Why was SkillsMap® created?

The core principle behind the research and practice that created SkillsMap® is that academic learning develops transferable skills as well as the knowledge we traditionally teach and assess. Those are the same transferable skills that employers are looking for, but we don’t talk about curriculum to learners in that way.

These are not, however, the core skills of learning behaviours. They are the transferable skills that are innate to each subject, for example:

• listening effectively in Music or Languages
• defining problems in Design & Technology or Sociology
• gathering evidence in Geology or Biology or Archaeology
• interpreting results in Maths or Psychology
• evaluating explanations and narratives in History, Philosophy or English Language
• weighing available options in Dance, Physical Education or Computer Science and so on.

So SkillsMap® was developed to close the skills gap by:

• helping learners recognise that they are developing transferable skills as well as gaining knowledge in every subject they study
• putting a name to those transferable skills
• enabling them to recognise those skills when they see and hear employers talking about them

Understanding the relationship between education and transferable skills helps learners immediately understand better how their subject study and qualifications are relevant and valuable. When we make that possible for learners, we can open up new conversations with them about their future. And that is a good thing for everyone.

It is also the most inclusive way that we can prepare learners for the transition to work, because every learner is developing skills in every subject they study, no matter whether they achieve qualifications or not. Talking about academic study by highlighting the transferable skills being developed helps every learner recognise how their education prepares them for work.

You can find out about the research behind SkillsMap® on the Research and Publications page.