Conclusion and action plan
This vision of graduateness depends on the idea of transferability of skills. I struggled with this idea, finding myself very unconvinced by it, seeing it as an illusion, but still hoping it might be valid for the sake of my own future. I reflected on why I felt this way and realised that it conflicted with a deep-seated experience. (appendix -reflection1)
Moving on from this reflection I think I have demonstrated some understanding of the concepts of 'graduateness' and 'value added' and also made some attempt to explain where they fit or jar with my own experience.
I've identified what I hope is appropriate evidence to show how I've met the generic outcomes in a broad sense.
I've reflected critically on each of the general areas of the generic learning outcomes but found it hard to match them against my personal strengths and weaknesses. For me learning styles have not been a useful indicator of change over the course of the degree.
Honey & Mumford (1)
(My score plotted in purple)
Linda Hartley on Sunday, May 21, 2006 at 12:10 pm +0000 wrote:
I don't seem to fit any of the categories in Honey and Mumford. When we did the stickies way back in the summer of the first year I concluded that the learning styles test really didn't tell me much more than a description of my astrological sign would. I stand by that. The VAK one was the most use I suppose - telling me I was a visual learner, but then I knew that already. I re-did some of them in preparation for this module. Guess what my scores were almost identical. I'm still a global learner with an emphasis on visual learning and I still don't fit into Honey and Momford's schema. Oh and BTW for those interested in Mayers Briggs I'm still INFJ
(Posting to the learning set)
The learning objectives ask us to 'demonstrate personal achievement', assuming that whilst having achieved all, some will have been achieved more readily than others. My instinctive reaction was to say they were all hard to achieve, and even more difficult to evidence. Identification of strengths and weaknesses has been an issue for me since the first year of the degree but I am making progress in this area though there is still room for considerable improvement in my capacity for self assessment.
Action Plan
• Re-visit my mission statement and question the underlying assumptions behind it. In particular ask myself do I really want to support others to be creative or is it my own creativity I need to foster?
• To write a focussed CV based on my skills and learning (as opposed to those identified in the GLOs) over the last 3 years in the workplace, the degree and beyond, using techniques learned in personal development planning in the previous two years.
• To explore more freelance opportunities for movement into working with adults rather than children
• To look for work which will provide a higher rate of pay (current wage £8.50 per hour, term time only) and be commensurate with my graduate status
• to remember that I love teaching reading so much that it is something I may continue to do on a voluntary basis as I move out of working with children.
• to explore what other aspects of my current job give me pleasure and satisfaction so that I can incorporate those into my future plans.
• to systematically deal with the back log of important things neglected for the last 3 years.
Finally I think it is very important to change the way I see myself, to own my identity as a graduate and to allow this to change my expectations for the future.(a) Only by doing this can I hope to change how others view me. This is a process which I have begun and which will continue over the next few months as I look more deeply at what I want to do, applying the skills I have learnt in the degree. More than anything becoming a graduate through this pathway has led to a change in how I will approach what ever career changes I decide to make.
Forward to sect5
(a)
In a previous job as a Job Centre worker I saw many mature graduates who did not make that transition and were unable to capitalise on their graduate status.
(1)
Honey, P. and A. Mumford 1992. The manual of learning styles. Maidenhead
cited by Down J, (2006) Graduate Skills for Personal Development & Future Employment, Available, URL http://firstclass.ultraversity.net/~Jane.Down/graduateskills/0_introduction.html last accessed 22/5/06
Moving on from this reflection I think I have demonstrated some understanding of the concepts of 'graduateness' and 'value added' and also made some attempt to explain where they fit or jar with my own experience.
I've identified what I hope is appropriate evidence to show how I've met the generic outcomes in a broad sense.
I've reflected critically on each of the general areas of the generic learning outcomes but found it hard to match them against my personal strengths and weaknesses. For me learning styles have not been a useful indicator of change over the course of the degree.
Honey & Mumford (1)
(My score plotted in purple)
Linda Hartley on Sunday, May 21, 2006 at 12:10 pm +0000 wrote:
I don't seem to fit any of the categories in Honey and Mumford. When we did the stickies way back in the summer of the first year I concluded that the learning styles test really didn't tell me much more than a description of my astrological sign would. I stand by that. The VAK one was the most use I suppose - telling me I was a visual learner, but then I knew that already. I re-did some of them in preparation for this module. Guess what my scores were almost identical. I'm still a global learner with an emphasis on visual learning and I still don't fit into Honey and Momford's schema. Oh and BTW for those interested in Mayers Briggs I'm still INFJ
(Posting to the learning set)
The learning objectives ask us to 'demonstrate personal achievement', assuming that whilst having achieved all, some will have been achieved more readily than others. My instinctive reaction was to say they were all hard to achieve, and even more difficult to evidence. Identification of strengths and weaknesses has been an issue for me since the first year of the degree but I am making progress in this area though there is still room for considerable improvement in my capacity for self assessment.
Action Plan
• Re-visit my mission statement and question the underlying assumptions behind it. In particular ask myself do I really want to support others to be creative or is it my own creativity I need to foster?
• To write a focussed CV based on my skills and learning (as opposed to those identified in the GLOs) over the last 3 years in the workplace, the degree and beyond, using techniques learned in personal development planning in the previous two years.
• To explore more freelance opportunities for movement into working with adults rather than children
• To look for work which will provide a higher rate of pay (current wage £8.50 per hour, term time only) and be commensurate with my graduate status
• to remember that I love teaching reading so much that it is something I may continue to do on a voluntary basis as I move out of working with children.
• to explore what other aspects of my current job give me pleasure and satisfaction so that I can incorporate those into my future plans.
• to systematically deal with the back log of important things neglected for the last 3 years.
Finally I think it is very important to change the way I see myself, to own my identity as a graduate and to allow this to change my expectations for the future.(a) Only by doing this can I hope to change how others view me. This is a process which I have begun and which will continue over the next few months as I look more deeply at what I want to do, applying the skills I have learnt in the degree. More than anything becoming a graduate through this pathway has led to a change in how I will approach what ever career changes I decide to make.
Forward to sect5
(a)
In a previous job as a Job Centre worker I saw many mature graduates who did not make that transition and were unable to capitalise on their graduate status.
(1)
Honey, P. and A. Mumford 1992. The manual of learning styles. Maidenhead
cited by Down J, (2006) Graduate Skills for Personal Development & Future Employment, Available, URL http://firstclass.ultraversity.net/~Jane.Down/graduateskills/0_introduction.html last accessed 22/5/06
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