My presentation in innovationArabia11 about blockchain applications in Education! Plans for a proof-of-concept project in cooperation with the UAE Ministry of Education (MoE)...

2. Blockchain:
Solution or Threat to Educational Institutes!
Eng. Wassim A. El-hajj - w.elhajj@hbmsu.ac.ae
Prof. Steven J Coombs – s.coombs@hbmsu.ac.ae
(BSc, MQM, SSPT)
(BSc, PGCE, PGDip, PhD)

3. Our Blocks Block #1: What is a Blockchain?
Block #2: The Challenges
Block #3: Blockchain deployments in Education
Block #4: Disruptive Blockchain startups in Education
Block #5: Conclusion
Q & A

4. Block #1: What is a Blockchain?
“a distributed record of digital events. It is a long chain of
linked data items stored on every participating computer,
where the next item can only be added by consensus of a
majority of those participating. There are public Blockchains
that anyone can access and potentially add to, and there are
private Blockchains used within an organization or
consortium.”
Sharples M, Domingue J. (2016)

5. Block #1: What is a Blockchain?
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r43LhSUUGTQ

6. Block #2: The Challenges
Authentication and verification of
qualifications using Blockchain technology.
Accessing and safekeeping of
qualifications through digital solutions.

7. Block #2: The Challenges
The Hague Convention (on October 5, 1961)
abolished the requirement of legalization for
foreign public documents, by reducing the
formalities of legalization to just delivering a
certificate in a prescribed form, entitled
“Apostille”. The authorities in the member
country issuing the certified document shall
place an Apostille on it, which is dated,
numbered and registered. And can be verified
simply by requesting a verification from the
authority that delivered the certificate.

8. Block #2: The Challenges
Attest academic qualifications issued by private institutions of higher education
accredited in the country (teaching staff).
(https://www.moe.gov.ae/En/EServices/ServiceCard/pages/AttestationRegstaff.aspx, 2017).
The process of attesting academic qualifications
for teaching staff from the UAE Ministry of
Education website:

9. Block #2: The Challenges
At present one of the problems for Syrian (Non HCCH member)
National refugees hoping to resume their education in Europe is
getting verification from their universities back home, or even
requesting for authenticated copies of their certifications.
Another case as Professor Domingue (David Matthews, 2017) pointed
out, “the Blockchain could also thwart politicians or other public figures who lie
about their credentials”. An example is India’s Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, who faced repeated questions over his qualifications by
opponents claiming they are false.

10. Block #3: Blockchain deployments in Education
MIT's Global Entrepreneurship Bootcamp issued
digital certificates to the students that attended their
workshop in Seoul, South Korea in March 2016.
(http://certificates.media.mit.edu/#examples, 2016).

11. Block #3: Blockchain deployments in Education
(http://certificates.media.mit.edu/#examples, 2016).

12. Block #3: Blockchain deployments in Education- UAE
• The British University in Dubai’s (BUiD)
graduated batch of 2017 is the first in the country
and third in the world to receive a digital
Blockchain degree.
• A collaborative project between the University of
Nicosia and BUiD’s Dubai Centre for Risk and
Innovation (DCRI).
(gulftoday.ae/portal/c71d51c2-787b-4823-82d5-cd9fbed95005.aspx, 2017).

13. Block #4: Disruptive Blockchain startups in Education
• Educhain.io; “a leading blockchain startup that
enables academic institutions to interface with a
blockchain infrastructure of trust. Using blockchain
technology, Educhain is building a series of solutions
for academic institutions, such as enabling instant
issuance and authentication of digital credentials, and a
comprehensive “academic passport” of student
achievement.”
(https://www.pr.com/press-release/739602, 2017).

14. Block #4: Disruptive Blockchain startups in Education
• ODEM.io; on the other hand is tackling another challenge that
is the high cost, and the mountains of debt associated with
quality education. Via their platform, learners are empowered to
collaborate with top universities’ professors “to create customized
educational experiences, part of a life-long process of keeping skills
relevant in fast- changing job markets.”
Learners will have more control on the costs of education, will
be able to negotiate and customize the right setup for delivery of
service, and being able to choose the suitable educational solution
for their needs, via “a distributed ledger of all transactions (both
financial and education accreditation), the system provides full
transparency of the entire planning and transaction of the students'
educational needs and experiences.”
(https://support.odem.io/hc/en-us/sections/115000917711-FAQs, 2017).

15. Block #5: Conclusion
Professor Domingue argued that “even more
ambitiously, the real difference that Blockchain
technology can make to higher education is to allow
us to move beyond the current structure of
universities.”
(David Matthews, 2017).
A blockchain solution in education is also well in line with the
“Dubai Paperless Strategy” that is aiming by the year 2021
that no employee or customer of the Government of Dubai will
need to print any paper document.
And which also “falls in line with the vision of H.H. Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime
Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to transform Dubai
into a fully-fledged smart city.”
(https://hamdan.ae/en-us/News/Details?nid=2956, 2018).

16. Block #5: Conclusion
Overall Objective
To enable a faster and less fraught system for
verification and authentication of qualifications for
everyone living and working in the UAE, or
planning to do so.
Recommended Action
A small proof-of-concept project is recommended in
cooperation with the UAE Ministry of Education
(MoE) for what we may propose as an e-attestation
fully digital system that would eventually replace
the current manual methodology of document
attestation so as to move Dubai a step further
towards achieving the vision of being a smart city.

17. Q & A
Questions & Reflections
 What are the key issues of this presentation?
 Has anyone in the audience experienced the
problems associated with attestation of their
qualifications in the UAE or elsewhere?
 Any suggestions towards the Smart solution being
proposed?