This is a qualitative study about the information competencies that employers seek in university graduates and the skills which graduates demonstrate when they enter the workplace. Included are findings from interviews with 23 US employers and focus groups with a total of 33 recent graduates from four US colleges and universities. Employers said they recruited graduates for their online searching skills but once graduates joined the workplace they rarely used the traditional, low-tech research competencies that their employers also needed. Graduates said that they used skills from university for evaluating and managing published content; yet most graduates still needed to develop adaptive strategies to save time and work more efficiently. A preliminary model compares information problems in the university with those of the workplace. Opportunities are identified for preparing students to succeed beyond the academy in the workplaces of today and tomorrow.
This paper presents results from a cross-disciplinary content analysis of 185 recent research articles, published between 2008 and 2013. These papers examined factors affecting adult participation in lifelong learning, based on the availability and use of Internet-based and face-to-face modes of learning. Articles were written by scholars from 39 countries, including the European Union (EU), United States (U.S.), Canada, Australia, and, to a lesser extent, from developing and newly industrialized countries, such as Mexico, Brazil, China, and Taiwan. Despite widespread assumptions as to online learning’s potential and promise, articles focused on traditional face-to-face learning and training modes more than Internet-based modes. Seven thematic research areas were identified from the dataset: four major and three emerging themes. Key findings from 40 studies about the adult participation in learning in the workplace and community-based programs are highlighted. These papers present broad and deep investigations about diverse groups of lifelong learners previously unstudied, while equity issues pertaining to access and availability of training and learning opportunities are addressed. Directions for future research are identified and discussed.
This paper reports the results from a mixed methods study of recent college graduates who were asked if and why they used blogs as sources for continued learning purposes. Findings are based on 1,651 online survey responses and 63 follow-up telephone interviews with young graduates from 10 U.S. colleges and universities. Despite the media’s declarations about the impending demise of the blogosphere, almost two-thirds of the respondents (62 percent) had read blogs to fulfill their learning needs during the past 12 months. Blogs were an affordable source of information to these readers, especially for acquiring additional knowledge and closing skill gaps in their personal lives after college. Results from a logistic regression analysis indicated respondents were more likely to have read blogs during the past 12 months if they needed step-by-step instructions for hobbies, do-it-yourself household repairs, or money management and creating a personal budget. Respondents who used blogs were also more likely to also use complementary sources, such as educational videos on YouTube, to meet their learning needs. The concept of shared utility is introduced as a basis for explaining reasons for use of the blog format, and conclusions are drawn about why blogs, an early Web form, are still useful to millennials as sources of continued learning.
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