EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE

University of Kentucky UKnowledge Theses and Dissertations Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation 2019 EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE Lauren McCrary University of Kentucky, lauren.mccrary.owb@gmail.com Author ORCID Identifier: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5312-5005 Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.13023/etd.2019.013 Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits you Recommended Citation McCrary, Lauren, "EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE" (2019) Theses and Dissertations Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation 63 https://uknowledge.uky.edu/epe_etds/63 This Doctoral Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation at UKnowledge It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge For more information, please contact UKnowledge@lsv.uky.edu STUDENT AGREEMENT: I represent that my thesis or dissertation and abstract are my original work Proper attribution has been given to all outside sources I understand that I am solely responsible for obtaining any needed copyright permissions I have obtained needed written permission statement(s) from the owner(s) of each third-party copyrighted matter to be included in my work, allowing electronic distribution (if such use is not permitted by the fair use doctrine) which will be submitted to UKnowledge as Additional File I hereby grant to The University of Kentucky and its agents the irrevocable, non-exclusive, and royalty-free license to archive and make accessible my work in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known I agree that the document mentioned above may be made available immediately for worldwide access unless an embargo applies I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of my work I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of my work I understand that I am free to register the copyright to my work REVIEW, APPROVAL AND ACCEPTANCE The document mentioned above has been reviewed and accepted by the student’s advisor, on behalf of the advisory committee, and by the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS), on behalf of the program; we verify that this is the final, approved version of the student’s thesis including all changes required by the advisory committee The undersigned agree to abide by the statements above Lauren McCrary, Student Dr Jane Jensen, Major Professor Dr Jane Jensen, Director of Graduate Studies EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE DISSERTATION A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the College of Education at the University of Kentucky By Lauren McCrary Lexington, Kentucky Director: Dr Jane Jensen, Associate Professor of Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation Lexington, Kentucky 2019 Copyright © Lauren McCrary 2019 ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE Understanding the practical implications related to experiential learning is complex It is important to first view experiential learning as an umbrella term under which work-based learning (WBL) is housed To further particularize, there are different avenues for students to pursue work-based learning opportunities (WBLOs), with internships and cooperative education being two Although these are not new learning environments, understanding and clearly defining them (to both internal and external bodies) is increasingly necessary In Kentucky, WBLOs are part of the political discourse on postsecondary education The Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) and local economic development agencies have incorporated strengthening and growing WBLOs into their strategic plans This demand is echoed by students and parents By interviewing faculty with varying enrollments in their WBLOs, this study set out to explore influences on the development and implementation of these experiences from their perspective The dissertation is written in three manuscripts, including a companion piece written in collaboration with Robert Boone that examines WBLOs from a complementary faculty (McCrary) and student perspective (Boone) It situates the problem of practice (WBLOs) in the current landscape of Kentucky Community and Technical College System The second manuscript describes anticipated and unanticipated findings related to the development and implementation of WBLOs drawn from my interviews with WBLO coordinators across the state Selected examples include the role of the advisory board and faculty background on the development of WBLOs and stakeholder preparation and conveying benefits to the community during implementation The third manuscript explores obstacles encountered and offers potential avenues to circumvent or overcome said obstacles based on information collected through the interviews of this qualitative, exploratory study This dissertation will be of use to both senior administrators interested in increasing WBLOs at their institution and to faculty who are interested in offering the opportunities to their students This study offers insight to current practices related to WBLO development and implementation and offers potential avenues to overcome obstacles KEYWORDS: Work-based Learning Opportunities, Internships, Community College, Experiential Learning, Soft Skills, Career Clarity Lauren McCrary February 5, 2019 Date EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE By Lauren McCrary Dr Jane Jensen Director of Dissertation Dr Jane Jensen Director of Graduate Studies January 29, 2019 Date To Kris, my anchor To Bruce and Lulu, my reason for doing this To Mom, Dad, and Jim, for helping us along the way To Him, for all the above Acknowledgements I would like to express gratitude to numerous people in my professional arena and in my personal life Throughout the coursework, I received feedback from a multitude of insightful and accomplished professors In particularly, I would like to thank the committee chair, Dr Jane Jensen, for her encouragement, time, and expertise in guiding me through this, at times overwhelming, process To my other committee members, Dr Wayne Lewis, Dr Vanessa Jackson, and Dr Juston Pate, who also helped prepare me to embark on this research study by allowing me to continually pick their brains for input and advice, thank you In my personal life, my husband, Kris McCrary, has shown endless patience and understanding In addition to his patience, the amount of weight he has shouldered for me to complete my coursework cannot be overstated We have two children, Bruce and Lulu, who saw less of me during this time but did not want or need for anything because of him Ballgames, bike rides, and playing, overwhelmingly fell on his shoulders To Bruce (5) and Lulu (3), I hope in the future they will understand the amount of work, time, and sacrifice that went into this, so I could make them both proud and set a good example Lulu only knows me as a mother in school and Bruce and I both have homework, now To my mom and dad, Bruce (the original) and Sally, thank you for supporting me, watching the kids for weekends at a time, and always telling me I could it Lulu is a far better cook than her mom from staying with Grammy To Jim, my father-in-law, who watched my son for countless weekends while I was in school, with a newborn, and my husband was building a house Bruce is a smarter boy, and better golfer, because of it There is no way I would be here if it were not for the love and support of this group iii I would like to show appreciation to Owensboro Community and Technical College and Brescia University for their willingness to accommodate my academic professional development Also, to all the participants, I am grateful Lastly, throughout this time, there were many prayers to God for strength and perseverance, both for me and from me It seems He listened iv Table of Contents Acknowledgements iii List of Tables vii List of Figures viii List of Matrices ix Chapter Introduction Conclusion Chapter Work-Based Learning Opportunities: Associated Faculty Practices, Student Impact, and Recommendations The Research Problem Work-based Learning Opportunities in Context: A Review of Current Knowledge 10 Purpose Statement and Research Questions 22 Research Design 23 Joint Findings 26 Recommendations 37 Conclusion 47 Chapter Influences on the Development and Implementation of Elective Work-based Learning Opportunities 48 Introduction 48 Background for the Study 50 Sample of Persons, Sites, and Situations 51 Generating Data 55 Data Analysis and Interpretation 59 Validity and Reliability 61 WBLO Workforce Potential 64 WBLO Development: Creating the Experience 67 WBLO Administration 88 WBLO Educational Potential 111 Conclusion 118 Chapter Using Intentionality to Foster an Environment to Overcome Obstacles and Grow Work-based Learning Opportunities 123 The Research Design 124 v ... faculty and administrators, students have a greater chance of gaining a work-based learning experience Faculty and administrators have the potential to influence WBLOs and ensure collaboration... classes are on the website, marketing materials, and on academic handouts like advisor checklists and academic plans Faculty can introduce the idea of a WBLO early in a student’s academic career... Experiential Learning, Soft Skills, Career Clarity Lauren McCrary February 5, 2019 Date EXPLORING INFLUENCES AND USING INTENTIONALITY TO DEVELOP WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES: A FACULTY PERSPECTIVE