Using Reflective Prompts to Help Students Connect Course Concepts and Competencies to Career Readiness

• In Event: 2222 - Teaching and Learning Symposium Roundtable Session
  In Informal Discussion Roundtable: Table 03. Preparing Students for Life After College

Abstract

The Sociology Major in the Changing Landscape of Higher Education (2017) identified employment outcomes as a vital concern for students and families. This concern along with pressure from administrators shifts the conversation in many departments to career readiness. The Sociological Literacy Framework (SLF) (Ferguson and Carbonaro 2016) provides a model for articulating core concepts and competencies for the sociology major that prepares students for gainful employment. This framework is useful for developing course goals and learning outcomes that can be tailored for different institutional contexts. How do you determine student proficiency in the areas identified in the SLF and assess whether it prepares students for the labor market? Reflective prompts are one way to help students connect course concepts and competencies to career readiness. Reflection is an exercise in critical thinking in which students analyze their own learning. Reflection encourages knowledge integration and metacognition by helping students scaffold their learning and self-monitor.

This presentation will address how reflective prompts can be used for students to identity what concepts and competencies they gained through different learning experiences (e.g., active learning, inquiry-based learning, and experiential learning) and how they see these learning experiences as connected to their career readiness. Further, examples will be provided of ways that reflection can be used in formative assessment (i.e., ongoing, low-stakes assessment) and for summative assessment (i.e., higher-stakes) of student learning outcomes. Lastly, the presentation will discuss how to develop effective prompts that guide students through the reflection process. This presentation will be helpful for new instructors as well as more seasoned instructors looking for alternative assessment methods.

Author

• Andrea Nicole Hunt, University of North Alabama