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**Job e-Quip - essential skills for landing that job**

 * Manager/ Facilitator:** Dorothy Waterhouse – Dorothy.waterhouse [at] det.nsw.edu.au


 * Sponsoring RTO:** NSW AMES


 * Target client groups:** disability; skills shortage


 * Project summary:**

The **focus of this** cross RTO **project is to** explore social software tools to build current, effective e-learning opportunities into job related components of our courses for ESL and Disabilities clients from identified skills shortage areas and, to explore the use of these tools as part of a knowledge management plan. The **project team** will be drawn from management, teachers (full time and part time), students and industry contacts from: NSW AMES. TAFE NSW, Sydney Institute, University of NSW Institute of Languages (UNSWIL), St George and Sutherland Community College, Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Community College, School of Volunteer Management, a hospital and a recruitment agency.


 * Online presence:**

Wikispace - http://jobequip.wikispaces.com/ EDNA - http://www.groups.edna.edu.au/course/view.php?id=92#13 Protopage - http://www.protopage.com/jobequip PDA (Pageflake Digital Organiser) is: http://www.pageflakes.com/wheres.dot.ashx


 * Postcard from the Field -** [|www.protopage.com/nswames1]


 * Proposed LearnScope visit/s:** Alex and Robyn 6 September


 * Team Events** - [|www.protopage.com/nswames1]


 * FURTHER DETAILS:**

NSW AMES and its partners have benefited greatly from involvement in previous LearnScope projects and online networking events. However, it has become evident that we need to learn more about e-learning knowledge management, including storage, access and sharing. We have developed exciting skills and knowledge and are using them to increase our student’s e-learning use but we need to have systems in place to share, grow and document this knowledge. The recent growth in accessible, free and open source social software tools and the active online communities exploring these tools’ application to education should provide a timely catalyst to a successful project for NSW AMES and its partners.
 * Background to the project:**

· Develop understanding of the networked learning potential of social software · Improve understanding of knowledge management issues and approaches · Develop skills in using a range of social software tools · Build confidence and transferable skills in exploring new online resources · Develop an understanding and high level abilities in the essential skills identified as the focus for our students
 * Proposed project outcomes:**

The immediate benefits to students would include: teachers and managers who are better prepared to assist them to develop necessary employability skills, including ICT skills. Students would have a wider range of industry supported, online tools and systems to assist them in preparing for job applications. The continuing benefit to the participating RTOs would be the knowledge and skills to put into place knowledge management strategies. Drawing from the IBSA Strategy for Essential Skills Multiliteracy – draft version 13-Sep-05, this project would focus on: critical thinking, information literacy, computer literacy, multimedia literacy, visual literacy and spoken and written communication. This project would support NSW AMES Corporate Objectives 2002 -2005, Objective 2: meet the diverse learning needs of our clients through innovative teaching strategies including technology based learning. Objective 5: Maximise the professional expertise of all our staff and all other organizational resources. This project works towards elements of: the DET ICT Strategic Plan 2002 - 2006, the Federal Government, Skilling Australia Directions Paper 2005, the NSW Department of Education and Training, Disability Action Plan, and the NSW Government Disability Policy Framework(1998)
 * Benefits to client group:**

 Include students in all aspects of some group projects  Trialling with students of tools and ideas arising from group/individual projects  Online discussions evaluating tools and approaches trialled  Ongoing use of a group wiki in EdNA to collect comments and suggestions about the projects  Online surveys of students and other project participants– pre during and post project.  Records of student use of new tools/ approaches/ systems  Interviews of students pre/during/post  Records of teachers’ use of new tools/ approaches/ systems to interact with students – pre and post project
 * Evaluation strategies:**

· Pre-project and post-project online surveys · Reflection times at team meetings · Online meeting discussion logs/recordings · Team digital stories/ podcast · Spoken anecdotes and quotes from team members · Development of model documents and guides and other resources arising from group/individual work based projects · Evaluation reports · Use of EdNA Groups · Input to network groups and local showcases
 * We are capturing our learning via:**

Strategies to incorporate sharing and collaboration **within our project** would include: · Active use of explored social software tools to share and collaborate on building group knowledge · Posting resources and reports on intranets used by staff and students · Holding discussions and shared reflections in the online group in EdNA used by staff · Sharing of materials, ideas and experiences at staff meetings and through publishing reports in the Staff Bulletin · ‘just in time’ training and mentoring of other interested staff by participants.
 * We hope to share our learning via:**

Strategies to incorporate sharing and collaboration **beyond our project** would include: · Inclusion of members of other LearnScope projects in our events · Participation in Networking online events · Presentation at relevant Conferences · Participation in appropriate Networks of the Australian Flexible Learning Community face-to-face events · Reports and papers in professional paper based, and online journals · Showcases for partners.

· Showcase for Partners · Presentations at staff meetings and management meetings · Reports in relevant industry publications · Staff development sessions for the wider staff groups · Student presentations · Distribution of information/resources package to students/staff · Exchange of ideas with other project teams · F2F and Virtual presentation at Conferences including the 2006 AMEP Conference · Participation in Networking online events · Roadshow at Networks of the Australian Flexible Learning Community face-to-face Event (Sydney) · Reports and papers in staff newsletters and professional, paper based, and online, journals
 * We’ll connect with others via:**

· Overall Project report will be a portfolio in the projects EdNA Group It will include links, stories, products, MP3 files, FlickR tags etc · Individual and group work based projects will report using a social networking tool or combination that reflects the intent of the project.
 * Proposed project products/outputs:**