BCBusiness

BCBusiness April 2021

With a mission to inform, empower, celebrate and advocate for British Columbia's current and aspiring business leaders, BCBusiness go behind the headlines and bring readers face to face with the key issues and people driving business in B.C.

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and conversation. When they commented on the discussion board, for example, Vogt tallied how many times their posts generated responses. "It was kind of like a social media met- ric that enabled people to understand that their work was having impact," he explains. The pilot died, he says, because the university had no will to manage it. Students loved the badges and the feed- back they provided, but Vogt gives an empirical take on how well they might have worked long-term. "We only were running it for about two years, and it may never have gone beyond the novelty fac- tor, meaning it was popular just because it was different and new," he says. "So I can't give you data to prove that it did this better or that better." SFU third-year communications stu- dent Audrey Heath had a more subjective view on the micro-credentials she earned late last spring, through her school's new FASS Forward pilot project. The faculty of social sciences (FASS) offered nine one- month, one-credit courses on practical topics like writing, public speaking and conflict negotiation. Those were the three micro-courses Heath took, and she was glad she could immediately apply what she picked up. "I've been writing papers and using the skills learned from that, which is great," she says, taking a break from pre- paring for fall finals. T y pic a l ac adem ic cou rses a re worth three credits, so these micro- credentials are worth one-third and actually apply toward her degree. Heath says she enrolled half because she wanted the credits and half because she was inter- ested in learning those skills. "It's things for everyday life that I think are important to know," she explains. That fits with what FASS Forward's pilot coordinator, Jennifer Chutter, envisioned when she designed the menu of courses. "The aim was really to make them rel- evant and practical, so that students felt that after a month, they did have some- thing they could tangibly apply to other aspects of their life," she says. That aligns with what most micro- credentials are trying to deliver, each in their own way, to their respective audi- ences. Relevant, lifelong learning is prov- ing invaluable before, during and after students' academic careers. n BCBUSINESS.CA APRIL 2021 BCBUSINESS 19 AdaptBC RehireBC WorkBC WorkBC is helping businesses like yours get back on track. Learn about funding opportunities to rehire staff , supports for training new and existing employees, and tools like the free WorkBC Job Board to connect you with skilled workers. WorkBC.ca/Opportunity

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