Assessing the different kinds of learning

6. Relational Skills

Many programs and courses emphasize the importance of relational skills positive personal work habits. That's because these skills are sought after in the work place. These skills also help students be successful in their studies. In some courses, these skills are explicitly taught, and sometimes they are merely hoped for. Some of the things included in this list would be:

• communication
• self-awareness
• self-regulation
• ability to read-the-room and sense the emotions of others
• care
• leadership
• professionalism
• active listening
• collaboration and teamwork
• conflict management
• cross-cultural competency
• openness to feedback

Relational skills are complex and contextual and often hard to measure. Workplaces across the world are constantly trying to determine whether job candidates have these skills from a short interview.  It's been said that many people-oriented jobs hire the person first and the practitioner second, so we want to set our students up to succeed in this arena. Relational skills are delicate to evaluate because they are closely tied to personality and emotional sensitivity. Here are some things to consider if you have relational skills as part of your course outcomes:

• Build trust with your learners. We are always happier to receive critique and feedback from someone we respect and trust.
• Get to know your students, their personalities, their backgrounds, and their goals.
• Be explicit about expectations in your course outline. If you expect professionalism while on practicum, then spell out exactly what this looks like. Remember, students have enrolled in formal study to learn these sorts of things, not just content. And not everyone, for example, knows how good leaders or self-aware learners behave.
• Encourage self- and peer- evaluation. The students are in this together and can therefore offer feedback to one another. Just be careful not to pit them against each other. 
• Ask before offering feedback. It's polite to say, for example, "Do you mind if I give you some feedback on your professionalism?" before you do.
• Focus on the behaviour, not the person. Don't say, "You lack care." Instead, identify the actions that might lead someone to believe they lack care. 
• Listen, observe, and inquire. Ask questions of what you saw.
• Use journaling, portfolios, role play, 360-degree feedback, interviewing, and observation as tools to assess relational skills. 

STOP & THINK: Every instructor hopes their students improve relational skills, but they are not always explicitly indicated in the outcomes. Do you have relational skills in your outcomes? How are they assessed?