Transferable skills: A philosophical perspective

ABSTRACT Not withstanding some discomfort with the application of the language of skills in such terms as ‘interpersonal skills˚s ‘problem-solving skills˚s or ‘management skills˚s, at least part of what is being put forward under this rhetoric should be taken seriously. This is the concern that students should not merely be able to make choices intellectually but be able additionally to pursue them practically by acting in and upon a competitive social world. The paper teases out some of the different concerns underlying the notions of cross-curricular, generic, core and transferable skills and relates these to traditional principles of curriculum selection by reference to what is in some sense most fundamental or generally applicable. Cross-curricular skills are discussed in terms of their relationship to cognitive domains, and transferable skills in relationship to social domains. In either case the notion of transfer has to be parasitic upon some theory of discrete domains. It is argued that it is not necessary to suppose that such skills can be exercised outside a cognitive or social context in order to be able to make sense of some sort of core element which is applicable in different contexts. Finally consideration is given to what kinds of capacity might be involved in being able to perceive the applicability of knowledge derived from one social or cognitive context in another, to adapt, modify or develop it so as to enable a person to use it in different circumstances.