Micro-Credentials

 

Micro-Credentials are the new buzz word in Post Secondary Institutions (PSI) and is a fast growing trend in adult education. It’s too early to tell whether they will be a disruptor of higher education but what we do know is many leading post secondary institutions have already begun offering this type of alternative credential.

This article is perfectly timed, published November 30^th 2020, at the height of the C19 global pandemic, it gives us a comprehensive look at micro-credentials and why they could be the disruptor of higher education.

https://teachonline.ca/tools-trends/micro-credentials-and-skills-agenda

For many years we have been hearing about the skills and knowledge gap caused from the retirement of baby boomers, referred to by Forbes.com as the ‘Silver Tsunami’. In the past year we have also seen massive unemployment and a economy that continues to decline. Micro-credentials could offer a quick pathway to new employment, PSI’s in Ontario are even able to include them on a learner’s transcript.

Informal self directed courses using free resources such as LinkedIn, FutureLearn, edX and Coursera are in high demand Some 644,000 Canadians enrolled in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) between March 1 and August 15, 2020. What’s different now is that PSI are starting to offer micro-credentials that relate to existing programs, these short courses then become stackable credentials that can ladder into diplomas and degrees.

As I mentioned earlier I found this article comprehensive not only addressing the many benefits but it also identifies the ‘Stumbling Blocks’. Canada does not have a national quality assurance system for micro-credentials. Quality assurance is seen as a provincial matter but for the micro-credential to lift the economy by upskilling, reskilling or developing knowledge it must portable around Canada and globally. Countries like Australia, for example, has done just that, investing $4.3 million to support the growth of micro-credentials and to create a marketplace for them.

In some ways I see micro-credentials creating equity to higher education, they can be affordable, quick and focused on specific industry requirements. So that people working in survival jobs are able to take these stackable courses. However, for this to happen technology, such as dependable internet and computers, must be accessible.

Micro-credentials could be the key to successful life long learning and the shot in the arm a post Covid economy needs. PSI have seen reduced full-time enrollment this as a way to offer what learners, industry and the economy demands. In order for this to happen Canada must invest in creating quality assurance standards that will validate micro-credentials and create a sustainable accessible educational system.