The Future Skills Innovation Network (FUSION) is a national cross-collaborative network of Canadian universities focused on exploring inclusive and innovative learning approaches to foster skill development and set students up for success at, and beyond, the postsecondary level. FUSION orients itself around a common set of goals:

• to develop skills that are critical for student success in the twenty-first-century labour market;
• to improve postsecondary outcomes for students from equity-deserving groups; and
• to create more flexible, inclusive, and equitable formats for accessing learning.

The FUSION program consists of a series of self-contained learning modules, each of which addresses a specific skill identified by the Government of Canada’s “Skills for Success” model as in demand with today’s employers. These learning modules—Adaptability, Collaboration, Communication, Inclusivity, Metacognition, Problem-Solving, and Self-Management—are interactive, online, asynchronous, and can be completed at your own pace.

Each module takes about four hours to complete, and while you might choose to complete just one, it is possible (and even encouraged!) to work through two, three, or even all of them, as time permits.

Each module—which consists of a combination of videos, case studies, self-assessments, reflection activities, and interactive instruction—has been designed to wrap around an existing applied learning experience. This means that while you can work through a module on its own, you will derive much greater benefit from it if you use it in conjunction with something else you are doing. Here are a few examples of applied learning experiences:

This list is by no means exhaustive, and you should feel free to tailor your own applied learning experience to your chosen FUSION module.

The skill modules exist in Brightspace as interactive slide decks, and each one is presented in three separate phases: the “Explore” phase, the “Apply” phase, and the “Reflect” phase. The individual phases look like this:

• Explore (about 2 hours)
• When: before, or at the start of, your applied learning experience
• What: learn about and practice a specific skill
• Apply (about 1 hour)
• When: during your applied learning experience
• What: move through the process of applying the skill to your applied learning experience, exploring how your skill can be used to help you navigate different activities and tasks within a variety of contexts and situations
• Reflect (about 1 hour)
• When: at the end of your applied learning experience
• What: look back at your experience and what you’ve learned, and then set goals for the future

As you proceed through a given module, you will be asked to record your reflections in a workbook, which can be submitted as evidence of completion of the skill module. Upon completion, you will receive a digital badge, an accreditation that you will be able to add to your resumé, to Memorial’s Online Record of Experience (MORE), to your LinkedIn page, or anywhere else you want to show off your new skill.