Exploring benefits and challenges of online Work Integrated Learning for equity students

Exploring benefits and challenges of online Work Integrated Learning for equity students

Amani Bell, Kathryn Bartimote, Lucy Mercer-Mapstone, Gulwanyang Moran, James Tognolini & Nora Dempsey

The University of Sydney

Recent work has revealed alarming discrepancies in access to Work Integrated Learning (WIL) between equity and non-equity students, specifically in relation to students from remote areas, low and middle socioeconomic status (SES) students, and Indigenous students. This study explored the benefits and challenges of online WIL for equity students in Australia and the United States of America (USA), as reported by students and educators. It included a collaboration with the Virtual Student Federal Service (VSFS) in the USA, where over 5,000 students have participated in “virtual internships” with USA Government agencies in the past 10 years, working remotely as VSFS eInterns from their university, home, or other locations, and reporting by email, phone, or video chat to their workplace educators.

BACKGROUND

In 2019, a Universities Australia audit of WIL revealed alarming discrepancies in access to WIL for students from remote areas, students from low and middle SES backgrounds, and students from Indigenous backgrounds. These groups all had WIL participation rates more than five percentage points below the average rate, with equity students citing time pressures, financial responsibilities, caring commitments, and geographic location as barriers to their uptake of WIL.

This study investigated whether online WIL might be one way of overcoming these barriers. It explored the benefits and challenges of online WIL for students from equity groups in Australia and the USA, as reported by students and educators. This included a collaboration with the VSFS in the USA, where over 5,000 students have participated in “virtual internships” with USA Government agencies in the past 10 years, working remotely as VSFS "eInterns" from their university, home, or other locations, reporting by email, phone, or video chat to their workplace educators.

OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY

The study addressed four research questions in relation to online WIL in Australia and the USA:

• What are the benefits and challenges of online WIL reported by students from equity groups?

• What are the benefits and challenges of online WIL reported by educators?

• What are the commonalities and differences between online WIL in the USA versus Australia?

• How might online WIL in Australia be enhanced and systematically supported to better meet the needs of equity students and educators?

Primary data collection included a questionnaire survey of 289 students, and interviews with 32 students and 15 educators, all of whom had participated in online WIL in the past decade. The first three questions formed the basis of findings with the last question acting as a framing device for recommendations from the research.

KEY FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Key findings

Benefits and challenges of online WIL reported by students from equity groups:

• Students’ reported benefits included employability skills; meaningful work; affordability; and flexibility when coping with physical and mental health issues.

• Challenges included missing out on workplace interactions; digital access; and finding a private space.

• Overall, equity students reported a greater number of gains from online WIL than non-equity students; however, differences were not detected between equity groups.

Benefits and challenges of online WIL reported by educators:

• Educators viewed students from diverse backgrounds as positive contributors to the workplace.

• Benefits for educators included better meeting the needs of diverse communities/clients; flexibility related to their own work schedules; and a view that it was a rewarding experience.

• Challenges for educators included giving feedback and a high workload and not being able to replicate some aspects of in-person work experiences.

Commonalities and differences between online WIL in the USA versus Australia:

• Students in Australia reported receiving structured, interpersonal support while on placement more often than those in the USA.

• There were no between-country differences in the gains reported by students. Rather, it was the type of support received that was consistently related to students’ perception of what they gained from placements.

• In the USA, educators were more likely to be aware of diversity issues and to view online WIL as one way of achieving workplace diversity.

Summary of recommendations

How might online WIL in Australia be enhanced and systematically supported to better meet the needs of equity students and educators?

The research generated the following recommendations:

• Australian universities should continue to explore largescale, coordinated online WIL opportunities.

• Universities and workplaces should recognise and support educators and other staff involved in providing online WIL.

• Professional development for educators provided by universities and workplaces should be updated to include online WIL. This should include taking a strengths based view of equity and diversity issues and providing guidance on allowances and adjustments for disability in the online context.

• Educators, students and other stakeholders should co-design inclusive online WIL. Inclusion to be systemic, rather than tokenistic, and occur at degree and unit of study levels.

• Universities Australia should update their policy/white paper on WIL to assess the potential for increases in online WIL in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent Innovative Research Universities’ (IRU) trial, and the findings of this study.

• Universities should include online WIL explicitly as a potential form of WIL in teaching and learning policies.

• Educators should engage with best practice design for online WIL, including the preparation of guides for the rollout of successful online WIL experiences.

Associate Professor Deanna Grant-Smith

School of Management Queensland University of Technology

Associate Professor Deanna Grant-Smith

Bringing together scholars from Australia and the USA, this research explores the challenges and benefits of online WIL opportunities. Through a comparative study, it seeks to identify the commonalities and differences between online WIL in the USA, where such practices are well entrenched, and Australia where they are emerging.

In addition to identifying the achievement of potential gains associated with participation in online WIL, the project seeks to identify the supports associated with realising these gains. Recommendations for expanding online WIL offerings in a considered and systematic way are developed by exploring the perspectives of multiple stakeholders, including students from equity groups and the educators who support and supervise their participation.

This research is topical and timely given the disruptions to higher education caused by the global COVID-19pandemic and the need to move beyond ad hoc emergency responses toward a more equitable and inclusive version of WIL. The authors argue this requires adopting a strengths-based approach to diversity and instituting support systems to overcome technical challenges which may limit participation and ensure online WIL practices are sufficiently attentive to the need to nurture new ways of building teams, relationships, and support networks online. They also stress that it requires recognition of the workload for educators associated with planning, delivering, and supervising high-quality online WIL opportunities which meet the needs of students, workplaces, and the higher education sector.

ACCESS THE FINAL REPORT ONLINE

https://www.ncsehe.edu.au/publications/online-work-integrated-learningequity-students/