Building a skill

When we talk about transferable or durable skills, it can be tempting to think of them as something students either have or don’t have.

In reality, skills develop over time. They are built through repeated experiences, across different subjects, contexts, and challenges. A single task rarely develops a skill on its own. Instead, capability grows gradually as students encounter opportunities to practice, reflect, and apply what they are learning in new situations.

Let’s take an example: problem-solving.

At an early stage, a student may:

• follow a set process with guidance
• attempt simple tasks with support
• rely on familiar strategies

As they develop, they begin to:

• choose between different approaches
• adapt when something doesn’t work
• explain their thinking

At more advanced levels, students can:

• tackle unfamiliar problems
• combine ideas from different areas
• evaluate and refine their approach independently

This progression from emerging to more sophisticated capability is reflected in many skills frameworks. For example in Europe, the European Commission’s Key Competences for Lifelong Learning highlight that capabilities like critical thinking, creativity, and learning to learn are developed across different learning experiences and contexts.

Across these frameworks, there is a shared idea: Skills are cumulative, not isolated. However, this is not always how learning is experienced by students. Often, learning is structured as a series of tasks:

• complete the assignment
• submit the work
• move on to the next topic

When this happens, students may not see how their capability is building over time. Each task feels separate, rather than part of a larger learning journey. This is another aspect of the recognition gap. The skill is developing, but the progression is not always visible. Helping students recognise this growth does not require new content. It requires making the learning process more explicit:

• noticing the skills being used
• connecting learning across experiences
• reflecting on how capability is developing over time

Example: Critical thinking (Progression of Capability)

Adapted from concepts reflected in the AAC&U VALUE Rubrics and and O*NET descriptions of analytical and judgement-based work.

These frameworks describe how critical thinking develops from recognising and interpreting information through to evaluating complexity, making judgements, and applying reasoning across unfamiliar contexts.

Emerging

• Identifies simple information or ideas
• Responds to questions with support or guidance
• Recognises straightforward patterns or relationships
• Tends to accept information at face value

What it looks like:

A learner can recognise or recall information but may rely heavily on guidance when interpreting or questioning ideas.

Foundational

• Begins to interpret and explain information
• Identifies obvious differences between ideas or perspectives
• Connects evidence to simple conclusions
• Explains thinking in familiar contexts

What it looks like:

A learner can explain their reasoning in structured situations but may still rely on surface-level interpretation or familiar examples.

Developing

• Compares different ideas, perspectives, or approaches
• Uses evidence to support decisions or conclusions
• Recognises bias, assumptions, or incomplete information
• Begins to apply reasoning in unfamiliar situations

What it looks like:

A learner can analyse information, consider alternatives, and justify decisions using evidence and reasoning.

Proficient

• Evaluates information from multiple and varied sources
• Weighs evidence for reliability, relevance, and credibility
• Identifies assumptions, limitations, and implications
• Makes reasoned judgements in complex situations

What it looks like:

A learner can critically evaluate information, draw defensible conclusions, and explain their reasoning across a range of contexts.

Advanced / Mastery

• Critically evaluates complex, ambiguous, or conflicting information
• Synthesises ideas across disciplines, contexts, or domains
• Reframes problems and challenges assumptions
• Makes informed judgements under uncertainty
• Adapts reasoning in response to new evidence or perspectives

What it looks like:

A learner can navigate complexity, integrate multiple perspectives, and make well-informed decisions in uncertain or evolving situations.

Where would a higher education graduate typically be?

Many learners completing undergraduate study are developing between the developing and proficient stages. They can often:

• analyse and evaluate information
• compare different perspectives
• apply evidence to support decisions
• communicate reasoned conclusions

However, the ability to synthesise across domains, navigate ambiguity, and make complex judgements in unfamiliar situations often continues developing through workplace practice, further study, and lived experience.

Hannah’s Note from Practice

Stackable Learning, aims gives postgraduate students the ability to choose microcredentials within their award learning, building flexibility and personalisation across 38 different postgraduate degrees at Deakin. Rather than a fixed, predetermined pathway, learners can select credentials that match where they actually want to grow, whether that’s a technical skill gap, a leadership capability, or something adjacent to their core discipline.

What I find most useful about this model is what it does to the conversation around capability: it shifts from “what does this degree require” to “what does this learner need right now.” That’s a small reframe with a big effect, it treats the degree as a flexible container for capability development rather than a fixed checklist.

As more institutions explore stackable models, the skills literacy challenge becomes ensuring learners can actually navigate the choice meaningfully, knowing what skill gap they’re trying to close, rather than just picking credentials that sound interesting.

Personal Reflection

Think about one of your own skills, something you are good at doing?

Where would you place yourself:

• developing?
• proficient?
• advanced?