What is the Workplace Education Consortium in Saskatchewan?

Established in May of 1995, the Workplace Education Consortium in Saskatchewan (WECS) represents a collaborative effort to promote workplace education across Saskatchewan. WECS is the provincial network for information regarding workplace education and also functions as a liaison between business and workplace education consultants.

Consisting of representatives from education, business, labour and organizations, WECS works together to raise awareness of education issues and increase the implementation of workplace education programs in Saskatchewan

WECS activities include ...

• Workplace Education Activities in Saskatchewan Survey
• "Building Skills, Building Business" Information Kit production
• Staying in the Game: Workplace Education Training for Trainers (Introduction & Refresher)
• Cameco Rabbit Lake Mine Site Pilot Project
• Workplace Education Web Site Development Project

What Does the Workplace Education Consortium do?

Mandate...
To further develop workplace education in Saskatchewan.

Vision...
To ensure a quality employable workforce in Saskatchewan through the promotion of workplace education strategies that address employer and employee needs.

Roles ...
To function as a clearinghouse for:

• information
• guidelines for good practices and promotion
• monitoring of good practices

To function as a liaison with:

• workplace education providers
• other agencies.

To facilitate:

• the development of expertise
• the exchange of information
• the development of models

To promote:

• workplace education programs and information
• networking between stakeholders

What is a Literacy Task Analysis?

The Objective...
The objective of the Literacy Task Analysis (LTA) is to provide the direction and scope for setting up a workplace education program based on actual job duties.

The Steps ...

• Identify the main duties, tasks or activities of a job based on interviews with the employee, employer, or union representative.
• Collect information about how the main duties, tasks, or activities are done by tagging or shadowing the employee.
• Break down the main tasks of the job into steps or sub-tasks and verify the information with the employer and employee.
• Analyze each of the sub-tasks for basic literacy skills and knowledge required to do the task.
• Gather the job information collected and analyze in report form to be used as the foundation for developing a workplace basic skills curriculum.

What information does a Literacy Task Analysis provide?

The Literacy Task Analysis provides a process for identifying the basic skills required to do various jobs. It is a method of obtaining information about specific parts of a job that require basic skills such as reading, writing, math, critical thinking, problem solving, personal management and team work skills.

The benefits of a literacy task analysis:

• the results are based on an employee's knowledge about the jobs they are performing in the workplace
• the process allows for the measurement of different basic skills required to perform various jobs
• the process allows for the trainer/ consultant to take into account possible career paths for employees and then build the training program accordingly
• the process helps to identify and highlight the variety of basic skills which pertain to specific jobs

What is an Organizational Needs Assessment (ONA)?

The Objective...
The objective of an Organizational Needs Assessment [ONA) is to determine the basic skills training needs of a workplace taking into account the unique corporate climate and culture of each workplace,

The Steps...

• Formation of a project team
• Planning and pilot testing
• Information gathering through focus groups, individual interviews, workplace materials and newsletters.
• Analyzing data
• Report and recommendations

The Results...
ONA results will provide essential information about how the workplace education program will fit into the organization, the needs it will be required to fulfill and the amount of support it is likely to garner.

What information does an Organizational Needs Assessment provide?

Conducted in a variety of ways, depending on the needs and resources of the workplace, the ONA is a complete and comprehensive guide into the development and training needs of an organization. An ONA will:

• Provide the first and most important step in the training cycle.
• Map communications (verbal and written), organizational climate and culture.
• Research attitudes, ideas and expectations of training of a representative sample of all stakeholders - employees from various levels, management and union.
• Examine the perceptions of all stakeholders regarding the real need for and support of workplace education programs.
• Help to identify workplace/organizational issues that will have an impact on programming and delivery.
• Provide information so that broad program goals and objectives can be presented to the organization.
• Allow for a neutral forum to discuss training needs and workplace issues.
• Develop rapport between the training organization and the workplace.
• Begin the process of familiarizing the trainer/consultant with the content and materials in the workplace.