Having the right skills & a diverse skillset ensures that we continue to grow and succeed at work and in life.
Our world—and our work—looks different these days. Skills SK adapts to these changing needs and continues to help prepare Saskatchewan's youth to realize their career goals & dreams in Skilled Trades & Technologies - inclusive of different cultures and abilities with the new Skills for Success. Helping SK youth make informed choices is one of our many priorities.
What are Skills for Success?
"Skills for Success" - formerly called "Essential Skills"
Essential skills are the skills people use to carry out a wide variety of everyday life and work tasks. These skills have been reviewed and further developed with the assistance of key stakeholders to focus on skills that Canadians need to adapt and thrive in today’s economy.
Why are these skills so important?
Essential skills are used in nearly every job and at different levels of complexity.
provide the foundation for learning all other skills
enable people to evolve with their jobs and adapt to workplace change
The 9 Main Skills:
Reading
Writing
Numeracy
Digital skills
Problem solving
Communication
Creativity and innovation
Collaboration
Adaptability
Skills for Success are a major component of all Skills SK events, including:
Reading –The ability to find, understand, and use information presented through words, symbols, and images.
Writing – The ability to share information using written words, symbols, and images.
Numeracy – The ability to find, understand, use, and report mathematical information presented through words, numbers, symbols, and graphics.
Digital – The ability to use digital technology and tools to find, manage, apply, create and share information and content.
Problem solving – The ability to identify, analyze, propose solutions, and make decisions. Problem solving helps you to address issues, monitor success, and learn from the experience.
Communication – The ability to receive, understand, consider, and share information and ideas through speaking, listening, and interacting with others.
Collaboration – The ability to contribute and support others to achieve a common goal.
Creativity and innovation – The ability to imagine, develop, express, encourage, and apply ideas in ways that are novel, unexpected, or challenge existing methods and norms.
Adaptability – The ability to achieve or adjust goals and behaviours when expected or unexpected change occurs, by planning, staying focused, persisting, and overcoming setbacks.
Quotes
“Never has the ability to adapt been more important than now. Skills for Success will allow more Canadians to improve their skills, find a job and be able to adapt when needed. This modern and innovative approach to essential skills is what Canadian workers need and what our economy needs as we work to recover from this pandemic. Our goal is to leave no one behind and for all Canadians to thrive in the workplace.” – Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough
“Skills for Success will make a difference for so many Canadians needing to reskill and upskill in the face of unemployment and disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The approach this new model offers will be a game-changer in strengthening skills upgrading and helping Canadians who face barriers to education and employment succeed post-COVID and well beyond.” – Denise Amyot, President and CEO, Colleges and Institutes Canada and Member of the Future Skills Council
The following areas will be updated soon. Check back for more information. This is an exciting update to our essential skills!
Continuous Learning
Digital
Document Use
Numeracy
Oral Communication
Reading Text/Lecture
Thinking
Working with Others
Writing
Continuous Learning
The ability to participate in an ongoing process of acquiring skills and knowledge
Interesting fact.....more and more jobs require continuous upgrading and all workers must continue learning to keep or to grow with their jobs
Workers' Essential Skills become:
knowing how to learn
understanding one's own learning style
knowing how to gain access to a variety of materials, resources and learning opportunities
Continuous Learning may include:
training in job-related health and safety
obtaining and updating credentials
learning about new equipment, procedures, products and services
We use this skill when:
we learn as part of regular work or from co-workers and when we access training in the workplace or off-site.
Digital
Digital skills are those needed to understand and process information from digital sources, use digital systems, technical tools, and applications.
Digital Sources and/or devices include:
cash registers
word processing software
computers to send emails and create and modify spreadsheets
In the trades and technology professions, people use digital skills to:
Input
Access
Analyze
Organize
Measure
manufacture and communicate information and ideas using digital tools and other digital devices
Document Use
involves a variety of information displays in which words, numbers, icons, and other visual characteristics (eg. line, colour, shape) are given meaning by their spatial arrangement
Includes:
print and non-print media (for example, computer screen or microfiche documents, equipment gauges, clocks and flags);
We use this skill when:
we read and interpret graphs, charts, lists, tables, blueprints, schematics, drawings, signs, and labels
reading/interpreting and writing/completing/producing of documents
Numeracy
Use of numbers
Capability to think in quantitative terms
We use this skill:
Doing numerical estimating
money math
scheduling or budgeting and accounting math
analyzing measurements or data
Oral Communication
the use of speech to give and exchange thought and information
We use this skill:
to greet people
take messages
Reassure
persuade
seek information
resolve conflicts
Reading Text/Lecture
ability to understand reading material in the form of sentences or paragraphs
generally involves reading notes, letters, memos, manuals, specifications, regulations, books, reports or journals
Reading includes:
forms and labels if they contain at least one paragraph
print and non-print media (for example, text on computer screens and microfiche)
paragraph-length text in charts, tables and graphs
We use this skill to:
scan for information
skim overall meaning
evaluate what we read
integrate information from multiple sources
Thinking
is the ability to engage in the process of evaluating ideas or information to reach a rational decision
Thinking differentiates between six different types of interconnected cognitive functions:
problem solving
decision making
critical thinking
job task planning and organizing
significant use of memory
finding information
Working with Others
Examines the extent to which employees work with others to carry out their tasks
Working with Others consists of two parts:
Description of Work Context
Supervisory or Leadership Activities
When Working with Others:
we work as a member of a team or jointly with a partner
we engage in supervisory or leadership activities
Writing
The ability to write:
texts and writing in documents(for example, filling in forms)
in non paper-based writing such as typing on a computer
We use this skill when:
we organize, record, document, provide information to persuade, request information from others and justify a request
Our Mission
To promote and engage Saskatchewan youth in skilled trades and technologies
