Kathryn McNair December 2014

Investigate the potential for enhanced student employability by using Geographical Information Systems as a tool for learning. Conduct research to assess the effectiveness of the current Level 3 GIS offering Identify a qualification to be used as a basis to both create student awareness of GIS and improve their employability Gain commitment from Schools across the curriculum to use GIS within their area as a tool to give students the ‘edge’.

 POSITIVE:  Level 3 GIS for Business evening course has been running successfully since 2011  GIS is a growing industry with many employers looking for people with these skills – the need is still there  BUT:  Unit 1 of the course is in its 3 rd year of being taught to Level 3 FT Business students  Experience of co-ordinating and teaching this has shown the process to be difficult and students reluctant Is this an effective way to help students?

Student Survey NI Skills Survey 2013 Enterprise Hub Expertise Recruitment Agency Interview Staff Interview Student Focus Group GIS Qualification

Unit is overly technical and difficult for students to learn skill Some students see the benefits of studying GIS Poor achievement and attendance GIS is very relevant in industry today Stressful to teach GIS roles are hard to fill Very lecturer dependant due to student needs GIS gives students the ‘edge’ Employers want people prepared for work with skills required

 Option 1 – Do nothing  Continue with the Level 3 GIS for Business Unit 1 Advantages Students learn new in-depth skills STEM funding continues Unique qualification Disadvantages Overly technical for this level Poor attendance and achievement rates will continue Very dependant on lecturer guidance Difficult to expand across curriculum areas

 Option 2 – Stop teaching GIS to students Advantages Solves poor achievement issues Takes pressure off lecturers to learn about GIS Disadvantages Loss of STEM funding Lack of opportunity to Get the Edge Shying away from the problem

 Option 3 – Develop a Level 2 GIS unit  City and Guilds Employability Qualification Advantages Students learn GIS skills Less technical, more achievable Easier for lecturers to grasp Applicable to a range of subject areas Disadvantages Lower amount of FLU funding Loss of opportunity to learn ArcGIS Desktop skills Not 100% GIS focused

 Option 3 - Develop a Level 2 GIS unit  City and Guilds Level 2 Employability - Unit 505 – Candidate project for learning and work  Aim – Use GIS as a tool to complete a project

Great range of GIS skills covered but:  Overly technical  Lecturer dependant  Every student completing exactly the same  Difficult to achieve  Full year to complete  Outcome does not illustrate student understanding and GIS skill

 Modern use of ESRI technology  Less technical  Independent learning  Shorter time to complete  Take control of own project  In an area of student interest  More achievable

 Learning materials development – 3 hours with Geraldine Boden  Staff training – 20 members of staff attend a 3 hour workshop (£ )  Enable a block-teaching of the unit (inter-semester week)  Improve efficiency, motivation and success rates of the course  If applied to all level 3 full-time students there is a potential of £325, income for the College –  £133 (FLU minus teaching cost and training per student) X 2,455 FT FE L3 students  If we stay with current GIS unit the income would remain the same at £12,440.48

 Cost savings through shorter course  Continued source of FLU income  Potential to be tailored depending to needs – work with local businesses for real-life projects and increase student motivation  Applicable to a wide range of curriculums  School of Business Tourism  School of Engineering Software Development  Could lead onto inclusion in other assignments as students move up through the College  Spread the word of GIS to staff  And most importantly it allows students to……