Teaching and Assessing Soft Skills - MASS - Measuring and ...

Learning skills - that contribute to on-going improvement and expansion in
employee and company operations and outcomes
Technology skills - that contribute to effective execution of tasks
The OECD DeSeCo project
The DeSeCo project (The Definition and Selection of Competencies) was an OECD project
developed under the umbrella of the Indicators of National Education Systems (INES) project
(Rychen & Salganik, 2003). In establishing the DeSeCo project, there was a concern to ensure
that the effectiveness of education systems was measured using a broader range of
indicators than was available from subject-specific assessments.
The DeSeCo project set out to establish sound and broadly based theoretical conceptions of
competencies. It recognized that these competencies had to apply to school and work
settings but equally to life situations beyond those areas. Rychen and Salganik (2000) noted
that the various national attempts to develop definitions of generic skills can be
characterized as:
boosting productivity and market competitiveness;
developing an adaptive and qualified labour force; and
creating an environment for innovation in a world dominated by global competition.
In order to achieve a broad theoretical consensus, the project commissioned a series of
expert papers from individuals and groups from the disciplines psychology, sociology,
economics, anthropology, politics and philosophy.
Perhaps not surprisingly, each discipline based group in the DeSeCo project developed a
distinct set of generic competencies. For example Haste, writing from the perspective of
social psychology, identified technological competence; dealing with ambiguity and
diversity; finding and sustaining community links; management of motivation, emotion and
desire; and agency and responsibility. Two economists, Levy and Murnane, suggested basic
reading and mathematics skills; communicating orally and in writing; the ability to work in
groups; the ability to relate well to other people; and familiarity with computers. While
there are similarities between these sets of skills, there are also differences. Haste’s
suggested skills were rather abstract: technological competence included the ability to read,
write and do calculations using technologies such as pen-and-paper or a computer. In
comparison, Levy and Murnane’s suggestions were more concrete, identifying basic reading
and mathematical skills. It would appear that the DeSeCo contributors were operating
independently and without an agreed metaframework.
The DeSeCo project focused upon the definition of competences from multidisciplinary
perspectives but did not develop methods for assessing and measuring them. However, this
was clearly the primary intention of the project.
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