Preparing Undergraduate Learners with Skills Required by a Transformative Work Environment

Abstract

Higher Education systems need to undergo significant transformation to produce graduates who are highly skilled and prepared for their roles in the impending workforce. Despite an improvement in university throughput rates, unemployment remains predominantly high, which could be attributed to the misalignment between mandatory workplace skills and those possessed by graduates. The focus of the study was on the exploration of skills acquired from the new General Education modules introduced into the curriculum of undergraduate programmes. Hence, the study discovered learners’ perspectives on the relevance of the skills acquired from these modules in the undergraduate programme to ensure survival in the workforce. The methodology adopted in the study was a quantitative survey research design, using the questionnaire as the data collection tool from a census of the first-year learners registered in the undergraduate programme. The results provided significant evidence to support the view that the skills acquired from the General Education modules in the undergraduate programme are indispensable in industry and enhanced critical thinking of the learners.

Perspective Chapter: Preparation for Transformative Work Environment – Faculty Member’s Responsibilities for Promoting Life Skills among Learners at the High Education Institutions

“…They argue that vital involvement in the available societal resources will boost the chances to pick up the threads to learn pro-social behaviors and work skills, vocational education, and proneness beyond the school [16]. However, believes that the focus of attention should be on the development of communication, and commitment to follow personal goals [17]. Researchers agree to attend to communication and goal setting, as socially competent people can use social experience for their goals and needs while understanding the needs and goals of others [18].…”

The Business of Healthcare

“…Although health and wellness are the overarching goals of the healthcare sector, the business end of the operations must also be managed (Brooks et al, 2015;Davey et al, 2010;Garmon, 2017;Stefl , 2008). Business competencies are required in the following areas to support the provision of healthcare: quality improvement, financial management, human resources, information management, risk management, organizational theory and governance, strategic planning, marketing, and systems theory (Brown & Rich, 2020;Burke-Smalley, 2014;Council on Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice, 2021;Crittenden et al, 2019;Healthcare Leadership Alliance [HLA], 2021;Ramraj & Marimuthu, 2021;Romanow et al, 2020). These routine business operations ensure that the healthcare organization is able to (a) treat and retain patients, (b) improve the patient experience and quality through technology, and (c) collect and analyze data for performance measurement and management (Bachynsky, 2019;Berwick et al, 2008;Jeyaraj, 2019;Ong & Djajadikerta, 2019;Pan & Seow, 2016;Rupert et al, 2016;Zhang et al, 2020).…”

Embedding Sustainable Mathematics Higher Education in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Era Post-COVID-19: Exploring Technology-Based Teaching Methods

“…Adapting teaching and learning is an important development in Higher Education [11]. Moreover, when adapting learning, it is important to encourage communication and collaboration skills [35,36]. Hand in hand with these transformations in Higher Education is a need to link formal content knowledge with real world knowledge [37,38].…”