03 Competencies checklist

03 Competencies checklist

by Ian Bell -
Number of replies: 4

Hi All CALMet Onliners,

Today's session is on competencies. These are very difficult to write well, possibly even more than multi-choice questions! Yet they are extremely important as they form the basis of all other parts of our training - what we will train, how we will do it, how we will assess it, etc.

I have created a checklist which I have found useful for assessing competencies - do they meet the criteria for good competencies? There is an annotated PowerPoint (.pptx) file whidh explains each criterion.

I have also added 2 further documents. One tries to make sense of the sometimes confusing terminology and shows the relationships between goals, competencies, learning outcomes, etc. and who the corresponding stakeholder are. The other is an example of competencies in action. It is an outline for a 1 week nowcasting course that we conducted in Romania in 2010 in association with ERAD 2010, the European Radar conference.

If you have competencies that you use, or are thinking of using, try them in the checklist table and share your results in the forum. Or have a go at writing competencies for something you teach and share those. We will be happy to work on them together.

The next session will be on planning for change with a Think-Do-Feel table.

cheers

Ian

In reply to Ian Bell

Re: 03 Competencies checklist

by Erik Hagemark -

Hi Ian and all,

On your slide with Gery's classification, you added a level of expert on top. In describing this top one, you said something like being aware of the unconscious competence. I tempted to say here that this person is aware of the intuition involved in a particular task, and even able to describe this tacit knowledge (as Gary Klein writes in his book Streetlights and Shadows). Also Pliske et.al use the term "intuitive-based scientists" about an expert weather forecaster. 

Cheers

Erik

In reply to Erik Hagemark

Re: 03 Competencies checklist

by Patrick Parrish -

Regarding this scheme, I also wonder if it isn't best to try to by-pass the "unconscious" step and encourage more reflection and self-awareness. In other words, should this diagram be seen as more description of how expertise frequently develops rather than prescriptive of how it might best be developed? This is what case-based learning strategies encourage, and the literature about reflective practioners is hoping to promote.  

Pat

In reply to Patrick Parrish

Re: 03 Competencies checklist

by Ian Bell -

Hi Pat,

I think it all depends on what the requirements are. We don't all need to be experts in everything we do. (We can't be.) In many circumstances the unconscious expertise may be OK. Or even working at lower levels, eg, using relevant parts of software without knowing all features, knowing where to access a checklist, maintaining observations instruments, etc.

Certainly we should encourage our forecasters to get off the OK plateau and continue to reflect on their forecasting decisions.

cheers

Ian

In reply to Erik Hagemark

Re: 03 Competencies checklist

by Ian Bell -

Hi Erik,

Yes I agree with you. Their work provides valuable insights into expert thinking.

The other idea of interest here is Joshua Foer's "OK plateau". This is where people are working competently enough to get the job done and coasting along. A good example of this is typing. We manage at  a particular level and don't improve unless we make a conscious effort.

cheers

Ian