REAP – Roadmap for Employment-Academic Partnerships: Lifelong Learning

Background

The Irish National Development Plan (NDP) 2007-2013, under Human Capital, identified one of two key areas for action in labour force development as:  “Ensuring the development of a high-skilled, adaptable workforce through continued emphasis on lifelong learning and training of those in employment.”
This action can best be achieved by coherent, consistent and well developed tripartite relationships between Learners, Employers and Higher Education Institutions. REAP is a collaborative project, involving eight Higher Education Institutional partners, for the research, development and validation of a Higher Education /Employment Partnership Model and Roadmap. It will identify learning needs within workplaces, draw up a comprehensive plan for partnership between employers and HEIs.

Aims and targets

The project aims to identify the learning needs within workplaces; compile a comprehensive plan for partnership between employers and HEIs; and  verify the effectiveness of the strategy through a range of collaborative activities. The idea is that these activities will provide a gateway to integrate and rationalise complementary initiatives and offer a single simple, relevant, inclusive framework to facilitate interaction with the workplace.

Strategy and actions

The project consortium proposes to change the nature of the relationship between the education provider and the workplace by developing a model of cooperation that recognises and values the needs and contributions of the worker and workplace. The REAP approach is innovative, in terms of undertaking, for example, regional and sectoral learning needs analyses, alongside the development of partnership models involving employers and HEIs. Following this comes the implementation and validation of specific tailored learning.

Monitoring and evaluation

Funding/Cost effectiveness

REAP operates as a collaborative project under the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF), a multi-annual fund, amounting to €510 million over the period 2006-2013, which is directed towards support for innovation in higher education institutions.

Sustainability/Transferability

The REAP project is funded under 2006-2013 programme funds.

Outcomes/impacts

Achievements

This is a 2009 project for which results will be available in due course (see website link below for news and further information).
However, the four strands of project activity are as follows:
Strand 1: Research and Investigation
Part A: Needs Analysis: Recognition, research and quantification of the workplace learning needs, changing trends and opportunities for partnership;
Part B: Partnership Model Development: Development of the scope and extent of the partnership model.
Strand 2: Implementation and Validation
Carefully structured demonstration of selected key partnership activities and initiatives including:

• Collaborative development and delivery of targeted specialist courses Academic/Researchers into the Workplace
• Professional Postgraduate Programme
• Undergraduate Co-operative Placement
• Industry into Academia

Strand 3: Integration

Alignment with related projects and initiatives and internal institutional activities.

Strand 4: Dissemination

Development of a National HEI/Workplace gateway and a seamless response mechanism, share findings and case studies.

Success factors

Unintended impacts

Strengths and weaknesses

There is a significant strength in that the REAP activities will provide a gateway to integrate and rationalise complementary initiatives and offer a single simple, relevant, inclusive framework to facilitate interaction with the workplace.