FSWD Workforce Development Project ACT

Foundation Skills Training Package- Embedding into Culinary. A Case Study

Project Overview

Participants:

  1. Ian Millar
  2. Dammika Hatharasinghe

Project Overview

Both Dammika and I come from hospitality backgrounds, with over 60 years of hospitality and teaching/ training experience between us. We are both fully committed to our teaching responsibilities both culinary and LLN. Dammika’s expertise is in pastry/ bread making.

Out initial chats focussed on the initial assessment processes with culinary/ CIT. I also introduced Dammika to the UoC’s within the FSTP and between us we planned to identify appropriate UoC’s that could be embedded into his current course options.

Out first plan of attack was the Initial Assessment which should be deployed to every new student within the first few weeks of the first term. This hasn’t necessarily happened that successfully in culinary in recent times. Using a pre-existinggeneric hospitality Initial Assessment, we collaborated to redevelop it into something more fitting contextually to Dammika’s baking/pastry student’s needs.

Next our focus moved to exploring the UoC’s within the FSTP within our initial concentration of numeracy UoC’s, as this area of LLN had previously been highlighted as an area of student developed during our initial needs analysis of his student’s . Our discussions focussed on the following 3 UoC’s from the Numeracy Matrix:

  • FSKNUM22 Use and apply ratios, rates and proportions for work
  • FSKNUM21 Apply an expanding range of mathematical calculations for work
  • FSKNUM23 Estimate, measure and calculate measurements for work

We both agreed that these UoC would have the best fit directly into his current course options and would help facilitate the required underpinning mathematical skills and knowledge required by his students to encourage them to get the best learning outcomes from their time at CIT.

We also highlighted the following UoC from FSTP Literacy Matrix:

  • FSKOCM05 Use oral communication skills for workplace presentations
  • FSKOCM04 Use oral communication skills to participate in workplace meetings
  • FSKRDG10 Read and respond to routine workplace information
We both agreed that these UoC’s would best deliver the required underpinning skills and knowledge base for his students to participate successfully in the workplace.
Dammika and I both recognise that funding issues are a major concern within CIT and we both also recognise that the embedding of FSTP UoC’s within vocational areas are crucial if CIT’s future students are to be a success in their individual courses and in the wider workplace.We both look forward to working together in 2014 to help deliver LLN/FSTP as an integral part of his baking/pastry courses.
Project Proposal
The students attending Damika’s course come from a wide demographic, as you would expect from the hospitality industry. Both male and female, ages ranging from 18yrs- 35yrs and from many cultural backgrounds.
The challenges that Dammika faces daily with his students is down to basic language, reading and comprehension and basic numeracy calculation. This is not a new phenomenon with Dammika; he has seen the same level of LLN challenges for many years. The hospitality industry is known for attracting a high % of employees who may be challenged from an LLN perspective.
Dammika teaches on the Cert III Retail Baking (Cake and Pastry). He also teaches on the Cert III in Retail Baking (Bread).
The UoC that we both considered most appropriate were:
  • FSKNUM22 Use and apply ratios, rates and proportions for work
  • FSKNUM21 Apply an expanding range of mathematical calculations for work
  • FSKNUM23 Estimate, measure and calculate measurements for work
  • FSKOCM05 Use oral communication skills for workplace presentations
  • FSKOCM04 Use oral communication skills to participate in workplace meetings
  • FSKRDG10 Read and respond to routine workplace information
The main constraints identified during this process come down to the actual physical hours attached to the delivery of the LLN components of these CertII Retail Baking Course, which amount to :
  • 7 hours of numeracy
  • 20 hours of Literacy
Considering and this is solely depending on which Australian State you are in, FS UoC can have delivery hours attached anywhere from 10- 20 hours per UoC. This is a major potential blockage if our project is to get of the ground.
We have considered the following options on how best to deliver these UoC into his 2 CertIII Retail Baking courses:
  • Team teaching during his theory session hours tba
  • Dammika, after initial mentoring, embedding FS fully into his own everyday teaching practice
  • Greater use of eLearn to encourage and embed FS
  • Embedding a great awareness of FS into everyday teaching practice
Timeframes
It is envisaged that this plan could be deployed in Semester 2 2014
Both Dammika and I have both gained a better understanding of our own specialist spheres of influence and teaching while at the same time our common hospitality bond has facilitated a strong working and collaborative approach towards our mutual objective- our student’s needs. We have both taken away much from this process and look forward to deploying in the near future.

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