Appendix 3: Transferable employability skills The need for transferable skills In recent years, higher-education institutions and employers have consistently flagged
the need for learners to develop a range of transferable skills to enable them to respond
with confidence to the demands of undergraduate study and the world of work.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) defines skills, or
competencies, as ‘the bundle of knowledge, attributes and capacities that can be learned
and that enable individuals to successfully and consistently perform an activity or task
and can be built upon and extended through learning.’
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To support the design of our qualifications, the Pearson Research Team selected and
evaluated seven global 21st-century skills frameworks. Following on from this process,
we identified the National Research Council’s (NRC) framework
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as the most evidence-
based and robust skills framework, and have used this as a basis for our adapted skills
framework.
The framework includes cognitive, intrapersonal skills and interpersonal skills.
The NRC framework is included alongside literacy and numeracy skills.
The skills have been interpreted for this specification to ensure that they are appropriate
for the subject. All of the skills listed are evident or accessible in the teaching, learning
and/or assessment of the qualifications. Some skills are directly assessed. Pearson
materials will support you in identifying these skills and in developing these skills
in learners.
The table overleaf sets out the framework and gives an indication of the skills that can
be found in information technology, it indicates the interpretation of the skills in this
area. A full interpretation of each skill, with mapping to show opportunities for learner
development, is given on the subject pages of our website: qualifications.pearson.com
1
OECD – Better Skills, Better Jobs, Better Lives (OECD Publishing, 2012)
2
Koenig, J. A. (2011) Assessing 21st Century Skills: Summary of a Workshop (National Academies Press, 2011)