Micro-Credentials in the News
Micro-certification is written about in the higher education blogs quite frequently. Check here for some easy reading on the topic.
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A Critical Article. Higher Education’s Microcredentialing Craze (Ralston, S.J., 2021)Higher Education’s Microcredentialing Craze: a Postdigital-Deweyan CritiquePostdigital Science and Education volume 3, pages 83–101 (2021) AbstractAs the value of a university degree plummets (Selingo 2017), the popularity of the digital microcredential has soared. Similar to calls for the early adoption of Blockchain technology (Ralston 2019), the so-called ‘microcredentialing craze’ could be no more than a fad, marketing hype, or another case of ‘learning innovation theater’ (Doran 2017; Maloney and Kim 2019). Alternatively, the introduction of these compact skills- and competency-based online certificate programs might augur the arrival of a legitimate successor to the four-year university diploma (Young 2017a, b). As of 2018, 20% of colleges and universities offered for-credit and non-credit microcredentials, forecasted to be 30 to 40% within a decade (Gallagher 2018). The thesis of this article is that the craze for microcredentialing reflects (1) administrative urgency to unbundle higher education curricula and degree programs for greater efficiency and profitability and (2) a renascent movement among industry and higher education leaders to reorient the university curriculum towards vocational training. The article is organized as follows. Part 1 defines the microcredential and explains its role in the neoliberal learning economy. Part 2 narrates the declining value of the university diploma relative to the microcredential. Part 3 presents the unbundled university and explores its relation to the postdigital perspective. Part 4 reveals how the surge in microcredentialing has sparked a critical response from some quarters. Many of these critics claim that the business partnerships between universities and third-party microcredentialing platform vendors undermine higher education’s traditional mission. Part 5 describes the debate in the 1910s between the American educational philosopher John Dewey and vocational education innovator David Snedden. The aim of this historical inquiry is to demonstrate that the microcredentialers’ campaign to repurpose higher education as a delivery mechanism for vocational training is a resurgent, not a new, movement. Part 6, the article’s conclusion, proposes a postdigital-Deweyan critique of the microcredentialing craze. Also, the conclusion presents a series of suggestions for alternatives, or third-ways, between a traditional degree-based higher education model and a microcredential-dominated system of vocational education. Open AccessRalston, S.J. Higher Education’s Microcredentialing Craze: a Postdigital-Deweyan Critique. Postdigit Sci Educ 3, 83–101 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42438-020-00121-8 | ||
Alternative Credential StackingAuthor: Dr. Tannis Morgan Date: September 30, 2020 Link: https://homonym.ca/published/alternative-credential-stacking/ | |
Alternative Credentials - micro-credentials, stackable credentials and digital badgesAuthor: Dr. Tannis Morgan Date: September 25th, 2020 Link: https://homonym.ca/published/alternative-credentials-micro-credentials-stackable-credentials-and-digital-badges/ | |
Alternative Credentials as Institutional ImperativeAuthor: Doug Leaderman Date: February 6th, 2019 Link: https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/article/2019/02/06/report-predicts-alternative-credentials-sweeping-impact-higher | |
Alternative Credentials on the RiseAuthor: Paul Fain Date: August 27, 2020 | |
As the Micro-Credential Market Booms, Don't Forget The LearnerAuthor: Kathleen Delaski Date: October 31, 2019 Link: https://www.edsurge.com/news/2019-10-31-as-the-microcredential-market-booms-don-t-forget-the-learner | |
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Can Micro-Credentials Make Students More Future-Ready?Author: Unicheck Date: March 6, 2020 Link: https://unicheck.com/blog/microcredentials-for-students-perspectives | |
CNA Offerings Expand To Include MicrocredentialsAuthor: College of the North Atlantic Date: October 2, 2020 Link: https://www.cna.nl.ca/news/news-article.aspx?messageid=1332 Mentions the T shaped graduate. Third party provider: Amazon Web Services Academy | |
Could micro-credentials compete with traditional degrees? | |
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Education Micro-Credentials 101Author: Peter Greene Date: Feb 16, 2019 | |
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Get Credentials to Get Ahead, No College Degree RequiredAuthors: Chris Dede & Katie Sievers Date: Dec 1. 2020 Link: https://www.barrons.com/articles/get-credentials-to-get-ahead-no-college-degree-required-51606844855 | |
Governor Cuomo offers free online skills training for unemployed New YorkersAuthor: Lori Ionnou Date: Nov 18, 2020 Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/18/cuomo-offers-free-online-skills-training-for-unemployed-new-yorkers.html | |
Group Effort InitiativeThis is a bit out there but Actor Ryan Reynolds just introduced a training initiative focused on BIPOC and the film industry. Would micro-certification fit here? Source: https://www.groupeffortinitiative.com/ | |
Growing Interest in Alternative CredentialsAuthor: Inside Higher Education The Key Podcast Date: September 2020 Link: https://www.insidehighered.com/audio/2020/09/01/ep-19-growing-interest-alternative-credentials | |
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International credit transfer for OERu micro-coursesAuthor: Wayne Mackintosh Date: June 10, 2020 Link: https://oerfoundation.org/2020/06/10/international-credit-transfer-for-oeru-micro-courses-now-an-option-for-global-learners/ | |
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Looking Beyond The College DegreeAuthor: Paul Fain Date: June 24, 2020 | |
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Macro MicrocredentialsAuthor: Ken Steele Date: February 17, 2021 Link: https://mailchi.mp/eduvation/eduvation-insider-we-made-it-to-april-999989?e=e24a14d792 | |
Masks, Badges & MicrocredentialsAuthor: Ken Steele Date: July 13, 2020 Link: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/masks-badges-microcredentials-eduvation-insider-july-13-ken-steele/ | |
Micro-Credentials Need To Be More Than GimmicksAuthor: Alex Usher Date: September 14, 2020 Link: https://higheredstrategy.com/micro-credentials-need-to-be-more-than-gimmicks/ Note - I think the definition he provides is a good start towards a common definition of micro-credentials: "a credential which denotes proficiency with a certain set of skills/competencies but is shorter in duration than a post-secondary certificate" | |
Micro-credentials: Education with no wrong door, no dead endAuthor: Robert Luke Date: March 1, 2021 Link: http://robertluke.ca/ Provides a nice overview of 2021 Micro-credentials Forum | |
Microcredential ImplicationsAuthor: Ken Steele Date: Feb 17, 2021 Link: https://mailchi.mp/eduvation/eduvation-insider-we-made-it-to-april-999993?e=e24a14d792 | |
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Saskatchewan Polytechnic launches School of Continuing EducationAuthor: Saskatchewan Polytechnic Date: September 16, 2020 Link: https://saskpolytech.ca/news/posts/2020/saskatchewan-polytechnic-launches-school-of-continuing-education.aspx Of interest: Micro-credentials highlighted specifically. | |
St Lawrence College Receives FundingAuthor: St Lawrence College Date: Sept 15, 2020 Link: https://www.stlawrencecollege.ca/news/2020/skills-funding/ | |
Surge in Alternative CredentialsAuthor: Lindsay McKenzie Date: August 10, 2020 Link: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/08/10/surge-alternative-credentials-holds-steady-now? | |
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The Decline of the Masters DegreeAuthor: Alex Usher Date: Jan 11, 2020 Link: https://higheredstrategy.com/the-decline-of-the-masters-degree/ | |
The evolution of open education: micro-credentials, badging and individual empowermentAuthors: David Porter & Kirk Perris Date: February 26, 2021 Link: https://www.col.org/news/col-blog/evolution-open-education-micro-credentials-badging-and-individual-empowerment | |
The Pandemic Pushed Universities Online. The Change Was Long OverdueAuthors: Sean Gallagher and Jason Palmer Date: September 29, 2020 Link: https://hbr.org/2020/09/the-pandemic-pushed-universities-online-the-change-was-long-overdue There is a section on Digital Credentialing and Data-Driven Education-Workforce Alignment | |
The Promise of Digital Badges and Microcredentialing* Podcast* Author: Jackie Harman Date: 2016 Link: https://www.leadinglearning.com/podcast-episode-28-digital-badges-and-microcredentialing-with-jennifer-kabaker/ | |
The pursuit of lifelong learningAuthor: Prannoy Nambiar Date: May 8th, 2019: | |
There's a place for micro-credentials (it isn't at universities)Author: Merlin Crossley Date: February 18, 2021 Link: There’s a place for micro-credentials (it isn’t at universities) | Campus Morning Mail | |
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University students can now earn badges to recognize their meritsAuthor: Jennifer Lewington Date: April 10, 2019 Link: https://www.macleans.ca/education/university-students-can-now-earn-badges-to-recognize-their-merits/ | |
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Workforce Development in the post-COVID worldDigital micro-credentials as a lever for transformation Authors: Dr David Porter & Dr Kirk Perris Date: January 29 2021 Link: https://www.col.org/news/col-blog/workforce-development-post-covid-world-digital-micro-credentials-lever-transformation | |