This document provides an overview and agenda for the 2019 Online Learning & I4PL Conference. It discusses the growing need for better recognition of skills through portable digital credentials like digital badges. It outlines challenges in the current education and training systems, including skills gaps, high costs, and lack of recognition for diverse learning experiences. The role of digital badges in providing transparent, stackable, and shareable credentials across sectors is examined through various examples. Hands-on sessions are provided to explore digital badge design and issues around open badge implementation. The conference aims to facilitate cross-sector collaboration on workforce skills recognition.

1. WELCOME TO
ONLINE LEARNING & I4PL
2019 CONFERENCE

2. Digital badges
Making workforce skills visible with
portable digital credentials

3. About me – a visible journey

4. CONTEXT
NEED: Better ways to recognize skills

5. Is there a “Skills Gap”?
The Association Role in the New Education Paradigm
critical skills
shortages
affecting productivity
“traditional” approaches can’t match skills demand
rising cost
of higher
education
declining
degree/diploma
completion rates
high youth
unemployment
“non-traditional”
students: 73%
PSE enrolment
World of Work:
volatile, uncertain,
complex,
ambiguous

7. Skills Shortages – not just technical!
World Economic Forum: Future Of Jobs 2016
Across nearly all industries, the
impact of technological and other
changes is shortening the shelf-life
of employees’ existing skill sets.
Overall, social skills – such as
persuasion, emotional intelligence
and teaching others – will be in higher
demand across industries than
narrow technical skills

8. Diverse learners and the need for lifelong learning
New Game, New Rules: Strategic Positioning for Workforce Development.
Warford, Larry J.; Flynn, William J. Adapted Radionoff, K – Madison College
PREVIOUS FOCUS

9. (WORKER)

10. DISCONNECT: Expectations & Realities in PSE and the Workplace
Ryan Davis, CSW - IMS Digital Credentials Summit

11. T → T → T: hard skill “top-ups” enabled by deepening soft skills
Strada Institute – Robot Ready

12. Learning Experience Silos and Wasted Human CapitalPOST-SECONDARY
WORKINTEGRATED
LEARNING
VOLUNTEER
SERVICE
EMPLOYABILITY
PROGRAMS
WORK
COMMUNITIES
OFPRACTICE
LIFE
EXPERIENCE
CONTINUING
EDUCATION
How much learning happens
inside vs. outside your LMS?

13. Paper silos: issues with hard copy credentials
freedesignfile.com/92259
Transparency issues
OPAQUE: often needs other documents, e.g.
syllabus
QA mechanisms are often buried
Can be hard to authenticate, easy to forge
Physical issues
Difficult to share, easy to lose
Recognition issues
Lack of context - no links to supporting evidence
Experiential learning is typically not valued
Transversal skills are typically not tracked
Lack of granularity, “stackability”
Uncertain alignment, transfer, articulation

14. Transcripts and transparency

15. What we want:

16. Recognise yourself – Do you have a hidden talent?
BADGE NAME:
DESCRIPTION:
What can you do that people should know about?

17. Recognise your skill… in others

18. OPEN BADGES
(MICRO-CREDENTIALS)
Transferable currency for skills recognition

19. ONTARIO BUDGET 2019
budget.ontario.ca/2019/bg-jobs.html

20. Flexible learning pathways
modular, stackable,
multi-source, remixable
Clear progress markers
Visualize learning
Visual branding
issuers and earners
Online trust system
issuer backing, evidence
3rd party endorsement
community socialization
A digital representation of an skill, accomplishment or affiliation that is visual, shareable online and contains
credentialing information in standardized format, including trusted links that help explain the context, meaning,
process and result of an activity.
Open standard ➔ share badges across situations, silos. Supports transition!
Open Badge – micro-credential… or alternative credential
Portable record of learning, owned by the learner

21. Badge example

22. Mapping badgespace
Based on Doug Belshaw dougbelshaw.com CC BY

23. Some badged learning pathways

25. Digital tender for a diverse skills economy

26. Evaluating a collection of signals – varying relevance, weight, rigour
European Southern Observatory (ESO) CC BY

27. Badges: transparent lenses to focus on different aspects of learning

28. Some ways to recognize with Open Badges
Program/course/module completion
Assessment-based or participation-based certificates of learning;
eLearning or Face to Face; professional development or compliance
Competency certification
Can be flexible assessment: exams, portfolios, evidence packages,
skills demonstrations, etc. Also compliance. Time-delimited.
Membership
Associations, organisations,
professional and industry bodies
Experience, expertise, service, achievements
Projects/missions, years of service, awards,
professional contributions
Values, interests, goals
Self-issued, endorsable by others

29. Education, training and credentials
careeronestop.org/
Badges!
Badges!
Badges!

30. EXAMPLES
Professional and workforce development

31. Private sector: technical and business skills
youracclaim.com/organizations/ey/badges

32. Private sector: technical and business skills
youracclaim.com/organizations/sap/collections

33. 33
Knowledge Skills Proficiency Certified General
“Badging is how we will measure resume-worthy IBM skills in the market”
Badges in IBM

34. Workforce skills mapping across IBM

35. Humanitarian OrganisationsHumanitarians
Humanitarians, and the organisations that prepare and deploy them

36. Canada – Emergent PSE/Private Sector Partnerships

37. Open Badges for Professions, Associations and Regulatory Bodies
Unregulated
AXELOS
HR Certification Institute
AACE (total cost management)
Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
International Board of Credentialing and Continuing
Education Standards (IBCCES)
ASIS International
Regulated
American Board for Certification in Orthotics,
Prosthetics & Pedorthics
Institute of Management Accountants
Association of Clinical Research Professionals

38. Board of Canadian
Registered Safety Professionals
Canadian Professional Sales
Association
International Foundation
of Employee Benefit Plans
Ericsson – MANA
Learning & Development
Association for Financial
Professionals
Global Risk Management
Institute
Some Canadian professional association badges

39. Badges at the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC)
badges.sssc.uk.com/badges
Work based qualifications → can enter with little
education, achieve a degree as an employee
Take responsibility for own learning and development

40. Professional Community
Onboarding | Certification | Leadership | Volunteer recognition …
educause.edu/badging

41. AUSTRALIA’s AITD:
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
MEMBERSHIP
PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS…
ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS …

42. Membership, awards, accreditation, certification
thelpi.org/digital-badges/

43. CANADA - Institute for Performance & Learning
Professional recognitionVolunteer service recognition
Collaborative MoU between I4PL & CanCred

45. Bilingual service in a bilingual country
… with bilingual badges
+ indigenous languages...
CreeOjibweInuktitut

46. CanCred Factory: Simple, flexible badge creation/issuing
Badge creation Badge issuing (manual method)

47. CanCred Passport – “Portfolio Lite”, free for end users

48. Collaboration-friendly infrastructure
Displayer API
Badges
Integration
LTI
Platforms

49. HANDS ON
Badge Canvas tool

50. Your Badge Canvas…

51. Subject Related?Employee Life Cycle?
Choose a challenge…

52. REPORTING OUT
Badge Canvas tool

53. Early steps with Open Badges
Effective Practices
based on: MichaelBoll.me, Madison College
Brainstorm the “why”?
Gaps, opportunities, vision
Avoid under/over thinking
Plan ahead as you grow
Test your business model(s) for
sustainability, scalability
Tap professional resources
Instructional, technical, creative support
Leverage internal, enrich with external
Communicate! Market!
Formal, informal
Internally, externally
Online, event-based – social!
Seek out “low hanging fruit”
Early adopters, easy wins
Be clear about your badges
Transparent purpose, criteria, weight
Appropriate rigour & quality
Early hands-on exploration
Immerse yourself as issuer
AND earner
Be “agile”
Start small, build on success/feedback
to improve/scale over time
Engage stakeholders early
Talk AND listen to
Employers, Workers, Stakeholders
Build in portable recognition
Align to frameworks, ask for
endorsements
Build/join community networks

54. Keynote: Mark Surman
March 1 2019
Cross-sectoral design lab
for workforce skills recognition
Returning in 2020