Canadian HR Reporter

28 www.hrreporter.com F E A T U R E S change in salary, but 33 per cent saw a decrease. • It was also found that information technology and media companies led the charge in hiring student talent through co-op positions. One of the most telling findings for the future of cooperative learning was that 100 per cent of respondents have plans to facilitate more remote cooperative learning placements in the future. This is a drastic change from 2019, pre-pan- demic, where only a select few experi- ences were remote. The pandemic seems to have brought a greater understanding and openness to remote placements. Though these TRADITIONAL models of experiential learning — namely in-person cooperative placements and internships — were hit hard in the face of COVID-19. The pandemic resulted in many students scrambling to figure out their next move. The sudden cancellation of placements and limited options only reaffirmed the importance of experiential learning and the demand for opportunity is higher than ever before. Work-integrated learning opportunities are the way to go for skills development and future proofing, says Robert Furtado, CEO of CourseCompare. "At an individual level, education is significantly enhanced when learners have a real-world framework in which to apply ideas," he says. "Gaining work experience while completing a college or university program can be a huge differ- entiator for students. We're seeing that more than ever in technology, where the focus is shifting among recruiters from credentials to demonstrable skills." Robert believes that the half-life of knowledge is rapidly decreasing and creating a greater need for reskilling and upskilling. With in-person intern- ships and cooperative placements being cancelled, employers and students alike searched for alternative opportunities for experiential learning. Placements moved to virtual and remote settings, some for the first time ever. As the world begins to reopen, will placements stay virtual? What are the long-term impacts of the pandemic and what does this mean for the future of cooperative learning? Back in 2019, only a select few cooperative experiences at post- secondary institutions were remote. Now, most schools have plans to facilitate more virtual learning placements in the future, says Michelle Wong of Riipen IS VIRTUAL THE FUTURE OF COOP LEARNING? T R A I N I N G & D E V E L O P M E N T experiences were new to many, it is clear that there is a place for virtual and remote learning experiences moving forward. To adapt to this new model, we see the rise of tools such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Slack, which have grown to be integral parts of the workplace. Employers are now also adapting the ways that they train managers working with remote students, as well as how they monitor, track and report on data from students about the quality of their learning experiences. In the absence of a pandemic, traditional co-ops would have moved to adopt these changes anyways and we can expect to see more remote placements in The future of cooperative learning CourseCompare, an education market- place with college and university part- ners across Canada, set out to answer that very question in a recent study. In March of 2021, a sample of 58 co-op programs from 23 Canadian post-sec- ondary institutions were surveyed about what impacts the pandemic has had on work-integrated learning experiences. Some of the key insights include: • There was a 17.25-per-cent decrease in placements on average in the fall of 2020 compared to the previous year. • Of the students that had secured placements, 50 per cent saw no

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