Key points:
- Microcredentials open up a work of possibilities to students–particularly systematically excluded learners
- 5 steps to boost CTE programs and fill workforce pipelines
- CTE advocates want more funding as demand increases
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As the U.S. offers more opportunities for skills-based hiring and advancement, microcredentials and learning and employment records (LER) can certify student learning and success and comprise lifelong learning data.
The Promise of Microcredentials and Learning and Employment Record Technologies for Youth and K-12 Schools, a new report from education nonprofit Digital Promise, helps district leaders and technology sector leaders understand what is needed to successfully implement competency-based, learner-centered microcredentials and LER technologies in K-12 schools.
LER technologies are tools that allow individuals to document and share their skills, credentials, diplomas, and employment history, with the potential to strengthen or reinvent resumes by including verifiable information about achievements in real-time.
Microcredentials are digital certifications that verify an individual’s competence in a specific skill or set of skills. These technologies have the potential to foster lifelong learning and career advancement, particularly for systematically excluded (HSE) learners.
Digital Promise’s research provides recommendations and considerations based on insights from students, families/caregivers, educators, postsecondary partners, and workforce partners in co-design sessions and focus groups from Talladega City Schools (Alabama) and JMG.
“The skills-based economy is rapidly and continuously shifting to accommodate the rapid pace of innovation,” said Rita Fennelly-Atkinson, senior director of credentials at Digital Promise. “Organizations that serve youth are positioned to increase opportunities for learners by adopting competency-based credentialing and recognition, which will allow learners greater access to pathways that will lead to success.”
Microcredentials are increasingly popular in partnerships between high schools and community colleges. High school students earn microcredentials that add up to job-ready certificates or qualifications, or in some cases, enable students to remain on an associate’s degree track while working those jobs.
Skills-based hiring, which opens up opportunities to workers who have learned skills in programs like apprenticeships and other training programs rather than relying solely on two or four-year college degree requirements, is receiving recognition at the federal level as well. An increased push for skills-based hiring will open up career opportunities in federal IT jobs.
The Readiness Framework provides K-12 district leaders with an opportunity to evaluate their district’s readiness to implement LER technologies and competency-based microcredentials while prioritizing the voices of HSE learners. Designed in partnership with leaders in K-12 education and competency-based microcredential and LER implementation leaders, the framework indicates what is needed to successfully introduce, manage, and sustain digital credentialing and LERs for their learners.
“We aim to expand opportunities for youth to develop and gain recognition for what they know and can do,” said Christina Luke Luna, chief learning officer at Digital Promise. “The guidance in this report equips education leaders, technology providers, and funders with insights to design for greater equity and inclusion with learners at the table.”
Alongside the report, Digital Promise has released a video, “Boost K-12 Success with MicroCredentials & LER Tech for Skill Recognition,” which depicts the various ways a K-12 learner can leverage microcredentials and LER technologies to support entry and advancement into the postsecondary pathway of their choosing.
Material from a press release was used in this report.
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