Building Blocks - The development of an e-Portfolio system to support students with disabilities in the transition to employment. Claire Gleeson, Dr. Clodagh

Building Blocks - The development of an e-Portfolio system to support students with disabilities in the transition to employment.

Claire Gleeson, Dr. Clodagh Nolan, Kieran Lewis Friday 20th March 2015

Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin


Presentation Objectives

• Background and need for supporting students with disabilities transition to employment

• Development of Career Pathways

• The Transition Planning Tool- ePortfolio

• Demonstration of e-Portfolio

• Future Directions


Increase in the number of students with disabilities entering college

Support at 3rd Level provided = greater progression & retention

Educated Graduates seeking employment

Difficulties making the transition to employment


Transition into Employment

• EU - approx. 40 million people have a disability (Kim & Williams, 2013)

• Ireland- people with disabilities; 2.5 times less likely to be in work than non-disabled people (NDA 2014)

• AGCAS- Seen in graduates with MH difficulties- 678% increase over 8 year period. (AGCAS, 2013).

• AHEAD- (2008);

• 70% of graduates were employed. 59% in full-time employment; 18% part-time.

• 80% of those ‘seeking employment’; do not always disclose their disability

• Work experiences essential in influencing the employment prospects of graduates with disabilities.

• NDA- National Comprehensive Employment Strategy- Objective; Transition from College to Employment


Development of a Transition to Employment Support

• Building personal strategies

• Enabling and Building your Career

Transition Planning Tool

• Disclosure & RAs• Fit • Advice for Students & transition to

work • Enabling the Work Environment

Career Pathways Service &

Resources

(Nolan & Gleeson, 2015)


Career Pathways

Exploring your Career

Building Your Career

Launching your Career


E-Portfolios

An e-Portfolio encourages graduates and employees to consider their studies and experiences in a broad career

development context.

A clear understanding of transferable competencies, such as communication, problem solving, initiative and enterprise, planning and organising, self-management, and teamwork, will assist workers not only in their transition from higher education to the workplace, but also with their ongoing

professional development and lifelong learning.


What is the Transition Planning Tool?

• Individual on-line system for students to gather ‘assets’ throughout college career.

• Assets can be anything the student wants such as reflections on placement, a worksheet on disclosure, a record of a meeting with staff members, a personal insight into self-management, a project with associated reflection.

• Students can then use these personal ‘assets’ to create a CV, Webfolio, or for interview preparation, or as a private resource of personal development to application to the workplace.

• Students are also provided with ‘Resources’, developed by Careers and Disability Staff, and other students to be developed into their assets.(i.e; Exploring my Career Worksheet)


Why a Transition Planning Tool?

• Repository- To support students to track their transition from college to employment in one place

• College- development of work related skills and experiences- Log of this learning

• Establish and explore career aims and objectives

• Create a toolbox of resources and strategies

• Customise and devise forms making it easy to scaffold frameworks to help students reflect on their experiences and encourage deeper learning

• Develop CV, Web Folio

• Reflect and log work related skills and experiences

• Log meetings with CA and OT/attendance at events


Using Pebble Pad Software

• Pebble Pad is a web based, Personal Learning Space, used in colleges, universities and professional bodies; by learners, teachers and assessors.

• To support work based learning, activities and the collection of evidence (through different ways)

• Medium/platform to support the student to log/reflect- offers tools

• Provides a secure, online environment

• Interface and resources available & can be developed

• Can manage large student usage

• Provides statistics


Transition Planning Tool

CV

• Personal • Professional• Academic• Gathering

experiences and reflections

Worker Needs Summary

• Reflection on RA

• CP Profile• AT Assessment• LENS Report• Placement

Planning

My Personal Workbook

• Meeting Forms

• Disclosure• WSMP• FMP• Career Specific

approaches• Application to

the workplace


Pebble Pad: Transition Planning Tool



Using The Transition Planning Tool with Students

• Students meet with CA or OT and are provided with personal log in details

• Assets- Use worksheets, CV builder –to reflect and log experiences

• Resources- Uploaded by Career Pathways Team-Students can use

• Template Builder- students can devise personal worksheets, reflection logs, upload specific work related files

• Upload Files


Pebble Pad: Transition Planning Tool

Resources for students to avail of:

• Career Pathways Profile

• CP Meetings

• Understanding Disclosure

• Matching my skills to the Job

• Prep for Interview

• Development of CV/Web-folio


Resources



Pebble Pad App – Pebble Pocket

• The app is designed to support reflection-on-the-go rather than attempting to provide everything that the full PP (either desktop or mobile) can do.

• Users have a choice of post, activity and reflective templates as well as being able to add/take images and video.

• Offline capability


Benefits of The Transition Planning Tool

• Providing and delivering information via the transition planning tool ensures a sustainable model

• Repository for life- ensures and also reduces the use and reliance paper-based approaches which get lost

• Creative means of communicating employability skills

• Personal and unique to the student

• Innovative and unique

• Promotes the concept of Continuous Professional Development –greater visibility of progress and development

• Sinks with other on-line work related sites such as LinkedIn

Demonstration of Pebble Pad

http://www.pebblepad.co.uk/




Future Directions

• Conduct research on the use of Pebble Pad in supporting students/graduates in their transition to employment

• Refinement of the resources following feedback from students and HEI partners

• App on i-phone – further developments of Pebble Pad

• TCD Strategic Plan – Roll out across College

• Liaise with Pebble Pad re: dissemination of its use in Career Pathways


References

• AHEAD. (2008). Willing Able Mentoring – Dis-abling-ability? A Study of the Employment Context of Graduates with Disabilities within Ireland.

•AGCAS. (2013). http://www.agcas.org.uk/agcas_resources/17-What-Happens-Next-A-Report-on-the-First-Destinations-of-Disabled-Graduates

• Kim, M.M., & Williams, B.C. (2012). Lived Employment Experiences of College students and Graduates with physical Disabilities in the United States. Disability and Society, 27:6, 837-852.

• National Disability Authority, (2014). URL: http://nda.ie/Disability-overview/

• Nolan, C., & Gleeson, C.I. (In press). The Transition to Employment needs for Students and Graduates with disabilities. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research.

•Pebble Pad (2015). http://www.pebblepad.co.uk/

http://nda.ie/Disability-overview/


Useful Links

• Career Pathways- 3 Stages: https://www.tcd.ie/disability/career/Pathways/3stages.php

• Pebble Pad Website: http://www.pebblepad.co.uk/

https://www.tcd.ie/disability/career/Pathways/3stages.php



Any Questions?

Thank You

Documents

Building Blocks - The development of an e-Portfolio system to support students with disabilities in the transition to employment. Claire Gleeson, Dr. Clodagh