Service learning as a pedagogical approach for the enhancement of employability skills in BCom students

[摘要] English: The study has been undertaken against the background of the effect that a service learning module might have on BCom students' employability skills and the students' awareness in this regard. In this day and age, a qualification alone is not enough for graduates to secure a job. Employers are looking for graduates with a complete skills set, namely work experience, practical application of knowledge, communication skills, leadership, working with diverse people and computer skills, to name a few. With the current economic situation globally and in South Africa, there is no guarantee for graduates to be employed after graduation. Nevertheless, many students enrol in higher education institutions in the hope of not only obtaining a degree, but also a golden ticket to enter the world of work.Community engagement is one of the three pillar responsibilities of higher education institutions. In turn, service learning is one of the spheres embedded within community engagement. Service learning differs from the traditional mode of teaching and learning due to the fact that students have to visit a community partner, work on a specific project where they share their academic knowledge, and at the same time learn from the community partner. Service learning students therefore are empowered to experience the application of knowledge during their service learning hours and thus gain an understanding of the world of work. Students also are exposed to entrepreneurship during their service learning experiences and they might venture into this field if they do not find a suitable job.In 2013 all the second-year BCom students in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at the University of the Free State were enrolled for a service learning module. The main aim of this study was to investigate the mentioned second-year BCom students' experiences and perceptions of their service learning opportunities and the influence or impact it had on their own employability skills. For this purpose, the researcher first had to investigate, through a literature review, current local and global perspectives on employability skills, service learning as a pedagogical approach and how service learning links with employability skills in the context of higher education.The literature review formed the basis for the subsequent empirical investigation. The empirical investigation entailed a qualitative, explorative case study design with multiple sources of information and only limited quantitative enhancement. The 2013 data set was obtained from responses of students' assessment tasks in the module, namely pre- and post-implementation questionnaires, a letter to a friend explaining the student's understanding of service learning, as well as a PowerPoint presentation task in which students had to explain what they had learned from the relevant service learning module, and whether they considered themselves to be more employable after their service learning experiences or not. The second set of data was collected in 2015 by means of five follow-up focus group interviews conducted with students from the same population (i.e. students who were enrolled in 2013 for the relevant module), who responded to an SMS invitation to take part. Each focus group eventually included eight participants from the five departments within the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, respectively. This enabled the researcher to explore the students' experiences and perceptions of service learning as pedagogy, which employability skills these students believed their service learning projects fostered, and which evidence existed of a relationship between service learning and employability skills.Through a method of comparison, and the interpretation of the literature and empirical research findings, the researcher not only identified the implications of the research findings, but also formulated a number of recommendations for further action in response to these implications. The major outcome of the study is the construction of a proposed framework of guidelines for planning and implementing a service learning module or programme that would enhance the development of employability skills in Economic and Management Sciences students.The value of the study is found in the presentation of the final framework with a set of guidelines for ease of implementation. The study confirms that service learning and employability skills could complement each other and thus together enable, foster, create and impact a student's learning experiences and perceptions regarding the world of work and the need for lifelong learning.

[发布机构] University of the Free State