Integrating Employability Skills: A Framework for All Educators

“This [professional learning] module contains the materials designed to implement a work session that builds the knowledge and capacity of leaders and staff members from regional comprehensive centers (RCCs), state education agencies (SEAs), and within-state regional centers on integrating employability skills into existing initiatives and prioritizing employability skills at the state and local levels” (p.1).

“[The authors’] working definition is that employability skills are the general skills and knowledge that are necessary for success in the labor market at all employment levels and in all sectors” (p.10).

“This [module] is intended to serve as a train-the-facilitator resource that RCCs, SEAs, and local education agencies can use for their own individualized sessions” (p.6).

The guide divides the employability skills work session into six sections:

1. “[A]n overview of the work session, including the introduction of the presenters, introduction to the [Center on Great Teachers and Leaders] (GTL Center), review of the agenda, and review of the program outcomes” (p.6).
2. An activity to “help participants begin to think about current perceptions and understanding of employability skills” (p.9).
3. A presentation to “help participants make connections between employability skills and the teaching and learning standards already in use in their context” (p.17).
4. A section to “help participants think about how to prioritize employability skills in both state and local initiatives as well as in everyday classroom instruction in all grades and subject areas” (p.26).
5. A section that “discusses resources, such as the Employability Skills Framework website, which participants can use in the future” (p.35).
6. A section that “discusses next steps” (p.37).

The guide includes a link to handouts, a sample agenda, and a slide presentation that may be used in the module.

 (Abstractor: Author and Website Staff)

The guide contains a range of information and resources. Examples include: “Researchers…reviewed various employability skill initiatives and found that existing skills overlapped on many dimensions, despite differences in terminology. Therefore, they were able to group the skills into an organizing structure, which is depicted in the Employability Skills Framework” (p.8). “[E]mployability skills are cited as among the most important skills by employers, and a lack of employability skills may contribute to a ‘talent shortage.’…[T]he demonstration of employability skills is correlated with better hiring rates, success on the job, and earnings” (p.10). “The first resource is the Employability Skills Framework website, which is a one-stop resource for information on employability skills for instructors, administrators, employers, and students” (p.35). “’Ask the CCRS Center’ briefs summarize key research findings, examples, and strategies from the field on how to incorporate college and career readiness standards and practices into state and local policies” (p.36). “The CCRS Interactive State Map—including all 50 states and Washington, D.C.—presents the broad landscape of key college and career readiness policies across the country. The map’s interactive feature enables users to identify and compare state trends in defining, measuring, and supporting students’ college and career readiness” (p.36). “The CCRS Organizer is a graphic that displays a consolidated overview of the many elements that impact a student’s ability to succeed in college and careers at both the institutional and individual levels. It is intended to be a comprehensive and visual representation of the complexities of college and career readiness and success. The Organizer can be used to facilitate discussions and inform collaboration within and across various stakeholder communities and to contribute to strategic planning, conceptualization, and decision making, as well as alignment of strategies and initiatives to ensure that all students achieve college and career readiness and success” (p.37). (Abstractor: Author and Website Staff)

• Last Updated:
• Created:
• Resource Publication Date: 2016
• Author(s): Individual author not identified
• Organizational Author(s): American Institutes for Research and RTI International
• Funding Source: U.S. Department of Education
• Resource Availability: Publicly available
• Posted by: Wesley Peterson
• Posted in: Workforce System Strategies