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| New courses at CSC |
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A CSC-IPAM
training course
in progress |
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The term "competency-based
training methodology" has been commonly used by human
resource and training practitioners lately. What exactly
is it and what are the implications of such a training
methodology on trainees and organisations?
Competency-based training is defined in several ways.
The definition typically builds on the main idea of measuring
a trainee’s competency or mastery of specific knowledge
and skills against a certain standard.
Participants who undergo competency-based training progress
through the programme by demonstrating the specified competencies
through a variety of assessment tasks, for instance, role-playing.
Assessment tasks provide a realistic gauge of the transferability
of skills gleaned from the classroom to the workplace.
The competency-based training approach is currently being
used in the Singapore Employability Skills System (ESS).
This is a national initiative to help officers acquire
generic skills that are transferable across different
industries.
As part of the ESS, the Singapore Workforce Development
Agency (WDA) led an international study and identified
10 skill sets that will enhance a person’s employability.
The study was validated by employers, industry associations
and subject matter experts. It is an integral part of
WDA’s continuing education and training efforts
to increase and “value-add” the competency
of Singaporean workers.
The ESS competency-based training programme equips workers
with three broad levels of skills — operations,
supervisory and managerial skills — that can be
transferred and applied across industries and jobs. The
10 skill sets that will enhance workers’ employability
are:
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workplace literacy
and numeracy |
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information and communication
technologies |
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problem solving and decision
making |
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initiative and enterprise |
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communications and relationship
management |
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lifelong learning |
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global mindset |
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self-management |
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work-related life skills |
| • |
health and workplace safety |
There are 29 training modules in the ESS competency-based
training programme. Each module comprises a set of carefully
selected competencies and criteria for assessing achievements
and
learning gains.
Before the programme starts, participants will be assessed
on their level of competency. They will be assessed again
at the end of the programme to verify the learning gained.
Throughout the course, participants will be involved in
a variety of activities not only for learning but also
for demonstrating their mastery of specified competencies.
In acquiring these employability skills, three pathways
are considered — readiness for work, readiness for
a different job scope, and readiness for upgraded jobs.
The ESS competency-based training programme is pitched
at different levels for different job functions. The training
aims
to provide:
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universal and transferable
core competencies |
| • |
workplace readiness |
| • |
lifelong employability |
Competency-based training is an approach to achieving
long-term and sustainable returns on investments for organisations.
To remain competitive in a highly dynamic economic environment,
organisations need to build up their core competencies
quickly and effectively. The competency-based approach
is one essential option for public sector organisations
to consider for capacity building. |
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By
Institute of Public Administration and Management, CSC
Next: Events in September organised
by PSCOE |
