Many colleges and universities are moving toward
competency-based education, and developing opportunities for students to earn
credit based on demonstrated mastery of skills and knowledge areas. This moves
far beyond the "credit by exam" model and even portfolio evaluation,
to a deeper level of skills and broader subject matter areas.
Dr. Robert Mendenhall, President of Western Governor's
University, describes competency-based education in an article that explains
the reasons for its emergence and popularity: What Is Competency-Based
Education? (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-robert-mendenhall/competency-based-learning-_b_1855374.html)
Capella, the College for America, and other universities are embarking on competency-based education. Other colleges, such as Excelsior College, have had credit-by-exam programs since the 1970s, and are expanding them. Whatever the form, new approaches are being developed and implemented.
In theory, competency-based education could not be more
practical. It tests an individual’s ability to apply knowledge, and can assess
skill levels. Above all, it’s flexible, affordable, and does not require four
or five years of slow-paced education. Further, competency-based education
focuses on content that may lie outside a traditional degree program, but which
is very useful in the workplace and/or for new technologies.
However, when it comes to highly technical careers that are in high demand, colleges and universities may find themselves
unable to develop high-quality courses in a timely manner if they try to build
them from the ground up.
To be cost-effective, timely, accurate, and relevant, the
following strategies can be developed for competency-based education for high-demand technical education:
--- Up-to-date texts, which may consist of articles,
manuals, reports, and software packages
--- Subject matter experts who review the content and
assessment strategies
--- Instructors who are experts in the field to review
materials, provide assessment services
--- An assessment strategy that privileges projects and
synthesis / application of knowledge and skills
--- Partnering with professional associations or societies
to take advantage of high-quality articles, peer-reviewed materials, recognized
subject matter experts, professional certification. For example, the demand for geoscientists and engineers is
in no way met by traditional geology and engineering programs. The knowledge
that is desired by industry is specific and can be provided by associations
such as SEG, SPE, and AAPG.
--- Assessment should be coupled with reliable, relevant,
and timely internships (which can be virtual) which include tasks that relate
to the skills and competencies required by industry, and which are assessed in
the program.
Colleges and universities can forge productive partnerships to assure that any competency-based offerings developed are legitimate, high-quality, and can forge relationships with potential employers. The most effective route involves partnering with professional associations that have a solid membership base of knowledgeable experts, and a wide array of corporations and other institutions that can provide graduates with experience and jobs.
Ideally, the professional associations and societies that colleges and universities partner with are global, to assure the greatest number of opportunities for students, and the widest breadth of knowledge and perspectives.
At the Great Wall of China, April 2013, after a conference on pre-Ordovician petroleum systems organized by AAPG, with sponsorship by PetroChina and other companies.
