WIL: Achieving intended and unintended learning outcomes of university study

Abstract

Students in Hong Kong commonly have some form of part-time work, so the question is ‘do they need to gain more workplace experience?’ However, the purpose of work-integrated learning (WIL) is not to generate income, as is the case with a part-time job. Indeed, WIL can be of benefit in four main areas: academic, personal, skill development and career (Dressler and Keeling, 2004). University students, being novices, have the potential through WIL to identify the learning gap between requirements in university study and the workplace, personal interests and potential careers, and espoused theories and theories in use in the real world. Despite the differing nature and varied WIL opportunities organized by universities in Hong Kong, students can plan the intended learning outcomes related to the programme they are studying when first assigned to WIL activities. Focus group interviews were conducted with five student groups from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University on their WIL experiences in 2006, and it was noted that some students did not know the scale and types of tasks involved, although they did know where to report for duty. Furthermore, they had supervisors with different levels of commitment to supervision. As they reflected on their experiences, the students reported both excitement and disappointment in their WIL activities. Some perceived that they had gained good experience during the placement period and wished they could have done more, but some were disappointed because they were given only limited duties. However, they believed that good lessons had been learned when enabled to reflect on the whole experience. A lot of effort was made between the university and its industrial partners to prepare WIL placements (Abeysekera, 2006). It was found that the key to maximizing learning opportunities was to engage these students in setting realistic learning goals and preparing them for learning when interacting with stakeholders in the workplace, and the WIL opportunities provided did promote reflection on the gap between academic learning and learning in a work-related context..