New Credentials in Learning

Lifelong learning badges create an interesting educational situation where credentials can be gained without a traditional degree structure.  There has always been a system of certificates for specialized training, and as an electronic off-shoot of that system, I can see why badges might be appealing since they can also emphasize soft skills that are not usually specified in a traditional transcript.  “[A] badge would carry more cachet than simply listing volunteer work on a résumé” (Young, 2012), and learners can show that they are interested in professional development and improvement through self-motivated learning.  If badges are used much like the endorsement system on LinkedIn where your connections can vouch for your skills, then it makes sense as something that could be of value to employers and job hunters, but like the LinkedIn system, it only works if people use it and if the people making hiring decisions trust that the credential is valid.

Validity could be a big issue since there is little to no oversight of the relatively new education system.  When setting up a badge for learners, the developer has to think about the ramifications of his or her assessment techniques, and while “there is usually some kind of assessment of that learning so that claims about learning can be substantiated by evidence” (Itow & Hickey, 2013), there is no set method to ensure validity and reliability of learning gains.  Employers would either have to check out each individual badge or just trust that it means what it says it means and does what it says it does.  I don’t know if many HR reps would go to the trouble.  Until there is a greater guarantee of usefulness, I wonder if the end result is meaningful.  Personally, I think any learning is potentially meaningful for the learner, but that doesn’t mean that anyone else is going to care.

One positive that could potentially come out of wider use of a badge system of learning is that it goes a long way toward validating how people are already learning through personal networks.  Any calls for it to completely replace traditional learning models are misguided, but it can acknowledge “that because of the connections we can now make on the web, there is as much potential (if not more) for meaningful learning to occur in the interactions between people online than in their face to face places” (Richardson, 2011).  I’ve made many friendships and professional collaborations with people I only know online, and I take offense when people say that those relationships aren’t as important as other face to face interactions.  Badges could be a way to make tangible the learning accomplishments that take place in more informal, self-motivated educational environments.

Reference

Itow, R. & Hickey, D. (2013).  Design principles for assessing learning with digital badges. HASTAC. Retrieved from http://hastac.org/blogs/rcitow/2013/05/30/design-principles-assessing-learning-digital-badges

2 thoughts on “New Credentials in Learning

  1. Karen Yarbrough Post author

    That’s so true, Eunsung! It’s pretty easy to complain about something compared to taking the time to really figure it out and make it work. I could definitely see libraries having a place to earn badges through e-learning or something. It’s so new that it could be used in any hundred of ways.

  2. Eunsung Amii

    You state , “Until there is a greater guarantee of usefulness, I wonder if the end result is meaningful. Personally, I think any learning is potentially meaningful for the learner, but that doesn’t mean that anyone else is going to care.”

    I agree with your thought. I believe institutions will not be the only and most significant indicator in an applicant resume at some point. We as an educator should find reliable standards of online badges so that online badges make employers CLICK the badges their applicants earned and showed in their resume and talk about them.

    When I first encountered the concept of online badges in a conference, I felt it was not be innovative and attractive at all. So I understand what most of people who are skeptical about online educational badges think. However I also realized that it is much easier for me to complaint than think about how to develop it well. 🙂

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