logo logo International Journal of Educational Methodology

IJEM is a leading, peer-reviewed, open access, research journal that provides an online forum for studies in education, by and for scholars and practitioners, worldwide.

Subscribe to

Receive Email Alerts

for special events, calls for papers, and professional development opportunities.

Subscribe

Publisher (HQ)

RHAPSODE LTD
Eurasian Society of Educational Research
College House, 2nd Floor 17 King Edwards Road, Ruislip, London, UK. HA4 7AE
RHAPSODE LTD
Headquarters
College House, 2nd Floor 17 King Edwards Road, Ruislip, London, UK. HA4 7AE
employability skills graduating students internships pedagogical practices social science degree programmes

Effectiveness of Internships as Pedagogical Practices in Promoting Employability Skills Amongst Graduating Students in Selected Social Science Degree Programmes in Zambia

Kapambwe Mwelwa , Ailwei S. Mawela

To explore their role in enhancing graduate employability, the study investigated the effectiveness of student internships as pedagogical practices in.

T

To explore their role in enhancing graduate employability, the study investigated the effectiveness of student internships as pedagogical practices in promoting employability skills amongst graduating students in four Social Science Degree programmes of selected universities in Zambia. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected from 162 participants through the questionnaires and interview guides using a mixed-methods approach. The participants included different actors in the labour industry as critical informants; graduating students taking Social Science Degree Programmes; Lecturers, and Employers. The quantitative and qualitative data were analysed using the SPSS version 24 and Atlas. Ti. Version 8, respectively. This study employed the Human Capability Approach and Human Capital theories. Findings indicated that although internship practices were considered an essential component in the social science degree programmes for skills development, their effectiveness in promoting employability skills amongst graduating students varied from one programme to the other. The findings have implications on how universities and the labour industry could work together to design and implement internship experiences for students in social science degree programmes that are more effective in promoting the acquisition of employability skills in Zambia.

Keywords: Employability skills, graduating students, internships, pedagogical practices, social science degree programmes.

cloud_download PDF
Cite
Article Metrics
Views
240
Download
494
Citations
Crossref
2

Scopus
0

References

Akomaning, E. (2019). Improving student internship through collaborative curriculum design: Needs and context analysis to inform the design process. In J. Pieters., J. Voogt & N. P. Roblin (Eds.), Collaborative curriculum design for sustainable innovation and teacher learning (pp. 105-114). Springer open. https://bit.ly/3pdH3gA

Anderson, K. P. (2015). Evaluation of undergraduate equine related internship experience by students and employers. NACTA Journal, 59(3), 234-239. https://www.jstor.org/stable/nactajournal.59.3.234

Baert, S., Neyt, B., Siedler, T., Tobback, I., & Verhaest, D. (2019). Student internships and employment opportunities after graduation: A field experiment (Discussion paper series). IZA: Institute of Labour Economics. https://ftp.iza.org/dp12183.pdf

Barnwell, S. (2016). Relationship between internships and employment competencies of degreed professionals who completed a college internship. [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. Walden University ScholarWorks. https://bit.ly/3DPBOHU

Benavides, A. D., Dicke, L. A., & Holt, A. C. (2013). Internships adrift: anchoring internship programmes in collaboration. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 19(2), 325-353. https://doi.org/10.1080/15236803.2013.12001736

Bless, C., Higson-Smith, C., & Sithole, S. L. (2013). Fundamentals of social research methods: An African perspective (5th ed). Juta and Company.

Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research Designs: Quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). Sage.

Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2018). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). Sage.

Eide, E. R., & Showalter, M. H. (2010). Human Capital. In D. J. Brewer, & P. J. McEwan (Eds.), Economics of Education (pp. 27-32). Elsevier.

Finch, D. F., Hamilton, L. K., Riley, B., & Zehner, M. (2013). An exploratory study of factors affecting undergraduate employability. Education + Training, 55(7), 681-704. https://doi.org/10.1108/ET-07-2012-0077

Gao, L., Wang, X., & Cui, Y.-P. (2014). Courses and employability skills: the voice of students. In Q. Hu (Ed.), Proceedings of the 2014 International Conference on Management Science and Management Innovation, Atlantis Press. (pp.43-49). https://doi.org/10.2991/msmi-14.2014.8  

Gonzalez-Roma, V., Gamboa, J. P., & Reiro, J. M. (2016). University graduates' employability, employment status, and job quality. Journal of Career Development, 45(2), 132-149. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0894845316671607

Government of the Republic of Zambia. (2006). Zambia Vision 2030. Ministry of Finance and National Planning. https://bit.ly/3q05PkI

Government of the Republic of Zambia. (2017). Zambia seventh national development plan. Ministry of National Development Planning. https://bit.ly/3piiIq2

Haddad, G. K., & Habibi, N. (2017). Vertical skills mismatch and wage consequences in low skilled jobs: evidence from Iran. International Labour Review, 156(1), 45-72. https://doi.org/10.1111/ilr.12000

Hartman, J. L. (2014). Internships. In J.S. Albanese (Ed.), The encyclopaedia of criminology and criminal justice (5th ed. pp. 1- 4). John Wiley and Sons.

Health Professions Council of Zambia. (2018). Guidelines for approval of internship programmes for health practitioners. https://bit.ly/3BXwrGc

Henneberry, S. R., & Radmehr, R. (2020). Quantifying impacts of internships in an international agricultural degree programme. Plos One 15(8), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0237437

Higher Education Act, N.A.B. 4 § 2013 (2013). https://bit.ly/3bLI5bz

Ismail, Z. (2018). Benefits of internships for interns and host organisations (K4D help desk report). The University of Birmingham. https://bit.ly/3jiArK9

Jackson, D. (2013). Student perceptions of the importance of employability skill provision in business undergraduate programs. Journal of Education for Business, 88(5), 271–279.

Jackson, D. (2015). Employability skills development in work-integrated learning: barriers and best practices. Journal of Studies in Higher Education, 40(2), 350-367. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2013.842221

Jackson, D. (2016). Modelling graduate skill transfer from university to the workplace. Journal of Education and Work, 29(2), 199–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2014.907486.

Jogan, S. N. (2019). Evaluating the effectiveness of a school internship. International Journal for Social Studies. 5(2), 227-235. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED593865.pdf

King, M. A., & Sweitzer, H. F. (2014). Towards a pedagogy of internships. Journal of Applied Learning in Higher Education, 6,37-59

Lamanauskas, V., Makarskite, P. R., & Lukaviciene, V. (2016). The development of pedagogical Internship: Mentors and student activity and experience aspects. Bulgarian Journal of Science and Education Policy, 10(6), 250-272

Makenzie, D., Assaf, N., & Cusolito, A. (2015). The demand for, and impact of youth internship: Evidence from a randomized experiment in Yemen (Policy research working paper no. 7436). World Bank. https://bit.ly/3n72D3x

Marsh, L. E., Hashen, F. M., Cotton, C. P., Allen, A. L., Min, B., Clarke, M., & Fivazi, F. (2016). Research internships: a useful experience for honing soft and disciplinary skills of agriculture majors. NACTA Journal, 60(4), 379-384. https://bit.ly/3bAruHK

Menashy, F. (2014). Theorising privatization in education: Comparing conceptual frameworks and the value of the capability approach. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 16(1), 13-25.

Ministry of Higher Education. (2019a). National higher education policy. https://bit.ly/3BRhvJD

Ministry of Higher Education. (2019b). National Internship Guidelines: Preparing Zambia for Work. https://bit.ly/3naBlcv

Moono, H., & Rankin, N. (2013). Education and employment in Zambia: evidence from a scoping exercise. International Growth Centre, Stellenbosch University. https://bit.ly/3n6LGq0

Murphy, T. P. (1973). Government management internships and executive development: Education for change. Lexington Books.

Mwelwa, K., Lebeloane, L. D. M., & Mawela, A. S. (2021). Relevance of selected social science degree programs on skills development and graduate employability in Zambia. Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability, 12(1), 131-147. https://doi.org/10.21153/jtlge2021vol12no2art1046 

Naseem, J. (2018). Connecting graduates with the real world: transforming research based skills to the work place. In V.C.H. Tong, A. Standen & M. Sotiriou (Eds.), Shaping Higher Education with Students (pp. 224-241). UCL Press.

Nunley, J. M., Pugh, A., Romeo, N., & Seals, R. Jr. (2016). College major, internship experience, and employment opportunities. Estimates from a resume audit. Labour Economics, 38, 37-46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2015.11.002

O’ Higgins, N., & Pinedo, L. (2018). Internships and outcomes: Just how effective are internships as a bridge to stable employment? (Employment working paper no.241). ILO, Employment Policy Department. https://bit.ly/3jgiN9O

Oliver, B. (2015). Redefining graduate employability and work integrated learning: proposes for effective higher education in disrupted economies. Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability, 6(1), 56-65. https://doi.org/10.21153/jtlge2015vol6no1art573

Osmani, M., Weerakody, V., Hindi, N., & Eldabi, T. (2019). Graduate employability skills: a review of literature against market demand. Journal of Education and Business, 94(7), 423-432. https://doi.org/10.1080/08832323.2018.1545629

Pandolfini, V., & Poli, S. (2015). Education as a capability for young adults life trajectories: some evidence from an Italian case study. Italian Journal of Sociology of Education, 7(2), 43-69. https://bit.ly/3lWMEWk

Pennbrant, S., Nunstedt, H., & Bernhardsson, L. (2019). Learning through reflection. the portfolio method as a tool to promote work integrated learning in higher education. In L. G. Chova, A. L. Martínez & I. C. Torres (Eds.), INTED2019 Proceedings, 13th International Technology, Education and Development Conference (pp. 729-739). IATED Academy. https://bit.ly/3pgZ0ej  

Pitan, O. S. (2016). Towards enhancing university graduate employability in Nigeria. Journal of Sociology and Anthropology, 7(1), 1-11. http://doi.org/10.1080/09766634.2016.11885696

Prescott, P., Gjerde, K. P., & Rice, J. L. (2020). Analysing mandatory college internships: Academic effects and implications for curricular design. Studies in Higher Education.

Rastrick, C. (2018). Meaningful employment for humanities and social sciences graduates. Ontario Centre for Workforce Innovation. https://bit.ly/3ATxOnN

Riebe, L., & Jackson, D. (2014). The use of rubrics in benchmarking and assessing employability skills. Journal of Management Education, 38(3), 319-344. https://doi.org/10.1177 /1052562913511437

Robertson, P. J., & Egdell, V. (2018). A capability approach to career development: an introduction and implications for practice. Australian Journal of Career Development, 27(3), 119-126.

Robeyns, I. (2005). The capability approach: a theoretical survey. Journal of Human Development, 6(1), 93-114.

Routon, P. W., & Walker, J. K. (2019). College internships, tenure gaps, and student outcomes: A multiple treatment matching approach. Education Economics, 27(4), 383-400. https://doi.org/10.1080/09645292.2019.1598336

Rowe, A. D., & Zegwaard, K. N. (2017). Developing graduate employability skills and attributes: curriculum enhancement through work integrated learning. Asia Pacific Journal of Cooperative Education, Special Issue, 18(2), 87-99.

Saito, M. (2003). Amartya sen's capability approach to education: a critical exploration. Philosophy of Education, 37(1), 17-33.

Samoei, M. (2020). Student Teaching Internship Experiences and Perceived success of first Year School based Agricultural Education (SBAE) Teachers. [Master’s thesis, University of Arkansas]. University of Arkansas ScholarWorks. https://bit.ly/3aPdYPZ

Saniter, N., Schumann, M., & Siedler, T. (2018). The effects of leadership on graduates' labour market outcomes. Mimeo.

Sattler, P., & Peters, J. (2013). Work integrated learning in Ontario's postsecondary sector: The experience of Ontario graduates. Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario.

Schech, S., Kelton, M., Carati, C., & Kingsmill, V. (2017). Simulating the global workplace for graduate employability. Higher Education Research and Development, 36(7), 1476-1498.

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Network. (2021). Top 10 Employability skills. https://bit.ly/3mNgfSU

Scott, M., & Richardson, S. (2011). Preparing for practice: how internships and other practice-based learning exchanges benefit students, industry hosts and universities. AICCM Bulletin, 32(1), 73-79. https://doi.org/10.1179/bac.2011.32.1.010

Shah, R. H., & Campus, S. (2021). Conceptualising and defining pedagogy. IOSR Journal of Research and Methods in Education, 11 (1), pp. 6-29. https://bit.ly/3q3SEPC  

Shivoro, R. S., Shalyefu, R. K., & Kadhila, N. (2017). A critical analysis of universal literature on graduate employability. Journal of Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, 6(2), 248-268. https://bit.ly/3aSxoUc

Shivoro, R. S., Shalyefu, R. K., & Kadhila, N. (2018). Perspectives on graduate employability attributes for management science graduates. South African Journal of Higher Education, 32(1), 216-232. https://doi.org/10.20853/32-1-1578

Silva, P., Lopes, B., Costa, M., Melo, A. I., Dias, G. P., Brito, E., & Seabra, D. (2018). The million dollar question: Can internships boost employment? Studies in Higher Education, 43(1), 2-21. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2016.1144181

Simon, O. (2016). Graduates' experiences of and attitudes towards the inclusion of employability related support in undergraduate degree programmes: trends and variations by subject discipline and gender. Journal of Education and Work, 30(1), 84-105. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2015.1122181

Simukanga, S., Chifwepa, V., Mfune, O., Nsokolo, D., & Chanda, D. (2020). The state of higher education in Zambia 2019: 5 decades of university education. Higher Education Authority. https://bit.ly/3n9LoyM

Sin, C., Tavares, O., & Amaral, A. (2019). Accepting employability as a purpose of higher education? Academics’ perceptions and practices. Studies in Higher Education, 44(6), 920-931. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2017.1402174

Stewart, A., Owens, R., Hewitt, A., & Nikoloudakis, I. (2018). The regulation of internships: A comparative study (Employment working paper No. 240). ILO. https://bit.ly/3FTUsQK

United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. (2016). Zambia education policy review: paving the way for SDG 4-education 2030. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.27798.98880

Yorke, M. (2006). Employability in higher education: What it is, what it is not. Learning and employability series one. The Higher Education Academy. https://bit.ly/3BZLmiY

Zambia Qualifications Authority. (2016). Zambia qualifications framework. https://bit.ly/3aTok1j

Zambia Statistical Agency. (2019). Zambia 2019 labour force survey. Zambia Statistical Office. https://bit.ly/3n6NcZe

...