Service-learning experiences and outcomes in developing employability skills among TVET students in a public university in Malaysia
The need to develop future graduates that encompass employability skills has become one of the agendas in the Malaysian Educational Blueprint for Higher Education 2015- 2025. Hence, to rectify the aim, service-learning (SL) is introduced as among the strategies in promoting students with hands-on...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2020
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/90494/1/FPP%202020%2029%20-%20IR.pdf http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/90494/ |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| Summary: | The need to develop future graduates that encompass employability skills has become
one of the agendas in the Malaysian Educational Blueprint for Higher Education 2015-
2025. Hence, to rectify the aim, service-learning (SL) is introduced as among the
strategies in promoting students with hands-on experience linked to the community
engagement. Notably, the application of SL is limited despite evidences of
volunteerism found in many scholarly works. SL transmits academic knowledge
through volunteering works and is highly regarded as a foundation in developing
students’ employability skills. Therefore, this study was conducted to explore the SL
experiences and the outcomes in developing employability skills among TVET
students in a Malaysian public university. Specifically, two research questions were
formulated (i) what the students learned from their SL experience? and (ii) how SL
project strengthen student employability skills? This study employed a qualitative case
study approach to answer the research questions. The subjects of the study were
purposely selected among second and third-year students in Bachelor of Education.
The subjects of the study were chosen based on the criterion-based selection to ensure
the rich information given by the informants. A total of four focus group discussions
were conducted using semi-structured interview questions. This study utilised the
Nvivo 12.0, a computerised software tool to organise and facilitate the data especially
in the process of thematic analysis. The themes emerged based on students’
involvement in SL project were managing conflicts, knowledge-sharing and selfvalues.
Meanwhile, four themes emerged concerning students’ employability skills
development that are leadership skills, communication skills, critical thinking skills
and teamwork skills. Based on the findings, SL able to be one of the subjective
teaching practices for providing meaningful learning experience to students
surrounded with community, which subsequently nurtured students’ employability
skills including their career readiness for future job market. |
|---|