Learning of competencies can be considered as complex learning. (Van Merriënboer and Kirschner, 2013)
- “A competency (remark JN: or ability) is a combination of complex cognitive and higher order skills, highly integrated knowledge structures, interpersonal and social skills, and attitudes and values. Acquired competencies by the students can be applied in a variety of situations (i.e. transfer) and over an unlimited span (i.e. life-long learning)”.
- “Complex learning involves:
•integrating knowledge, skills, and attitudes
• coordinating the different constituent skills of a competency.
•transferring of what is learned to daily life and work settings.” - “The driving force in complex learning is the use of authentic learning tasks. Such tasks are instrumental in helping learners to integrate knowledge, skills and attitudes, stimulate the coordination of skills constituent to solving problems or carrying out tasks and facilitate the transfer of what is learned to new and often unique tasks and problem situations.”
- Offer a model about how to solve certain problems, case studies or issues. Use of elaborated problem-solving processes. A good example is a lecture where a case study is discussed and solved systematically by the students.
- “Possible educational methods in which students learn to apply competencies are problem-based education, project education, cases, evidence-based method, innovation projects, etc.”