Essential Skills - National Adult Literacy Database

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Essential Skills and the Northern Oil and Gas Workforce Final Report and Resource Guide
• Education versus a hot northern economy: with so many entry-level jobs
available, there is a temptation for young people not to pursue further education
and training. In fact, many do not see the point of completing grade 12, when
incomes can be earned without a diploma. Although solid experience in the
workforce can be important, skills development is still critical. This is because many
industry-based jobs are cyclical and job evaporate, leaving debt and lifestyle
expectations in their wake.
• Programs: Sometimes training programs are introduced that do not meet
identified workplace needs. This leaves learners ill-prepared for the realities of
today’s northern workplaces. In order to avoid training “mismatches,” stakeholders
must be involved at the program planning phase, and technical experts must play
key roles as curriculum development advisors.
• Application processes need to be made more realistic: Often employers require
grade 12 even though the actual academic demands of the job are at a grade 10
level or lower. Also, there is a need for better career research and investigation on
the part of learners. This would prevent learners from applying for jobs that are
inappropriate or unrealistic. Currently, there is a tendency for students to rely on
the College to supply all occupation-related information. Learners should be
encouraged to undertake some of the research and to view the college application
process as a job application exercise. Once a student is accepted, there should be
strict expectations in terms of attendance, task completion, punctuality, and
accountability.
• Transferability and occupational standards: Learners must be taught how to
break career aspirations into steps and to view training programs as the first step in
the employment process. Colleges need to ensure that courses address
occupational standards, skills and competencies identified by industry. These must
be presented in such a way that learners can accumulate credits and transfer
credits from one institution to another. Without this formal recognition of learning,
skills transference and career laddering becomes difficult.
• Work placements and work experience: Having learners participate in the
workplace allows them to link theory to practice. It also prepares students for the
demands of the workplace by providing “reality therapy.” During a work practicum,
students become part of the production activity, allowing them to understand that
what they have learned is, in fact, relevant. Work experience can occur within small
communities; it does not have to take place exclusively at large industrial sites.
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