Enterprise:101 - Enterprise Pedagogy

Over the years, plenty of research has been done to look at the different types of entrepreneurship learning approaches that can be used. A great way to see this laid out is in New Horizons in Entrepreneurship - these are categorised as ‘about’, ‘for’, ‘through’ and ‘embedded’ entrepreneurship.

ABOUT

Generally teaches theories and concepts about business start up and development. e.g. Teaching some units within a course like National 5 Business Management without opportunities for practical application of learning.

FOR

Focuses on skills development directly connected with entrepreneurship, such as pitching skills and networking with a view to establish a new venture. e.g. Participating in a competition to pitch a concept or running a careers networking event to link students to potential local employers.

THROUGH

Encourages ‘learning by doing’ where learners can adopt a voluntary role, consultancy project with a small business or establish and run their own small business. e.g. Work placement or programme where students set-up and run their own business with support from those in industry.

EMBEDDED

(Can be present within each of the previous 3 approaches). Where entrepreneurial learning is embedded within the core curriculum offer but might not always be referred to explicitly as enterprise/entrepreneurial education. Enterprise values and learning are instilled through generic learning outcomes by a slight adjustment in pedagogy to enable learners to develop their entrepreneurial competences. e.g. Where opportunities for pupils to lead, collaborate and add value through their learning happen across the curriculum and beyond the schools' 4 walls.

Whilst the potential to promote an enterprising mindset varies across the methods above, a combination of types of intervention throughout the different stages of education can only serve to expand the opportunities for young people to develop the relevant skills and attributes.

Adopting an enterprise pedagogy allows for greater ownership of the learner process by the young person, it should be underpinned by experiential learning that can be delivered in a multitude of settings. Putting an enterprise pedagogy into practice can sometimes feel like a risky move, given the potential for a whole range of outcomes; however the longer-term impacts – such as those you can find in Enterprise Education as Pedagogy - indicates that these risks are critical for enterprise teaching.

The way we frame teaching for our young people must be sustainable. We don’t know exactly what the job market will look like in the next 20 years, but we do know that technological growth, and the accompanying changes in business models, make the continuous adaptation of skill sets fundamental for successful participation in the labour market. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills projects that the future will see more interconnectivity and building of networks. This will mean that employees will require the ability to work across multiple disciplines, be collaborative in their approach, and adapt to cultural shifts.

Social learning theory takes into account the social aspects that we learn from others’ experiences. Role models are essential, the implication is that the educator should be an entrepreneur – this is what makes partnership working so vital to ensure the exchange of expertise and experience enhances the learning being carried out.

Learners may benefit from partner-led intervention within the classroom or from sourcing an entrepreneur to conduct a oneto-one interview and reporting back to other learners. We will focus more on partnership working further on, but at its core, it is designed to offer more unique opportunities and develop skills in both practitioners and learners.