Practical experience within courses is highly sought after and successful, but it is also a form of learning that requires significant resources. In this guide, we provide tips on various ways to integrate elements of practical experience into your courses. We give advice on what to consider and provide an overview of different models, including their strengths, challenges, and opportunities. This guide is based on research literature and the experiences of teaching staff at the Faculty of Social Sciences.
About practical experience in courses
The Faculty's report on socially and professionally relevant studies (2021) highlights experience-related subjects as one of five focus areas that should be prioritized in order to contribute to strengthening the content of education and students learning and perceived relevance to the workplace.
The goal of experience-related subjects is to provide students with insight and increased awareness of how they can use knowledge and skills acquired through their studies in a practical context, and what skills and knowledge the workplace demands. This, in turn, could facilitate the transition from studies to the workplace by helping students to more quickly find relevant employment.
In other words, experience-related subjects are a sought-after, effective, and successful form of teaching, but they require resources for administrative practical implementation, development and maintenance of external relationships, and the design of relevant projects, tasks, and collaboration spaces.
Planning a course
Goals and purposes
The aim of teaching is the students' learning. To develop good teaching, we must focus on and have knowledge of how students learn. When planning a practice-related course, it is important to think about what you want the students to learn and what kind of learning process it may involve.
- What is the purpose of student learning?
- What knowledge and skills do you want the students to have after completing the course?
- How does this affect the central learning goals, and the choice of teaching method, content, learning activities, and assessment form?
Feel free to use the qualification framework when designing learning goals. One of the purposes of the qualification framework is to clarify for students what expectations are placed on them regarding what they should learn.
Wholeness and coherence
For students to work and learn well, there must be a good connection between the learning goals, learning activities, and assessment forms.
- How can you and your colleagues together strengthen wholeness and coherence within the course and between courses in the program?
- Which learning activities support/can support the central learning goals in your course/program?
- How to link learning activities to assessment in the course? What assessment form allows students to demonstrate mastery related to all the different learning goals?
Organizing
Even if the room for maneuver may be greater than we initially think, there are framework conditions that enable / limit what we can achieve. In the process of planning a practice-related course, it is important to find out about these well in advance.
- Size/scope of the course? What framework conditions and resources do you need to organize and carry out the teaching, learning activities, and assessment forms you want?
- Will the practice take place in the workplace (external practice) or at the university (internal practice)?
- Is the practice organized by the university or should the student arrange the internship themselves?
- In which industries can relevant partners/places for internships be found? In industries that traditionally recruit from the program, or in industries that you want to become familiar with the candidate's competences? Do you already have contacts/networks/alumni who can be valuable partners?
- What are the expectations, responsibilities, roles, and needs of the different parties? Who is responsible for guiding the students?
- Should students work and be assessed individually or in groups?
- How should the practice course be placed in the study program? Does the course require mandatory prerequisites? Should the course be open to exchange students?
Useful resources
Alumni
Our alumni are a valuable resource as ambassadors for the faculty, role models from their programs, and as professional mentors and representatives of the working life. Consequently, alumni networks can be an important contributor to the development and implementation of practice-related courses. Alumni currently participate in several work-related initiatives organized by instructors, workplace coordinators, and program and subject committees. However, there is room to develop relationships and to invite them even more to participate in teaching activities.
Contact:
- Alumni activities at the Faculty of Social Sciences: Barbro Kolbjørnsrud
- ISV Alumni: Monika Birkeland
- ISS Alumni: Camilla Kongsli
- PSI Alumni: Jostein Peter Eikrem Koløen (permisjon) / vikar: Eleonora Brekke
- SAI Alumni: Liv Christina Varen
- TIK Alumni: Petter Brønstad
- ØI Alumni: Solveig Wiland Gruenke
Career and Employability coordinator
Career and Employability coordinator ved SV-fakultetet, Barbro Kolbjørnsrud,can provide advice and coordinate new initiatives regarding the development and organization of expeirence-related courses.
EILIN
EILIN Network for Learning and Teaching is the place where instructors can get assistance with development projects. The service is customised to the requirements of each discipline and facilitates the sharing of experiences, development of skills, and pedagogical development work within the faculty.
LINK
LINK is an interdisciplinary center that contributes to student learning outcomes through the further development of teaching. The center offers courses, seminars, and guidance on technology and pedagogical perspectives. LINK ensures knowledge sharing and creates common meeting places across the faculties.
Case- and problem-based learning without external agents
A practice model where students work with cases or other forms of problem-solving learning activities designed by the instructor themselves, without input from external agents.
Strengths
- Develops students' problem-solving skills. Case- and problem-based learning provides good training in acquiring theoretical knowledge and using it to solve specific tasks. Students learn to transfer subject knowledge to broader contexts.
- Develops written and oral communication skills. Students have the opportunity to develop their written and oral presentation skills through written assignments and oral presentations of their solutions.
- Develops the ability to work independently and in teams. Case- and problem-based learning allows for independent development as students learn to work independently and take responsibility for their own learning, while also developing the ability to work in teams.
Challenges
- Resource-intensive. Case- and problem-based learning in collaboration without external actors represents a practice model that is somewhat resource-intensive in terms of administrative practical implementation, involving a lot of organization and facilitation, as well as in the design of cases and relevant issues for the projects.
Opportunities
-
How to succeed in developing and organizing such a course? Ensuring a good alignment between learning objectives, learning activities, and assessment forms can be a challenge in practice-related courses. In the course SOSANT1050 - Ethnographic Method, students are introduced to the anthropological research process through both a theoretical and a practical component. The practical component consists of a mini-fieldwork, where students work in groups. To signal that the main learning lies in the fieldwork and to ensure that students perceive the practical component as an integrated part of the teaching and assessment in the course, course coordinators have implemented several measures over time:
By assigning more of the curriculum to self-study, more time has been freed up for review, discussion, and guidance of the fieldwork in the actual teaching.
By replacing the traditional exam with a portfolio exam, where a field report constitutes one of two parts, the fieldwork has been integrated into the assessment. The field report is written by groups but submitted individually, allowing students to put a personal touch on the assignment.
Student opinions
Working on it.
Case- and problem-based learning with external agents
Practical model where students work with cases or other forms of problem-solving learning activities, designed in collaboration with external agents. External agents may include organizations, companies, or municipalities.
Strengths
- Enhances relevance and students' understanding of their own education. By working with external actors and using skills and competencies acquired through their studies in a practical context, students gain a better understanding of their education and competencies, as well as the relevance of their education and possible career paths.
- Develops students' problem-solving abilities. Case- and problem-based learning provides good training in acquiring theoretical knowledge and using it to solve concrete tasks. Students learn to apply their expertise to broader contexts.
- Develops writing and oral presentation skills. Students have the opportunity to develop their written and oral presentation skills through written submissions and oral presentations of their solutions.
- Develops the ability to work independently and in teams. Case- and problem-based learning allows for independent development as students learn to work independently and take responsibility for their own learning, while also building the ability to work in teams.
- Facilitates networking. Working with external actors provides students with a unique opportunity to build networks. This is useful for future positions, but also opens up opportunities for collaboration on bachelor's and master's theses.
Challenges
- Resource-intensive. Case- and problem-based learning in collaboration with external actors represents a practice model that is very resource-intensive in terms of administrative practical implementation, including a lot of organization and facilitation, development and maintenance of external relationships, and designing relevant cases and issues for the projects.
Opportunities
- How to succeed in developing and organizing such a course? Developing practice-related courses in collaboration with external actors can be very resource-intensive, as is well known. In the course Project Forum, which is part of the Master's program in Organization, Leadership, and Work, interdisciplinary student groups of five to seven students are assigned real projects for organizations in the workplace. This allows students to gain experience in dealing with a client to solve a knowledge task in practice, while also gaining experience in collaborating with others, which many students lack experience with in traditional teaching methods.
- Key components for success in this course have been utilizing existing networks, finding regular partners for project development, and focusing on the collaborative dynamics in the project.
Student opinions
Working on it.
Placement with employer/internship
Practice model where students spend all or part of the course period in the workplace
Strengths
- Enhances the relevance and the student's understanding of their own education. By participating in a relevant work environment and applying skills and competencies acquired through their studies in a practical context, students gain a better understanding of their education and competence, as well as the relevance of their education and potential career paths
- Learning of transversal skills. Provides an opportunity for learning transversal skills, also referred to as innovation competence, problem-solving, teamwork and collaboration, critical thinking, execution power, communication competence, and professionalism. The literature emphasizes that such skills are easier to learn in a practical setting than in the classroom
- Increased insight into the working world. Placement with employer/internship also gives students increased insight into how the working world functions. This includes a better understanding of the structure, tasks, and expectations of different companies for their employees.
- Opens up networking opportunities. Participating in a relevant work environment provides students with a unique opportunity to build a network. This is useful for future positions, but also opens up opportunities for collaboration on bachelor's and master's theses.
Challenges
- Develop clear learning objectives. Studies show that the purpose of practical training in academic subjects is not always as clearly formulated as in professional subjects. In various professional programs, compulsory practical training is an important part of the curriculum, and there is generally a framework that details what students are expected to have achieved in terms of knowledge, skills, and competence upon completion of their education. In academic subjects, practical training is often justified more by the development of generic skills and the preparation of students for the working world in a more general sense.
- Establish a strong connection between learning objectives, learning activities, and assessment methods. Research also shows that many students often experience a significant lack of alignment between stated learning objectives, assessment methods, and the actual content of practical training. This can lead to a lack of perspectives and issues from the professional and societal realm that could make academic education more up-to-date and relevant to the working world. Therefore, the challenge is to find a favorable middle ground, allowing authentic professional situations and structured forms of learning at the university to strengthen each other. This is important for students to perceive practical training as an integrated and significant part of their education.
- Make expectations clear. Having clear expectations between parties is important to ensure a common understanding of the various parties' responsibilities, roles, and needs. However, this can be a particular challenge.
- Resource-intensive. Placement with employer/internship represents a practice model that is highly resource-intensive in terms of administrative practical implementation, both in terms of organization and facilitation, as well as in the development and maintenance of external relationships.
- Mobilization of students. Despite an expressed desire among students for increased relevance to the working world and more practical experience in study programs, it is difficult to mobilize students to apply for practice-related courses. This is especially true for courses that involve placement with employers/internship. This, in turn, creates challenges in planning and mobilizing employers.
Opportunities
- How to succeed in developing and organizing such a course? Ensuring relevant agreements and tasks can, as mentioned, be highly challenging and resource-intensive. In the course ANTH4710 - Internship, several measures have been taken to ensure relevant agreements and tasks and make the process less resource-intensive.
- To ensure relevant and interesting agreements for each student, students themselves have been given responsibility for finding an internship placement. This aligns with an expressed desire among students and an encouragement from instructors that the internship should be relevant to their work on their master's thesis.
- To ensure relevant tasks, two contracts are entered into: one between the internship institution and the SAI (Study Program) and one between the internship institution and the student. The latter contract should specify details about the nature of the work, duration, and other relevant matters.
Student opinions
Working on it.
Commissioned bachelor or master theses
Experience model where students write their bachelor's or master's thesis in collaboration with the industry
Advantages
- Application of knowledge to real and current issues. Collaborating on bachelor's and master's theses is a key tool for applying knowledge to real and current issues. This is a fundamental element in the educational programs.
- Facilitates networking. Participating in a relevant work environment provides students with a unique opportunity to build networks. This is particularly useful for future employment opportunities.
Challenges
- Resource-intensive. Project-based bachelor's and master's theses represent a practice model that is resource-intensive in terms of administrative practical implementation, involving significant organization and facilitation, as well as the development and maintenance of external relationships.
Opportunities
- How to succeed in developing and organizing such a course? In the course KULKOM3090 - Oppgaveemne i kultur og kommunikasjon, students are given the opportunity to write bachelor's theses in collaboration with industry. The arrangement is organized in a way that different clients develop project descriptions each year, which students can apply for by sending a letter of motivation to the study advisor. However, the opportunity to write such industry-relevant bachelor's theses is limited and must be applied for in the autumn before students take the course.
Student opinion
Working on it.
Other forms of experience-related courses and work-relevant measures
In addition to the aforementioned categories, there are several other ways to organize practice-related courses and integrate work relevance as part of the study programs. Among them, there are several courses at the faculty that focus on the use of the discipline's methods and training in various software programs. Other possible ways to organize practice-related courses are through the use of simulation and gamification. Furthermore, the Work-Life Coordinator and Career Center at UiO have developed the "Discover Your Future" program, which aims to provide career support throughout the study period by contributing to knowledge about and dissemination of one's own skills, thus facilitating the transition from the classroom to the workplace. Find Your Future consists of six courses for bachelor's students and four courses for master's students, one for each semester. Find Your Future was launched for bachelor's students in autumn 2022 and for master's students in spring 2023. Students enroll in the courses through StudentWeb and follow the regular course registration process.
This resource has been developed by Elisabeth Vanadis Sund and commissioned by EILIN Network for Learning and Teaching.