METHODS AND TOOLS TO ALIGN CURRICULUM TO THE SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES NEEDED BY THE WORKFORCE – AN EXAMPLE FROM GEOSPATIAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Education programs are being scrutinized to see if they are effectively providing students with the needed skills and competencies to successfully enter and advance along career pathways for numerous occupations. These program designs may be based on Outcomes Based or Competency Based Learning where the program content addresses specific skills and competencies for an occupation. The major hurdle for developing these programs is the need to identify the specific skills and competencies that should covered in the courses. One process that has been successfully used for determining the skills and competencies needed by the geospatial technology industry will be explored to see if it could be used for geoscience-related occupations. This process includes: (1) building a Competency Model for the domain of a field or industry segment based on a tiered structure developed by the U.S. Department of Labor, and (2) Holding DACUM events to determine what the workforce for that occupation needs to be able to do. DACUM stands for Developing a Curriculum and is a method that brings together panels of expert workers under a facilitator whereby the panel identifies what they do and what they need to know to carry out the duties of their occupation. The end result of the two processes is a list of the skills and competencies that should be included for programs for a specific occupation. The lists of skills and competencies can also be used by Human Resource Departments looking to hire new employees and by Certification boards determining qualification for individuals to be certified for a specific occupation.