience. However, the aims of these two tools are different.

Understanding these differences will help us understand why and how we can use the results of this exercise in comparison.

THE ESDC REFERENCE FRAMEWORK The ESDC reference framework is the foundation of a set of skills deemed essential to a person's success in a knowledge-based society. This framework is broad. It is open to many actions and operations linked to the implementation

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

CREATIVITY & INNOVATION

The results of the exercise in comparison reveal the presence of ten ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC's Creativity & innovation. ▲ High presence Two of ICÉA's Generic Skills are highly represented in ESDC's Creativity & innovation: • Creativity appears to be an important dimension of creativity & innovation (ESDC) that is linked to taking action, innovating, conceiving one's ideas, generating new ideas for oneself or others, being curious, wanting to learn and adopt new things, broadening ideas and approaches, departing from current thinking and processes, as well as challenging norms, habits and preconceptions; and

• Resourcefulness, which appears to be a dimension of creativity & innovation (ESDC) relating to actions such as analyzing to find patterns in less obvious cases, inverting ideas and approaches to find out if the opposite is true, and adopting creative ideas and approaches to make a concrete and useful contribution; • Initiative, which appears to be a dimension of creativity & innovation (ESDC) relating to actions such as identifying one's own innovative possibilities and finding a wide range of stimuli and experiential opportunities; and

• Ease to learn from experience appears to be an important dimension of creativity & innovation (ESDC), which is linked to actions such as thinking about different situations and opportunities, asking questions and adopting a questioning approach, learning and adopting new things, drawing lessons for improvement, questioning norms, habits and preconceptions, and recognizing and dealing with uncertainty and unpredictability

• Ease of adaptation, which appears to be a dimension of creativity & innovation (ESDC) relating to actions such as being prepared for failure and being open to new ideas without judgment or setting limits.

 Partial presence We note the partial presence of four ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC's Creativity & innovation:

• Sense of organization, linked to the idea of analyzing to find patterns;

• Leadership, which appears to be a dimension of creativity & innovation (ESDC) relating to actions such as fostering an environment focused on creativity & innovation for oneself and others, encouraging habits and behaviours that foster creativity & innovation (good humour, playful approach, healthy competition) or helping and motivating others to be creative by coaching and sharing tools, information and ideas;

of non-technical and socio-emotional skills, which are easily transferable from one context of action to another.

This framework is not linked to any specific tool for valuing, recognizing or assessing skills, at least for the time being. However, it is intended to be used in conjunction with such tools. As such, the federal government solicited the participation of organizations from the civil society in the summer of 2021, and offered to fund projects to create tools related to the Skills for Success. 28

28

▼ Low presence Finally, we note the low presence of four other ICÉA Generic Skills in ESDC’s Creativity & innovation:

• Team spirit, which is linked to the idea of helping others through coaching and sharing; • Self-confidence, linked to the idea of embracing one's ideas and putting them forward; and • Ease of problem solving, linked to the idea of identifying and defining artificial constraints.

As was the case with essential skills, the use of this framework will be shared between different purposes: assessment, training and development, valuing and recognition, etc. The main purposes of this framework are to measure a person's mastery of the skills needed to succeed, and to reveal needs (particularly in terms of learning) linked to the development of these skills.

The ESDC reference framework can therefore be used with any existing (or future) tool that enables us to achieve (in whole or in part) aims such as

assessing, training, developing, valuing or recognizing, as well as goals such as measuring the mastery of a skill and revealing needs linked to its development.

Furthermore, the ESDC referenc framework can be combined with other reference tools, insofar as these tools’ present transferable competencies (such as the ICÉA Generic Skills) whose actions and operations related to their mobilization correspond to those described for the Skills for Success.

Organizations invited by EDSC could apply from July 26, 2021 to August 25, 2021: https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/services/funding/skills-success.html.

45

46

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

THE ICÉA COMPETENCIES FRAMEWORK

USE THE RESULTS OBTAINED

The ICÉA Competencies Framework was specifically designed for use with the “Nos compétences fortes” (NCF) tool. It forms the basis of a tool that enables us to value and recognize people's strong generic skills. Its purpose is much more specific: to help people recognize their strengths, become aware of their potential and thus enable them to talk about it with confidence.

Unlike the ESDC reference framework, the use of the ICÉA Competencies Framework is not oriented towards the assessment, training or development of an individual's skills. Rather, it is geared towards the valuing of Generic Skills and the recognition of a person's strengths through the use they make of their generic skills.

That said, the ICÉA Competencies Framework accurately describes a set of highly transferable skills that are useful in all aspects of life. The Generic Skills presented by this framework share common features with other reference frameworks (notably that of Skills for Success). It is therefore possible to argue that these skills are known and recognized.

Both comprehensive and versatile, this Competencies Framework "is one of the few reference tools available to individuals and organizations wishing to identify one or more generic skills."29 It has also been used in a number of initiatives aimed at developing people's skills.

The ICÉA Competencies Framework can therefore be used in conjunction with the NCF tool, or with other tools that share the same goals of valorization and recognition, and whose aims are geared towards identifying people's strengths and developing their capacity for action.

The ICÉA Competencies Framework can also be used in conjunction with other frameworks whose competencies could be formally linked to generic skills.

That said, the use of the ESDC reference framework shares with the ICÉA Competencies Framework a number of goals, such as valuing skills, particularly socio-emotional and highly transferable ones, and recognizing these skills through their use in different action contexts.

This point of convergence between the ICÉA Competencies Framework and the ESDC reference framework is the main reason for using the results of this exercise in comparison.

So, in answer to the question of why use the results of this exercise in comparison, it is possible to argue that an organization would find in the ICÉA Competencies Framework and the NCF tool ways of highlighting dimensions of several Skills for Success. Indeed, it should be remembered that it was impossible to establish similarities between the generic skills and the basic literacy skills of reading, writing and numeracy.

Insofar as twenty-one Generic Skills from the ICÉA Competencies Framework are present in six Skills for Success from the ESDC reference framework, anyone who identifies strong Generic Skills using the NCF tool is identifying several dimensions of these Skills for Success.

In addition, to the question of how to use the results of this exercise in comparison, it is important to point out that interested individuals or organizations need to learn how to use the NCF tool. This tool offers one of the only approaches that allows generic skills to be recognized and valued as strengths that people can mobilize in different work situations.30 Individuals or organizations who do not wish to learn how to use the NCF tool should create or develop their own recognition tool, based on the ICÉA Competencies Framework.

Ultimately, it is possible to argue that this exercise in comparison adds value to the use of the ICÉA Competencies Framework in a context where individuals and organizations will seek to develop tools to identify and recognize ESDC Skills for Success.

ICÉA (2018). Identifier des compétences génériques pour favoriser l’autonomie des adultes, Un référentiel de l’ICÉA, Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA), 36 p.

Online: https://icea.qc.ca/sites/icea.qc.ca/files/NCF_Referentiel-ICEA_septembre2018_0.pdf.

30 The vision of work put forward in “Nos compétences fortes (NCF)” is not limited to paid activities, since it is possible to work with people, things, bodies and ideas in all spheres of our lives (ICÉA, 2018).

29

comparison of different FRAMEWORKS

IN CONCLUSION “Currently, dozens of people and organizations are working to create tools based on Skills for Success.”

As a reminder, in the summer of 2022, the Office of Skills for Success (OSS)31 launched a call for projects to fund research and innovation related to the implementation of the Skills for Success program.32 The aim of this call was to stimulate the implementation of the Skills for Success model by supporting initiatives to offer training opportunities focused on the development of fundamental and transferable skills, or to create assessment tools and training resources that are free and accessible online.

This call also represents an orientation by the federal government towards the use of the Skills for Success framework in implementing the educational mission of many organizations in the world of adult education. Outside Quebec, organizations active in adult education are largely dependent on funding from the federal government, and much of this funding comes from the Skills for Success Office.

Currently, dozens of people and organizations are working to create tools based on Skills for Success. This exercise in comparison has been carried out to help them; to provide them with the opportunity to use the ICÉA Competencies Framework and the NCF tool to achieve objectives linked to the development of Skills for Success.

Whether in Quebec or elsewhere in Canada, the missions of organizations involved in adult education are generally centred on the adult person and one of his or her many educational needs.

This common concern means that most, if not all, of these organizations seek to use reference tools that express the multiple dimensions of a person's educational needs. In carrying out their educational mission, these organizations are more likely to choose tools that enable them to extend their field of action to all spheres of adult activity.

With this in mind, it's easy to imagine that some organizations will prefer to use a Competencies Framework that emphasizes skills that can be used in all aspects of our lives (such as Generic Skills), rather than a reference framework focused on skills sought by employers (such as Skills for Success).

That said, it's also easy to imagine these same organizations finding themselves needing to emphasize certain competencies, such as Skills for Success, in order to meet the requirements of a funder.33 For organizations involved in adult education, ESDC's Skills for Success framework and the associated funding opportunities are realities - often unavoidable.

The point here is not to comment on the value of the ESDC framework or on the usefulness of Skills for Success, but to draw parallels between this framework and other tools (such as the ICÉA Competencies Framework), which are better suited to the educational mission of organizations involved in adult education.

In fact, the comparative exercise presented in this article shows that these organizations can reconcile the promotion of generic skills with that of job-relevant skills. These organizations now have the key to using the ESDC Skills for Success framework and the ICÉA Competencies Framework in tandem.

The Office of Skills for Success (OSS) is the successor of the Office of Literacy and Essential Skills (OLES) created in 2007.

This program focuses on research and innovation to support initiatives that implement the Skills for Success model, offer training opportunities focused on the development of core and transfer able skills, and create free, online assessment tools and training resources. A first call for project proposals was launched by the Skills for Success Office (SFO) in winter 2022, and some projects have already been approved as of fall 2022. https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/campaigns/develop-your-skills.html.

33 This is particularly true of organizations that benefit from the support of the Skills for Success Office.

31

32

47

48

GENERIC SKILLS / dEfinitions and contexts

DIGITAL

Badges

d i g i ta l b a d g e s

A SHORT GUIDE TO

Digital Badges In April 2023, the “Fédération des cégeps”,1 in collaboration with “Réseau REPTIC”, 2 created the “Cahier-découverte des badges numériques” under the direction of Nathalie Bastien, advisor responsible for the “Réseau REPTIC”, “Fédération des cégeps”, and Geoffroi Garon-Épaule, consultant, Laniakea technologies.

The complete document “Cahier-découverte des badges numériques” can be consulted here: https://reptic.ca/wpcontent/uploads/2023/05/cahier-decouverte-sur-lesbadges-numeriques-2023-05.pdf We've taken a few excerpts to give you a quick overview of what digital badges are all about.

WHAT ARE DIGITAL BADGES? For the past decade or so, digital badges have been used as digital attestations that can represent several types of validation, achievement or certification. By 2022, according to 1EdTech's assessment, 3 more than 500,000 different badges were available worldwide, and over 74 million badges had been awarded to individuals by organizations. The vast majority of these are generated and offered by organizations in the education sector, more specifically in higher education.

Technically speaking, digital badges are validated digital files that encapsulate rich information with structured data, and can be read and shared by humans and algorithms. They can be organized into systems, in the form of a Web platform or mobile application consisting of a digital portfolio for learners to store, manage and share their badges over the Internet, and an administrative dashboard for organizations to create and award them.

WHAT ARE THEY FOR? They have three main categories of use: • Motivation: they make learning tasks more fun, reward effort and encourage participation.

• Recognition: they make visible what has been developed and achieved, and recognize the acquisition of know-how and interpersonal skills in both formal and informal contexts.

• Certification: to validate and increase the credibility and visibility of skills and certifications.

They also have three contexts of use: • Education and higher education: digital badges can be used to digitize, validate and secure diplomas issued, to support and motivate learners, to personalize learning, and to recognize various complementary elements such as cross-curricular competency or extracurricular activities, etc.

• The world of work: digital badges can be used for professional development and ongoing training, to facilitate staff integration with structured learning paths, for example.

Society in general: digital badges can be used to recognize formal or informal learning or achievements. This learning can take place online, at a distance, through self-study, accompanied training or even through atypical training in innovation spaces (Fab Lab, co-learning, etc.). They can also be used to recognize social involvement in organizations or the community.

The Fédération des cégeps is the voluntary association of Quebec's 48 public colleges, created in 1969 to promote the development of College and CEGEP training. It acts as their official spokes person and as a forum for consultation. More information is available on their Website at: https://fedecegeps.ca 2 The Réseau des répondantes et répondants TIC is a community of practice that brings together, animates and supports pedagogical advisors responsible for the pedagogical integration of technology in public and private CEGEPs and colleges in Quebec. More information is available on their Website at: https://reptic.ca 3 https://content.1edtech.org/badge-count-2022/findings 1

49

50

d i g i ta l b a d g e s

“One of the challenges of adopting the use of digital badges is to make them more credible to employers and other partners in the education sector and the labour market.”

Digital badges make it possible to reinvent the learning experience, rethink assessment methods, develop learning paths with multiple types of content and learning contexts, support active teaching strategies and recognize learner commitment. They also offer the possibility of scripting teaching sequences according to the intentions of multiple stakeholders.

However, their implementation and use still face a number of obstacles in the world of education, in terms of pedagogy, technology, organization and ecosystem. For example:

• the adoption of their technology by higher education establishments is slow; • pedagogical innovation incorporating these technologies is poorly supported; • digital badges are seen as a gimmick that only recognizes informal, non-credited learning; • employers and the job market still place little value on them.

One of the challenges of adopting the use of digital badges is to make them more credible to employers and other partners in the education sector and the labour market.

SOME EXAMPLES OF DIGITAL BADGE PROJECTS IN ONTARIO, CANADA AND FRANCE: • Over the past few years, eCampusOntario has launched thirty-six skills micro-credentials pilot projects at Ontario colleges and universities. They have been categorized into six main areas: Human Skills, Technology, Health and Social Services, Manufacturing, Natural Resources and Research. Details can be found on the dedicated section of the eCampusOntario Website at: https://micro.ecampusontario.ca/fr/pilotes • In 2016, CADRE21,4 a non-profit project, launched its training platform with digital badges and by 2023 boasts over 35 training courses, dozens of event badges and a community of over 2,000 learners. Part of their Website is dedicated to digital badges: https://www.cadre21.org/tag/badges-numeriques • Since 2017, the “Réseau de l'Université du Québec” has been offering digital badges to certify self-training courses aimed at equipping professors, lecturers, university trainers, etc., to better understand the fundamentals of higher education pedagogy. The “Enseigner à l'université” platform can be accessed here: https://enseigneraluniversite.com

4

• The University of Regina offers its students the opportunity to earn eight types of digital badges related to cross-disciplinary skills. They are described on the dedicated Web page: https://www.uregina.ca/cesl/badges.html • UBC, the University of British Columbia, has developed a dozen microcredit programs, listed in this June 2022 article : https://ctlt.ubc.ca/2022/06/30/ edubytes-micro-credentials-an-update • Several departments and offices at the University of Calgary also offer their students the opportunity to obtain a wide variety of digital badges. They are listed by department or office here: https://badges.ucalgary.ca/badges • In France, the private school “Immaculée Conception” has introduced six digital badges for its students. These badges are designed to recognize their commitment to an organization, a school, an association, etc. You can find out more about them on their dedicated Web page at: https://college-immaculee-clisson.fr/ les-badges-numeriques

CADRE21's mission is to support French-speaking stakeholders in the world of education - teachers, educational staff and school administrators - in their reflection, professional development and monitoring of the major challenges facing education in the 21e century.

d i g i ta l b a d g e s

Open Badges and COFA:

MAKING SKILLS VISIBLE FOR ADULT LEARNING

By Don Presant // President, CanCred by Learning Agents

CanCred by Learning Agents is very pleased to begin working with COFA to unleash the power of micro-credentials and digital badges to benefit the Francophone Adult Learning Sector. This project appeals to Learning Agents as advocates for opening up recognition, as credentialing consultants and as the providers of the CanCred.ca digital credential platform.

This initiative will combine COFA’s skills framework with the flexible recognition power of digital credentials to accelerate learning and development, not just for professionals and their adult clients, but also for organizations in the sector.

A key early objective for COFA is to build awareness about digital badges, answering questions such as “What is a digital badge and how is it different from a micro-credential?” Our response is simple: a digital badge is a flexible container for a wide spectrum of recognition, based on a portable technology standard called Open Badges.

Mozilla Foundation invented Open Badges in 2011 to recognize learning and achievement that can happen anywhere and “anywhen”, enabling learners to carry their learning forward, unlocking opportunities for employment and other life goals.

This ability to capture and recognize lifewide learning and performance and to socialize it in organizations and communities is what makes working with Open Badges so exciting. I am excited that COFA is focused on achieving this potential, first for the development of adult learning professionals AND their organizations, then for the benefit of their client populations.

I think it’s significant that adult learning professionals will themselves experience recognition with badges before they begin to badge their adult learning clients. We are all lifelong learners, after all.

As we work with COFA, we will “think big but start small,” working within a vision but not trying to reach for the stars immediately. We will progress in measured steps, piloting first based on research, community consultation, then following up on early successes and lessons learned. We will also be learning from the effective practices of others, including professional networks and learning territories in France, such as le Réseau des Centres Interinstitutionnels de Bilans de Compétences (CIBC)1 and Badgeons la Normandie.2

Micro-credentials are simply “more formal” digital badges.

By more formal, we mean formally assessed, perhaps for academic credit by an academic institution, perhaps for professional or workplace recognition by other bodies such as COFA. Most micro-credentials are issued using the Open Badges technology standard for greater portability.

“More formal” doesn’t always mean “better.” Mozilla’s flexible vision of learning is not just lifelong but lifewide. That means informal badges can often be more agile, holistic and authentic than course certificates. Is it better that you got 80% in the course quiz, or that you applied your learning in your work?

What’s better for your professional career, a former colleague or employer’s personalized recommendation, or a “rigorous” but generic assessment of your capabilities? Both can be useful, but the former can speak much louder about who you are and what you might be like to work with.

1 2

https://www.c2rp.fr/reseau/centres-interinstitutionnels-de-bilans-de-competences---cibc https://badgeonslanormandie.fr

51

52

d i g i ta l b a d g e s

“In this way, COFA will be advancing the professional practices of its member organizations, their employees and the skills of the clients they serve, helping them succeed and achieve their life goals.”

Going forward, we will of course, recognize structured learning such as courses and webinars with badges, but also unstructured learning in the workplace. This will include organizational learning.

Sector wide, we’ll explore social learning in professional communities of practice across organizational boundaries, creating on-ramps for entry to the profession and tracks for ongoing development in the four key roles identified, facilitating professional collaboration and recognizing the continuing competence of colleagues and contributions to community practice, at all levels.

Along the way, we’ll be working with COFA to leverage the recognition “superpowers” of the Open Badges standard and the CanCred platform, for example: • Multilingual badges: French, English and Indigenous languages for greater accessibility and reach; • Endorsement: Adding value to badges with powerful recommendations based on short, authentic narratives from third-party organizations and individuals; • CanCred Passport: A free portfolio or wallet where badge earners can build professional profiles based on their COFA badges, along with other badges and even other content such as personal reflections and additional evidence such as documents and videos. Learners can even link their badge portfolios to LinkedIn. See an example at bit.ly/DonPresantPortfolio We will develop a badge taxonomy with COFA that aligns to its skills framework and other relevant frameworks. It will clearly communicate key characteristics such as subject matter, workplace role, level, and the formality of the badge. The goal is to provide a transparent vocabulary for skills and performance that can work across the COFA community and to related organizations and communities focused on the same issues.

In this way, COFA will be advancing the professional practices of its member organizations, their employees and the skills of the clients they serve, helping them succeed and achieve their life goals. We look forward to helping make this happen.

d i g i ta l b a d g e s

LET'S BADGE LBS B y C h a n t a l C a r r i è re / / P ro j e c t Ma n a g e r , C O FA

As Don Presant explains in his article on page 51, the COFA is currently developing a certification and digital badge system to recognize the professional achievements of LBS practitioners in Ontario.

This project is a logical follow-up to the COFA Competencies Framework.1 The badges will be created on the basis of the roles and functions described in this framework, and are intended for managers, trainers, course designers or administrative support staff at an LBS Centre.

This project is supported and funded by the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD).

THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS PROJECT The main objective of this project is to describe skills acquired through academic or non-academic means, or those to be acquired by practitioners in Ontario's LBS environment, in line with the Skills Framework created by the COFA. The awarding of digital badges will encourage the professional development of practitioners by recognizing their non-formal learning. The badges can be used for career advancement purposes by including them on a CV or LinkedIn profile. At the same time, a community space will facilitate networking between network members, who will be able to share their successes and encourage their peers to achieve new goals.

ENRICHING PARTNERSHIPS The COFA team would like to acknowledge the four member centres with which it has worked closely since the conception of this project: • the Centre d’éducation des adultes (Conseil scolaire du district catholique des Grandes Rivières), New-Liskeard • the Centre de formation Cochrane-Iroquois Falls • Adult Education Service - La Clé, Penetanguishene • the Centre Moi j'apprends, Rockland

1

See the article on the framework on page 20.

Their sound advice gives us a clearer idea of the realities on the ground, and enables us to adapt the platform to their needs.

Many thanks to these indispensable partners!

The COFA team will also be working in conjunction with the Réseau pour le développement de l'alphabétisme et des compétences (RESDAC), which is also developing a system of digital badges that will focus on skills for self-fulfillment (see page 18).

WHERE ARE WE NOW? An initial pilot phase with partners "Learning Agents", will enable stakeholders to apply for their first badges as early as spring 2024. To find out more, we invite you to join us on Wednesday, January 31, 2024, at 1:30 pm for a Sharing Community meeting (“Communauté de partage”) on this topic!

A PROMISING FUTURE The COFA is also evaluating the possibility of adapting its digital badge platform to serve learners in LBS programs in Ontario.

Like the Competencies Framework, this platform will constantly evolve to keep pace with network trends and needs. Stay tuned!

53

54

Contributors

TO THIS EDITION

PAUL BRINKHURST

Innovations developer/ESAT Support, Futureworx paulb@futureworx.ca www.futureworx.ca

CHANTAL CARRIÈRE

Project manager, COFA 435, Donald street, office 301 Ottawa, ON K1K 4X5 ccarriere@coalition.ca www.coalition.ca

ISABELLE COUTANT

Development and liaison agent, Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA) icoutant@icea.qc.ca www.icea.qc.ca

ROBYN COOK-RITCHIE

General manager, Laubach Literacy Ontario literacy@laubach-on.ca www.laubach-on.ca

HERVÉ DIGNARD

Researcher Institut de coopération pour l’éducation des adultes (ICÉA) hdignard@icea.qc.ca www.icea.qc.ca

LINDA GARANT

General manager, Centre de formation des adultes de Kirkland Lake 4 AL Wende Street, C.P. 394 Kirkland Lake, ON P2N 3J1 cfakirklandlake@gmail.com

BRIGID HAYES

Manager, Brigid Hayes Consulting brigid.hayes@rogers.com

MARC L. JOHNSON

Consulting-sociologist, PGF Consultants mjohnson@pgf.ca

DONALD LURETTE

Andragogy specialist and consultant donald.lurette@gmail.com

DON PRESANT LYDIENNE GUIDOIN

Assistant Program Manager Programme de formation à distance (F@D), COFA 435, Donald street, office 301 Ottawa, ON K1K 4X5 lguidoin@sefad.ca www.coalition.ca

President, CanCred by Learning Agents don@learningagents.ca www.learningagents.ca

CAROLINE VANDAL

Retired instructor and NCF animator for Le Réveil caroline@reveil.ca www.reveil.ca

THANK YOU!

1-877-464-0504 | 613-842-5369

INFO@COALITION.CA

WWW.COALITION.CA

435 DONALD STREET, OFFICE 301 , OTTAWA, ON K 1 K 4 X 5

Funding provided by the Government of Canada through the Canada Job Grant Programs delivered by the Government of Ontario Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the Ministry.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ or write to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.