How can learners build and leverage the "durable" skills in the online environment that employers are seeking, such as teamwork, collaborative knowledge-sharing, and critical thinking skills? This session will explore how to implement a problem-based learning framework to connect real-world industry challenges in the unique online learning environment.

Organizational leaders today express disappointment with higher education graduates' "durable" skills (also known as soft skills or human-intensive skills) that they report are needed in the workplace (DurableSkillsAdvantage.org, 2024; Gray, 2021). The largest gaps exist in communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, and professionalism. The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2023 noted that "Critical thinking and problem-solving top the list of skills employers believe will grow in prominence in the next five years" (World Economic Forum, 2023). How can those in higher education help learners be ready to join the workforce? More specifically, even as online learning continues to meet student's need for flexibility and self-directed learning, it also continues to utilize antiquated online learning models that tend to be heavily geared toward isolated, passive reading and writing. One significant criticism of online learning is the lack of interaction and engagement with the instructor and peers – a lack of ‘presence’ in the online learning environment with few opportunities for collaboration beyond posting to discussion boards (Dailey-Hebert, 2018; Maiese, 2020).

This session will unpack the ways that building a problem-based learning (PBL) framework and the introduction of various problem-solving models can support authentic assessment and the development of employer-identified "durable" skills (aka soft skills, human-intensive skills) that are needed in the workplace. We will share our experiences and explore how learning and working can be combined through collective problem-solving on industry challenges with external organizational partners. Problem-based learning gives learners hands-on experience working on problems similar to what they would get from a supervisor, client, etc. It gives them the opportunity to implement problem-solving models, communication skills, and teamwork skills on real-world problems. In our experience, PBL leads to high levels of engagement and motivation and provides students with more holistic feedback and assessment of their skills.

Plan for Interactivity:
The session will include live polls, small group discussions, and collective brainstorming & planning (via pallet). Three key questions will be explored.

Question 1: What are skills needed for the Future of Work?
- What skills do employers need graduates to have?
o Note: Presenters will pose these open-ended questions for small teams to discuss and respond to. Then, they will share evidence-based data to compare participant perceptions with research-backed data to clarify alignment on the future of work.

Question 2: What Is Needed to Prepare for this Future?
- Human-Intensive Skills (i.e. communication, critical thinking, professionalism, etc.)
- Introducing authentic learning through external partners
o Note: Presenters will have small teams discuss “what is needed to prepare for this future” and how online students specifically can develop skills employers are seeking. Ideas discussed will be shared with the larger group.
- Our Solution:
o Utilize a problem-solving framework or model (PBL model for learning and communication in online classrooms)
o Introducing authentic learning through external partners to work on real-world problems in teams
o the presenters will share specific strategies, tools, and frameworks they adopted to integrate problem-based learning and industry partners.

Question 3: Building Your Own Future Frame: How to Identify & Leverage Opportunities
- Brainstorming & identifying external collaborations, industry partnerships, or problems that are related to your teaching area or discipline.
o In this final section, triads/dyads will be used for a deeper dive toward creating one’s own framework to adopt, modify, or improve upon the lessons shared and the strategies used by the presenters.
o All participants will leave this session with a plan for implementation in their own practice or course(s).
o Large group Q&A to share ideas and ask questions to wrap up the session.

During the session, participants will:
1. Discuss trends and research pertaining to the future of work and expectations for graduates in the workplace.
2. Analyze frameworks for building human-intensive skills in online courses that employers seek and help students with their own professional development.
3. Create opportunities and plans to integrate industry-partnered problem-based learning in their own online teaching and learning practice.

Upon the conclusion of this session, the audience will take away a plan for implementation in their own online class, resources and tools, templates for teamwork and problem-solving models, and a better understanding of how to connect learning and working in meaningful ways.

References:

Dailey-Hebert, A. (2018). Maximizing interactivity in online learning: Moving beyond discussion boards. Journal of Education Online, 15(3), 1-26. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1199230

DurableSkillsAdvantage.org (n.d.). Unlocking Career Success with the Durable Skills Advantage Framework. https://www.durableskillsadvantage.org/

Gray, K. (2021, December 3). Competencies: Employers weigh importance versus new grad proficiency. National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). https://www.naceweb.org/career-readiness/competencies/competencies-employers-weigh-importance-versus-new-grad-proficiency

Maiese, M. (2020). Online education as a “Mental Institution.” Philosophical Psychology, 34(2), 277–299. https://doi.org/10.1080/09515089.2020.1828573

World Economic Forum (2023). Future of Jobs Report 2023. https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2023/in-full/conclusion-f8781a024e/#conclusion-f8781a024e