Submitted by Veronica Vinge, V.L. Vinge Consulting
Grant MacEwan Community College hosted the first Alberta networking meeting of PLA "front-line" service providers on October 6, 1998. Representatives from Athabasca University, Lethbridge Community College, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, Grant MacEwan Community College, Red Deer College, Alberta Vocational College (Edmonton), Alberta Advanced Education and Career Development, Human Resources Development Canada and workplace- based PLA practitioners attended.
Members of the group described their respective methods of implementing PLA, identified current "issues & challenges" and shared information and expertise. It was particularly valuable for members to describe a current challenge and receive immediate feedback from a colleague who had already faced and solved that same problem!
Key issues currently facing the group include:
transcription, including granting partial credits
sufficient budget allocation to support PLA activities
pricing PLA activities for cost-recovery and to meet student need
changing the way in which programs are funded, to allow for modularized delivery and elimination of repetition of learning
challenge of disseminating timely and correct PLA information to students, while this same information is constantly changing
integrating PLA activities with related student services, including counselling and career development
developing an integrated approach that includes PLA, outcomes-based learning and alignment with related high-school curriculum
coping with re-organization, new computer systems, and new ways of doing business, along with trying to introduce PLA
working with professional certifying associations to develop streamlined, cost-effective and timely methods of providing credits for prior learning
The first APLAN networking session was scheduled for a half-day and we were still going strong at 12:30! We have decided to increase future meetings to a full day, and to try and include training for members, as appropriate.
Current plans are to meet three times per year, in October, January and April. Our next meeting is scheduled for January, 1999, in Calgary.
"Postage stamps are getting more expensive, but at least they have one attribute that most of us could emulate: they stick to one thing until they get there."