CHAROTAR UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACULTY OF TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION SKILLS CS302: PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION-2

Unit-1 Employability Skills

1.1 Skills-gap and Employability 1.2 Employability Skill Set: Basic Academics Skills, Higher-order Thinking Skills and Personal qualities 1.3 Knowledge, Skills, Attitude, and Aptitude 1.4 Adaptability at workplace 1.5 Basic, higher order thinking and affective skills Introduction: Employability Skills, like Key Competencies, are specific conceptualizations of what are known more broadly as generic skills. They are also referred to as generic capabilities, enabling skills or even key skills. One can also describe it non-technical skills and competencies which play a significant part in contributing to an individuals effective and successful participation in the workplace. No matter where they have been adapted, or how they have been named, these conceptualizations of skills share a common goal. They seek to establish the basis for recognizing an important set of skills which support the successful accomplishment of the taskbased activities central to any job role. Insufficient supply of quality skills is one of the main impediments to further economic growth in India. The Indian economy grew more than 8% on average over the past 5 years, including the year of the unprecedented financial crisis in 2009. However, the skill shortage is still one of the major constraints in most industries in India (World Bank, 2009b).

1.1 Skills-gap and Employability Skill shortage remains one of the major constraints to continued growth of the Indian economy. This employer survey seeks to address this knowledge-gap by answering three questions: (i) Which skills do employers consider important when hiring new engineering graduates? (ii) How satisfied are employers with the skills of engineering graduates? and (iii) In which important skills are the engineers falling short?

What is Employability Skills?

"Employability skills are those basic skills necessary for getting, keeping and doing well on a job," says Robinson. "These are the skills, attitudes and actions that enable workers to get along with their fellow workers and supervisors and to make sound, critical decisions." Employability refers to a person's capability of gaining initial employment, maintaining employment, and obtaining new employment if required (Hillage and Pollard, 1998). In simple terms, employability is about being capable of getting and keeping fulfilling work. For individuals, employability depends on the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) they possess, the way they use those assets and present them to employers, and the context. Employability skills are all about the ability of individuals to exhibit their skills to the prospective employers and the ability to execute the tasks thereby achieving organizational goals and objectives. Besides, it also talks about the ability to switch over to other jobs comfortably. Employability skills refer to specific skills essential for employment. These are the critical tools and traits required to perform tasks at workplace. These skills are much sought after these days by employers. The needs of employability skills differ from country to country and from sector to sector and from time to time. However, certain qualities such as communication skills, interpersonal skills, integrity, right attitude, problem solving, decision making and team building skills can be taken as a few common skills of employability skills. 1.2 Employability Skill Set: Basic Academics Skills, Higher-order Thinking Skills and Personal qualities Categories of Skills under the above three Skills By using factor analysis, 18 variables (skills) were reduced to four major factors, namely specific skills, core skills, personal characteristics, and communication skills (See Table 1). Skills under Four Factors
Specific Skills Database knowledge Spreadsheet knowledge Word processing knowledge Ability to adapt to changing technology Technical skills Mathematical skills Core Skills Self confidence Critical thinking Creative thinking Interpersonal skills Leadership skills Experience with real world problems Personal Characteristics Business ethics Professionalism Communication Skills Listening skills Speaking skills Written communication

Employability Skill Set: Employability skills, while categorized in many different ways, are generally divided into three skill sets: (a) Basic academic skills (b) higher-order thinking skills and (c) personal qualities. Basic Academic Skills Reading Writing Science Math Oral Communication Listening Higher-Order Thinking Skills Learning Reasoning Thinking Creatively Decisions Making Problem Solving Personal Qualities Responsible Self Confidence Self Control Social Skills Honest Team Spirit Punctual and Efficient Self Directed Good Work Attitude Well Groomed Cooperative

Have Integrity Adaptable and Flexible

Self Motivated Self Management

THE NBAs OUTCOME CRITERIA The NBA, Indias only official accreditation body for engineering education, has established 11 Program Outcomes. NBA is a provisional member of the Washington Accordan international agreement between accreditation agencies for engineering education for 18 countries. Therefore, NBAs program outcomes (expected learning outcomes for graduates) are based upon the internationally agreed set of the skills and knowledge that graduates are expected to possess at the time of graduation.5 The NBA criteria are:
The NBA learning outcomes and the ABET learning outcomes are very similar, but do have a few important differences. For example, the NBA criterion (e) asks for the graduates to demonstrate an ability to

(a) Graduates will demonstrate knowledge of mathematics, science and engineering. (b) Graduates will demonstrate an ability to identify, formulate and solve engineering problems. (c) Graduates will demonstrate an ability to design and conduct experiments, analyze and interpret data.

(d) Graduates will demonstrate an ability to design a system, component or process as per needs and specifications. (e) Graduates will demonstrate an ability to visualize and work on laboratory and multidisciplinary tasks. (f) Graduate will demonstrate skills to use modern engineering tools, techware and equipment to analyze problems. (g) Graduates will demonstrate knowledge of professional and ethical responsibilities. (h) Graduate will be able to communicate effectively in both verbal and written form. (i) Graduate will show the understanding of impact of engineering solutions on the society and also will be aware of contemporary issues. (j) Graduate will develop confidence for self-education and ability for life-long learning. (k) Graduate who can participate and succeed in competitive examinations. Skills grouped into Three Factors
Factor 1 (Core Employability Skills)
Integrity Self-discipline Reliability Self-motivated Entrepreneurship Skills Teamwork Understands and takes directions for work assignments Willingness to learn Flexibility Empathy Use appropriate/modern tools, equipment, technologies Apply knowledge of mathematics, science, engineering Customer Service Skills Knowledge of contemporary issues Creativity

Factor 3 (Communication Skills)

Written communication Design & conduct experiments, and analyze and interpret data Reading Communication in English Technical Skills Verbal communication Basic computer Advanced computer

Factor 2 (Professional Skills)

Identify, formulate, and solve technical/engineering problems Design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs

The three skills group identified by the above factor analysis partly corroborates one of the most used learning classifications, the Blooms taxonomy, (Bloom 1956). Blooms taxonomy suggests the existence of three domains of learning. The term learning is synonymous to the term skill as used in this paper. The three domains are: Cognitive skills involve knowledge and the development of intellectual skills, Affective skills include the manner in which we deal with things emotionally, such as feeling, values, appreciation, enthusiasm, motivations, and attitudes, and Psychomotor skills encompass physical movements, coordination, and the use of motor-skill areas.

1. Basic Academic Skills Language

Reading Strategies Note-taking

Vocabulary Grammar Style

Study Skills

Speaking & Presenting

Active learning Exams Time & Task management

Presentations Participation Pronunciation

Writing

Reading & Research

Literature Search

The Essay Other Writing Tasks Drafting Written Work

2. Higher Order Thinking Skills

Skill Gaps: Higher-Order Thinking Skills Are lagging A closer assessment of the skill gaps tentatively suggests that the skill gaps are largest within higher-order thinking skills, and smallest among the lower-order thinking skills. To arrive at this finding, we map the Professional (cognitive) Skill into the Blooms revised taxonomy of cognitive skills. This taxonomy hieratically orders the level of cognitive skills (Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001). Using the McBearth action verbs that have been ascribed to each thinking level, we classify the Professional Skills and the Engineeringrelated skills that fit poorly in the Communication Skillsfactor into either higherorder thinking skills (the top three cognitive skills in the revised Blooms taxonomy: analyzing, evaluation, and creating) or the lower-order thinking skills (the

bottom-three cognitive skills in the revised Blooms taxonomy: remembering, understanding and applying).13 Table 8 presents the classified skills and the importance and the skill gap as revealed by the employers.

Definition: HOTs moves away from general knowledge type skills to thinking skills like: synthesizing, analyzing, reasoning, comprehending, application, evaluation. Rather than emphasize the drill and repetition activities, the focus is on problem solving and higher level/order thinking skills. Although many learning disabled children are taught more drill and repetition, there is research that is not in favor of the drill/repetition approach and is in favor of using HOTs. LD children are often weak in memory and will therefore benefit from learning HOTs and developing the higher level thinking skills that teaches them how to be problem solvers. HOTs is designed to develop and increase cognitive development. Also Known As: Critical Thinking. Bloom's Taxonomy of Thinking Skills. Examples: Instead of asking what is or what are type questions, HOTs is asking questions like: what was the impact of........explain why.........evaluate the significance of, why do you think.....etc. Deep and Meaningful Thinking With the widespread use of computers in the 21st century, human beings can use technology to go beyond the kind of rationality that is best performed by machines to the kind of thinking that is inventive, productive, and ethical. Most educators would agree that their students are not as proficient at these kinds of thinking as they would like them to be. Textbooks and other teaching materials often consist of activities that require low-level skills such as recall and

memorization. The academic standards movement of the last decade has focused interest on the development of higher-order thinking skills through more rigorous academic expectations. These kinds of skills can be grouped into three categories. Analysis > Analysis, as defined by Robert Marzano, consists of matching, classifying, error analysis, generalizing, and specifying. By engaging in these processes, learners can use what they are learning to create new insights and invent ways of using what they have learned in new situations. When people use analysis skills to determine the validity and worth of a particular piece of information, they are engaging in critical thinking. Another type of analysis is argumentation, the presenting of claims and evidence persuading others of a point of view. Using Knowledge > The purpose of having knowledge is to use it. Traditional educational practices assumed that students needed a considerable amount of knowledge in order to do anything with it. Unfortunately, students rarely moved past the learning of facts, accumulating more and more of what philosopher Alfred Lord Whitehead called inert knowledge. Using knowledge is the fun, and frustrating, part of learning. Project-based learning allows students to practice higher-order thinking and use knowledge. The processes included in this category are decision making, problem solving, experimental inquiry, and investigation. Creativity, another type of complex thinking, is often described as a special type of problem solving. Metacognition > Metacognition, or thinking about thinking refers to the mental processes that control and regulate how people think. Metacognition is especially important in project-based learning because students must make decisions about what strategies to use and how to use them. The three components of metacognition are: awareness, planning and goal setting, and monitoring. Students who are metacognitively aware are able to describe how they make decisions and are able to adjust the strategies they use when they are not successful. Thinking with Data > In the 21st century, using data involves more than adding numbers and performing statistical analyses. It requires logical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication. Students must learn to think with all kinds of data responsibly in order to make good decisions in their personal lives and to participate fully in debates about the political, social, and environmental issues of contemporary life. Personal Quality : ( Students Self defined Notes Here )

1.3 Knowledge, Skills, Attitude, and Aptitude Knowledge (students collected data) Knowledge is information processed by humans and put together contextually. Its proper use is always beneficial to humankind. One commonly distinguishing factor between knowledge and skill is that knowledge is what is contained in the head and skill is that which is done by the hand.

Skills A skill is the learned capacity to carry out pre-determined results often with the
minimum outlay of time, energy, or both. Skills can often be divided into domain-general and domain-specific skills. For example, in the domain of work, some general skills would include time management, teamwork and leadership, self motivation and others, whereas domain-specific skills would be useful only for a certain job. Skill usually requires certain environmental stimuli and situations to assess the level of skill being shown and used.
Oral and written communication Critical thinking Observation Problem solving Make decisions based on incomplete/ambiguous data Quantitative skills, computational skills Integrate disparate ideas to see the big picture Be able to work independently or in teams of diverse people Visualize in 3 and 4 dimensions Computer savvy

Attitudes Attitude (psychology), a person's perspective toward a specified target and

way of saying and doing things

Leadership/self-motivation Flexibility Lifelong learner Tolerance for frustration, persistence Appreciation for other cultures and people from different backgrounds Self-confidence, self-reliance Ethics

Open thinking -- willing to consider unusual ideas Dedication/enthusiasm Professionalism Tolerance for ambiguity Aptitude

An aptitude is an innate component of a competency to do a certain kind of work at a certain level. Aptitudes may be physical or mental. Aptitude is not knowledge, understanding, learned or acquired abilities (skills) or attitude. The innate nature of aptitude is in contrast to achievement, which represents knowledge or ability that is gained.[1] 1.3 Adaptability at workplace Due to the significant changes occurring in todays organizations, adaptive performance has become increasingly important in work environments. Every company looks for a candidate 1. who fits within the existing work environment and is able to anticipate, respond to and manage change on a day-to-day basis. 2. When hiring, companies consider not only a candidates experience and skills, but also how that potential employee will mesh with the company culture. 3. Cultural fit can mean many things: for example, it could be a candidates willingness and readiness to adopt the companys values. It can also mean that a candidates work style matches the companys expectations Defining Adaptive Performance Numerous authors have discussed adaptability (see, for example, Ilgen & Pulakos, 1999) in relation to different phenomena at the individual, team, and organizational levels, often using many different names and definitions for this concept. For instance, Hesketh and Neal (1999) refer to adaptive performance, Murphy and Jackson (1999) discuss role flexibility, and London and Mone (1999) write about the proficiency with which individuals selfmanage their new learning experiences. Further, adaptation has been discussed in relation to many different organizationally relevant variables (e.g., new people and teams, novel and ill-defined problems, different cultures, new technology, challenging physical conditions, and others), encompassing a wide range of behaviors across a variety of different task demands. Like Campbell et al (1993) argued with respect to performance in general, to identify what is important and to enable researchers to clearly define their variables, there needs to be understanding and consensus about what adaptive performance means across job, occupational, or role assessment situations. Towards this end, the present research began with a review of the literature that discussed different aspects of job-relevant adaptive performance to develop a

definition and preliminary model that could be used as a starting point for understanding the adaptive performance Adaptive Performance 6 requirements of jobs. The following six preliminary dimensions of adaptive performance were 1. Solving Problems Creatively. Adapting to novel situations or dynamic and changing situations frequently requires one to solve new and unfamiliar problems. Accordingly, one aspect of adaptive performance that has been discussed by several authors involves the effectiveness with which employees solve the atypical, ill-defined, and complex problems that confront todays work situations and organizations (e.g., Holyoak, 1991; Hatano & Inagaki, 1986). What is required in this aspect of performance is bringing complex matters or situations to their desired end or developing creative solutions to novel, difficult problems. 2. Dealing with Uncertain/Unpredictable Work Situations. Several authors have also discussed adaptability in relation to a wide variety of unpredictable and uncertain work situations. These situations can result from many different factors, including such things as formal organizational restructuring, shifting business priorities, reductions or changes in available resources, or joining a new organization or group (e.g., Ashford, 1986; Dix & Savickas, 1995; Weiss, 1984; Murphy, 1989; Edwards & Morrison, 1994; Goodman, 1994; Hall & Mirvis, 1995). Key aspects of performance that relate to such events are how easily workers adjust to and deal with the unpredictable nature of these situations, how efficiently and smoothly they can shift their orientation or focus when necessary, and the extent to which they take reasonable action, in spite of inherent uncertainty and ambiguity in the situation. While this aspect of adaptive performance is certainly related to the problemsolving component discussed above in the sense that creative problem solving might be employed in a uncertain or unpredictable situation, the ease and effectiveness with which one confronts and deals with uncertainly in general is conceptually distinct from how creatively and effectively he or she solves novel problems. Further, somewhat different predictors have been shown to be indicative these two general performance areas. For instance, research has shown that general intelligence, problem understanding, and problem solving constructs make unique contributions to creative problem solving performance (Hoover & Feldhusen, 1990; Krietler & Kreitler, 1987; 3. Learning New Tasks, Technologies, and Procedures. A third aspect of adaptive performance discussed in the literature involves learning new ways to perform a job or learning different skill sets or tasks to re-tool for a job or new career (e.g., Kinicki & Latack, 1990; Noe & Ford, 1992; Patrickson, 1987; Thach & Woodman, 1994). This aspect of adaptive performance has become important largely as a result of the rapid pace of technological advancement and an increasing emphasis on continual

learning in organizations. Todays workers are increasingly faced with technical innovation that is forcing them to learn new ways to perform their jobs (Hesketh & Neal, 1999). Similarly, continuous learning involves the ongoing process of planning for and participating in development to prepare for anticipated future job requirements(London & Mone, 1999). Many workers can no longer expect to learn one job or one set of skills and then apply these throughout an entire career. Instead, effective performers in todays organizations are those who anticipate future needs and adapt to changing job requirements by learning new tasks, technologies, procedures, and roles. 4. Demonstrating Interpersonal Adaptability. A fourth aspect of adaptive performance that has been discussed by several researchers is interpersonal adaptability. The need for this type of adaptive performance has become salient due to more fluid work environments that are increasingly characterized by work or project teams (Hollenbeck, et al., 1996; Kozlowski, Gully,Salas, & Cannon-Bowers, 1996) and the shift from manufacturing-oriented businesses to serviceoriented businesses (Schneider, 1994; Zeithaml & Bitner, 1996). More specifically, aspects of interpersonal adaptive performance that have been discussed in the literature include such things as demonstrating interpersonal flexibility, adjusting interpersonal style to achieve a goal, adapting interpersonal behavior to work effectively with a new team, co-workers, or customers, and being a flexible, responsive service-provider who can effectively anticipate and fulfill customer needs (e.g., Aronoff, Stollak, & Woike, 1994; Bowen & Schneider, 1988; Paulhus & Martin, 1988; Spiro & Weitz, 1990). 5. Demonstrating Cultural Adaptability. Another aspect of adaptive performance concerns adapting to cultural demands within an organization (Chao, OLeary-Kelly, Wolf, Klein, & Gardner, 1994) or a new country (Black, 1990). With the globalization of the business environment and extent to which workers today change jobs and organizations, the ability to perform effectively in different cultures and environments is increasingly being recognized as important (Ilgen & Pulakos, 1999; Noe & Ford, 1992). As Chao et al. (1994) proposed, one component of this performance involves learning such things as language (another language entirely or acronyms, slang, and jargon that are unique to the organization or culture), goals and values (formal rules and principles as well as unwritten, informal goals and values that govern behavior), history (traditions, customs, myths, and rituals that convey cultural knowledge), and politics (formal and informal relationships and power structures within the culture). Beyond simply learning about a new culture or environment, however,

the key aspect of this type of adaptive performance involves successfully integrating into a new culture or environment by fully understanding and willingly behaving in accordance with the accepted customs, values, rules, and structures operating within it. 6. Demonstrating Physically Oriented Adaptability. A final aspect of adaptive performance discussed in the literature involves adapting to various physical factors such heat, noise, uncomfortable climates, and difficult environments (e.g., Edwards & Morrison, 1984; Fiedler & Fiedler, 1975; Weinstein, 1978). Adapting quickly and effectively to different physical conditions is required in many different jobs (e.g., environmental sciences research jobs, foreign service jobs, law enforcement officers, expedition and travel-related jobs), but this aspect of adaptive performance is becoming especially important within the military and related jobs. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the militarys primary mission has changed from protecting against a single, well-defined enemy to protecting against more varied and ill-defined enemies (Edwards & Morrison, 1984). The missions being undertaken today are unique and qualitatively different then those of the past, because they involve small intervention units that perform a variety of operations in many different cultures and climates. Quickly adapting to the varied and challenging physical conditions as one moves from country to country and climate to climate is a key aspect of effective performance in these types of jobs. 1.5 Basic, higher order thinking and affective skills

Higher-order thinking is a concept of Education reform based on learning taxonomies such as Bloom's Taxonomy. The idea is that some types of learning require more cognitive processing than others, but also have more generalized benefits. In Bloom's taxonomy, for example, skills involving analysis, evaluation and synthesis (creation of new knowledge) are thought to be of a higher order, requiring different learning and teaching methods, than the learning of facts and concepts. Higher order thinking involves the learning of complex judgmental skills such as critical thinking and problem solving. Higher order thinking is more difficult to learn or teach but also more valuable because such skills are more likely to be usable in novel situations (i.e., situations other than those in which the skill was learned).

Great Example Higher-order thinking essentially means thinking that takes place in the higher-levels of the hierarchy of cognitive processing. Blooms Taxonomy is the most widely accepted hierarchical arrangement of this sort in education and it can be viewed as a continuum of thinking skills starting with knowledge-level thinking and moving eventually to evaluation-level of thinking. A common example, used by Dr. Chuck Weiderhold of the application of the major categories in Blooms Taxonomy, is show below, applying the taxonomy to the Pledge of Allegiance (commitment): Knowledge statements ask the student to recite the pledge. Example: Say the pledge. Comprehension statements ask the student to explain the meaning of words contained in the pledge. Example: Explain what indivisible, liberty, and justice mean. Application statements ask the student to apply understandings. Example: Create your own pledge to something you believe in.

Analysis statements ask the student to interpret word meanings in relation to context. Example: Discuss the meaning of and to the Republic for which it stands in terms of its importance to the pledge. Synthesis statements ask the student to apply concepts in a new setting. Example: Write a contract between yourself and a friend that includes an allegiance to a symbol that stands for something you both believe in. Evaluation statements ask the student to judge the relative merits of the content and concepts contained in the subject. Example: Describe the purpose of the pledge and assess how well it achieves that purpose. Suggest improvements. (Wiederhold, C. (1997). The Q-Matrix/Cooperative Learning & Higher-Level Thinking. San Clemente, CA: Kagan Cooperative Learning.) When we promote higher-order thinking then, we are simply promoting thinking, along with the teaching methodologies that promote such thinking, that takes place at the higher levels of the hierarchy just provided, notably application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. Critical/creative/constructive thinking is closely related to higher-order thinking; they are actually inseparable. Critical/creative/constructive thinking simply means thinking processes that progress upward in the given direction. First one critically analyzes the knowledge, information, or situation. Then they creatively consider possible next-step options, and then finally, they construct a new product, decision, direction, or value. The evaluation step listed above with the Pledge of Allegiance would require this sort of thinking.

Students material :

Higher-order thinking essentially means thinking that takes place in the higher-levels of the hierarchy of cognitive processing. Blooms Taxonomy is the most widely accepted hierarchical arrangement of this sort in education and it can be viewed as a continuum of thinking skills starting with knowledge-level thinking and moving eventually to evaluation-level of thinking.

Knowledge Recall of something encountered before but without having to change it, use it or understand it; facts. Comprehension Understanding the knowledge that has been acquired without needing to relate it to other information. Application Use of a learned concept to resolve some situation or solve a new problem in an appropriate way. Analysis Taking something learned apart into separate components for purposes of thinking about the parts and how they fit together. Synthesis Generating or creating something different by assembling or connecting ideas in a way that makes a whole. Evaluation Looking at the particular value of materials, information or methods in characterizing the whole. Basic Understanding Flow of HOTS

Bloom's as a learning process.

Bloom's in its various forms represents the process of learning. It has been simplified in some case like the three story intellect (Oliver Wendell Holmes and Art Costa), but it still essentially represents how we learn. Before we can understand a concept we have to remember it Before we can apply the concept we must understand it Before we analyse it we must be able to apply it Before we can evaluate its impact we must have analysed it Before we can create we must have remembered, understood, applied, analysed, and evaluated. Exercise

Head-on Approaches to Teaching Higher-Order Thinking

(Synthesized from Teaching Children to Be Literate: A Reflective Approach, by Anthony and Ula Manzo, 1995)
Thinking Thursdays Consider setting aside a given amount of time on a regular basis to try some of these direct approaches to teaching critical and creative thinking. Word Creation: Define the word squallizmotex and explain how your definition fits the word.

If dried grapes are called raisins, and dried beef is called beef jerky, what would you call these items if they were dried: lemons, pineapple, watermelon, chicken. Unusual Uses: Have students try to think of as many unusual uses as they can for common objects such as bricks, used toys, old tennis balls, soda bottles, and 8-track cassette tapes. Circumstances and Consequences: What would happen if . . . school was on weekends and not during the week? water stuck like glue? gravity took a day off? there were no colors? everyone in the country could vote on every issue that is now decided by government representatives? Product Improvements: How could school desks be improved? How could living room furniture be improved to provide better storage and even exercise while watching television? How can we better equip book-carrying bags to handle lunches and other needs that you can think of? Systems and Social Improvements: A sample question that could lead into plenty of higher-level discussion and a good give-and-take of views and needs could be: How can schools be made more fun without hurting learning?

Affective Skills

1. affective/fektiv/
Adjective: Relating to moods, feelings, and attitudes: "affective disorders". Synonyms: emotional emotive

The affective domain contains learning skills that are predominantly related to emotional (affective) processes. The learning processes in the affective domain include being open to experience, engaging in life, cultivating values, managing oneself, and developing oneself (Table 1). Within each of these general process areas are several clusters of specific learning skills that can be improved by means of constructive intervention and assessment. The classification of affective skills presented in this module incorporates many of the skills described in Blooms original work. Although these earlier authors and contemporary educators generally focus more on learning objectives, cognitive learning skills, or in some contexts, psychomotor skills, the movement to learner-focused teaching/learning methods makes clear the significance of integrating learner skills across all domains. Skills in the affective domain are strongly related to student buy-in, self-management, persistence, attitudes toward assessment, and level of success. The present classification provides a valuable reference for curriculum design, facilitation, and personal growth.
The Importance of Affect in Human Behavior

Affect or emotion influences ones awareness of important sensory and situational changes, and motivates action. One example is the well-known fight or flight response. The importance of affect in human and animal life is clearly demonstrated in the extensive body of theory and research related to emotion and motivation. Oatley (1992), Nesse (1990), and Lewis and Haviland (2004) are examples of a wide range of approaches to affect that include neuroscience, psychoanalysis, behavioral psychology, cross-cultural psychology, and evolutionary psychology. One indication of the increasing attention paid to affective skills is the work of Lopez and Snyder (2003), as described in their presentation of measurement options for positive psychology. Another is Golemans (1997) popularization of the finding that emotional intelligence is often a better predictor of individual success than general intellectual ability as measured by most IQ tests. Individuals who learn to recognize and engage their emotions are ready to grow affectively so that they can respond to challenges appropriately and explore their values. At higher levels in the affective domain classification, growth involves managing oneself, managing ones performance, and making commitments. Maslow (1970) calls this self-actualization. Peterson and Seligman (2004) have prepared an important resource for the affective domain in their comprehensive scholarly review of what they refer to as character strengths and virtues in the categories of wisdom and knowledge, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence.

The present classification emphasizes growable skills that tend to be a combination of emotion and motivation, sometimes referred to as conation. What ties all of the processes, clusters, and skills together is the emphasis on affective skills that are commonly observed in learning and growth contexts.
Affective Domain Skills

The affective learning skills can be consciously improved with assessment and intentional practice; moreover, growth in these skills will enhance learning in skills in the other domains and for any learning goal. Each of the skills is described briefly to enhance its meaning to the reader. The set of over 80 learning skills identified in Table 1 are transferable, i.e., they can be applied in a broad range of life situations. They were selected according to the method described in the Classification of Learning Skills (2.3.3) and worded so that they would be accessible to educators and learners in all disciplines and contexts. The goal was to include enough skills to represent all major areas of affect but to limit the number to those most likely to be useful in higher education and related contexts.
Affective Domain Competency Levels

Examples: Level of Competency Description of Individual Responses

a. Persisting b. Seeking Mentoring

Is highly skilled in the timely use of the skill to Level 5 Transformative improve others engagement or Use commitment.

Serving as a coach for others who have habits of procrastination b. Serving as a mentor for others
a.

Uses the skill within planned strategies for Level 4 Self-Reflective improvement of control, e.g., reacting in a chosen, Use but genuine manner. Level 3 Consistent Performance Recognizes affective states quickly and employs learned methods of self-

Being aware of the role of emotions in ones personal level of motivation for challenges b. Taking on new challenges beyond those required for immediate needs
a. a.

Managing emotions such as frustration to assure completion of all tasks

management that fit the situation.

b. Expanding the range of emotional reactions shared Using a planner to increase persistence in finishing tasks b. Becoming open to the need to understand personal emotional reactions in some areas such as building relationships
a.

Uses the skill passively but with an awareness of the Level 2 need to grow; is limited in Conscious Use confidence, smoothness, and timing.

Is responsive if prompted by others; is attentive but Level 1 Non-Conscious does not consciously identify affective domain Use processes and skills.

Avoiding all but obviously easy learning tasks; procrastinating b. Avoiding analysis of personal reactions to important performances
a.

Affective Domain
The affective domain (Krathwohl, Bloom, Masia, 1973) includes the manner in which we deal with things emotionally, such as feelings, values, appreciation, enthusiasms, motivations, and attitudes. The five major categories are listed from the simplest behavior to the most complex:

Category

Example and Key Words (verbs)

Receiving Phenomena: Awareness, willingness to hear, selected attention.

Examples: Listen to others with respect. Listen for and remember the name of newly introduced people. Key Words: asks, chooses, describes, follows, gives, holds, identifies, locates, names, points to, selects, sits, erects, replies, uses. Examples: Participates in class discussions. Gives a presentation. Questions new ideals, concepts, models, etc. in order to fully understand them. Know the safety rules and practices them. Key Words: answers, assists, aids, complies, conforms, discusses, greets, helps, labels, performs, practices, presents, reads, recites, reports, selects, tells, writes. Examples: Demonstrates belief in the democratic process. Is sensitive towards individual and cultural differences (value diversity). Shows the ability to solve problems. Proposes a plan to social improvement and follows through with commitment. Informs management on matters that one feels strongly about. Key Words: completes, demonstrates, differentiates, explains, follows, forms, initiates, invites, joins, justifies, proposes, reads, reports, selects, shares, studies, works. Examples: Recognizes the need for balance between freedom and responsible behavior. Accepts responsibility for one's behavior. Explains the role of systematic planning in solving problems. Accepts professional ethical standards. Creates a life plan in harmony with abilities,

Responding to Phenomena: Active participation on the part of the learners. Attends and reacts to a particular phenomenon. Learning outcomes may emphasize compliance in responding, willingness to respond, or satisfaction in responding (motivation).

Valuing: The worth or value a person attaches to a particular object, phenomenon, or behavior. This ranges from simple acceptance to the more complex state of commitment. Valuing is based on the internalization of a set of specified values, while clues to these values are expressed in the learner's overt behavior and are often identifiable.

Organization: Organizes values into priorities by contrasting different values, resolving conflicts between them, and creating an unique value system. The emphasis is on comparing, relating, and synthesizing values.

interests, and beliefs. Prioritizes time effectively to meet the needs of the organization, family, and self. Key Words: adheres, alters, arranges, combines, compares, completes, defends, explains, formulates, generalizes, identifies, integrates, modifies, orders, organizes, prepares, relates, synthesizes. Examples: Shows self-reliance when working independently. Cooperates in group activities (displays teamwork). Uses an objective approach in problem solving. Displays a professional commitment to ethical practice on a daily basis. Revises judgments and changes behavior in light of new evidence. Values people for what they are, not how they look. Key Words: acts, discriminates, displays, influences, listens, modifies, performs, practices, proposes, qualifies, questions, revises, serves, solves, verifies.

Internalizing values (characterization): Has a value system that controls their behavior. The behavior is pervasive, consistent, predictable, and most importantly, characteristic of the learner. Instructional objectives are concerned with the student's general patterns of adjustment (personal, social, emotional).

http://xnet.rrc.mb.ca/glenh/hots.htm http://cetl.matcmadison.edu/efgb/2/2_3_6.htm