This section of the Student Toolkit provides a deeper dive into the “whys” of Student-Led Individually Created Courses (SLICCs) to support you as you undertake (or consider undertaking) your own SLICC!
How Can I Benefit from Taking a SLICC course?
The Importance of Self-Directed Learning
Now, more than ever, as students, you are facing a Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous (VUCA) world when you graduate. Because of this, you are expected to enter the workforce with skills and characteristics that will help you navigate a VUCA world. These include critical thinking, adaptability, resilience, communication skills, problem-solving skills, emotional intelligence and more, that are highly valued by employers.
See the University of Waterloo’s Future Ready Talent Framework for an overview of how VUCA impacts you.
Unfortunately, in traditional course structures, students are rarely given free rein to experience a VUCA world. As a result, educators have begun to integrate more Self-Directed Learning (SDL) frameworks into university classrooms because they give students an opportunity to develop many of the skills associated with VUCA.
SDL frameworks center students in the learning process, encouraging students to take ownership of their learning, to build self-regulating skills and to think deeper about their skill development and goal planning.
What are SLICCs?
SLICCs are a student-led reflective and experiential SDL framework. This framework is integrated into a course or a co-curricular project to guide the SDL process. Unlike traditional course frameworks, which focus heavily on the success of a learning product (a final project or deliverable), SLICCs center your learning journey, prioritizing skill and mindset development. This means that you have more freedom to be creative with your projects, to take risks, and to explore a project that you are passionate about (within the confines of your course!).
The purpose of a SLICC is to give you a chance to focus on important metacognitive skills (the ability to plan your learning, self-evaluate, problem-solve, etc.) to ensure that you have a strong grasp of your own abilities and can articulate them. This means that success can look different in a SLICC compared to a traditional course, where grading is often based on a product. If you can effectively articulate, with evidence (see Key Deliverables for more information), how you have grown, what you would do differently, and how you will apply the lessons you have learned moving forward, you can still succeed in the SLICC – even if your end project did not turn out as expected!
In many ways, SDL provides a crash course in the VUCA world you will face when you graduate, but with much lower stakes and more safeguards!
What makes SLICCs different?
PDF: What makes SLICCs difference then traditional teaching models?
What do SLICCs offer me?
As a student, using the SLICC framework gives you the opportunity to drive your own learning experience! You're in charge of planning, proposing, and carrying out a project of your own creation. This gives you the opportunity to work on a project you are passionate about, to move forward with your career goals and develop transferable skills.
Thinking about taking a SLICC but not currently enrolled?
Check out workbooks from other SLICC courses!
Formatted workbook examples to be added
Confused by anything in the workbook?
The SLICC Student Resource Pack can be used alongside your SLICC workbook to provide you with further guidance as you undertake your SLICC work.
SLICC student resource pack
See what previous SLICC students have to say about their experience!
What are SLICC students saying? (PDF)
12-Week SLICC Course Breakdowns
The examples below provide a 12-week breakdown of previous SLICC courses