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What do Soft Skills Have to do With Language?

What do Soft Skills Have to do With Language?

Tuula Lindholm, Algonquin College, Ottawa ©Lindholm, 2010 Reproduction allowed by permission of author only

for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the copyright statement appears on all materials and that prior

permission is granted by author

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About Your Presenter About Your Presenter

• Develops curricula and teaches in Career Bridging Programs with multiple partners, leading directly to job placements and employment

• Teaches Occupation-Specific Language (OSL) - tied to subject specializations in fast-track programs offered to IEP in the financial services and IT industry, engineering, and health care professions

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Occupation-Specific LanguageOccupation-Specific Language

• NOT the same as OSLT in community colleges

• Targets high level language learners at CLB 7+ in profession-specific career bridging programs that lead to licensing and/or employment

• Designed for IEP in engineering, financial services, pharmacy, and the health care sector which face acute labour shortages

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Why Occupation-Specific Language?Why Occupation-Specific Language?

• Integrated with subject studies in post-secondary career bridging programs with employers as partners

• Language tied with development of communicative competencies to allow for smoother transition to the workplace

• Graduates expected to “bridge” the gaps between “what they already know and what they’re expected to know”

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What are Soft Skills?What are Soft Skills?

Negotiation Skills &Personal Responsibility

Interpersonal CommunicationSkills

Teamwork

Management of Time & Personal Life

Performance Expectations

Customer Service

Ability to communicate (language) is deeply imbedded in these soft skills. Finding a job and keeping it require

use of many soft skills that are often hidden and need to be made more explicit

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Trying Out Your Soft SkillsTrying Out Your Soft Skills

• Take a minute to think how you would summarize your career in 30 seconds to someone who does NOT know you

• When ready, please turn to your neighbour and exchange your quick “elevator speech or bio” with each other

• Time each other’s speech to stay within the limit!

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How Did You Do?How Did You Do?What is required to make an Elevator Speech?

Paraphrasing What to

include

Cultural know-how

What to leave out

For whom?

Why? How?

Creating impressions

Thinkingquickly

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What Do Hiring Employers Say?What Do Hiring Employers Say?

• 80% of approx. 12,000 employers, surveyed by Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said language barriers hold back newcomers in workplaces (2006)

• TRIEC’s 2005 consultations with employers indicated that soft skills, language competency, and communication with other workers are significant issues that arise after hiring

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Employers report to colleges to…Employers report to colleges to…

• Express concerns that weak language and soft skills lead to potentially serious performance errors, health & safety issues, and difficulty communicating with co-workers and managers

(Canadian Labour and Business Council, 2008)

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What is language and what is behaviour?

What is language and what is behaviour?

Do we teach?How to answer “tell me about yourself”by having an “elevator speech” ready, for example

Do we teach?How to answer “tell me about yourself”by having an “elevator speech” ready, for example

Do we teach?How to resolve differences, using emotional intelligence (EQ) skills and other resources

Do we teach?How to resolve differences, using emotional intelligence (EQ) skills and other resources

Do we teach?Understanding who the reader is what h/she really needs to know about the candidate

Do we teach?Understanding who the reader is what h/she really needs to know about the candidate

Cover letterCover letter Job InterviewJob InterviewSolving conflictsSolving conflicts

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Teaching OSL involves…Teaching OSL involves…

Knowing more about the sector’s work culture Knowing more about the sector’s work culture

Connecting dots between behaviour and languageConnecting dots between behaviour and language

Creating opportunities for students to grow personally Creating opportunities for students to grow personally

Bringing the workplace into the classroom Bringing the workplace into the classroom

Shifting more responsibility for outcomes to studentsShifting more responsibility for outcomes to students

Evaluating progress more creatively Evaluating progress more creatively

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Bridging Gaps not Just CareersBridging Gaps not Just Careers

Language Subject Studies

EmploymentPreparation

CareerTransitioning

ongoing ongoing Left to the end and often not planned well

Left to the end and often not planned well

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We’re Learning from PilotsWe’re Learning from Pilots

• Ongoing and targeted career support to students is a MUST:

• Involve mentors from the start

• Include a Canadian Workplace Preparation course to teach soft skills

• Teach writing resumes & cover letters that employers want to read

• Provide sector-specific interview

coaching

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What do Students Say?What do Students Say?

“I think what got me my job in the interview was when I was able to show I could summarize my past career in India in 30 seconds! The hiring team was impressed.” Dilip, a civil engineer

“I think what got me my job in the interview was when I was able to show I could summarize my past career in India in 30 seconds! The hiring team was impressed.” Dilip, a civil engineer

“ I always thought my degree in pharmacy was all I needed in Canada. Didn’t understand that I needed to express empathy and talk with the customers about their medicine.”    Rashida, an international pharmacy grad

“ I always thought my degree in pharmacy was all I needed in Canada. Didn’t understand that I needed to express empathy and talk with the customers about their medicine.”    Rashida, an international pharmacy grad

“I had no idea what the cover letter really means! I tried to cram my resume in it, so no wonder no one called me for an interview!” -- Mohammad, an accountant

“I had no idea what the cover letter really means! I tried to cram my resume in it, so no wonder no one called me for an interview!” -- Mohammad, an accountant

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Employers Count on Immigrants for Business

Employers Count on Immigrants for Business

• “In 2004, RBC was the 2nd most profitable company in Canada. It is now better able to implement marketing plans with an employee base that is reflective of its clients” – www.hireimmigrants.ca

• 150 specialized East Asian branches, serving clients in several Chinese dialects

• New branches dedicated to serving the growing Middle Eastern and South Asian populations

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Thank You!Thank You!• These slides are available on TESL Ontario website 2010 Conference

page

Tuula Lindholm, OSL Professor

lindhot@algonquincollege.com • Internationally Trained Civil Engineering Technologist (ITCET)

program• International Finance & Administration Professionals (IFAP)

Pilot at

Algonquin College, Ottawa