Presentation for my ACED 9440 class (Spring 2015) at Valdosta State University. Discusses the push for more college graduates, the advantages of credit for prior learning, and reasons for low utilization of prior learning programs at institutions of higher education.

1. Utilization of Credit for Prior Learning
Dorea M. Hardy, M.Ed.
ACED 9440
March 21, 2015

2. Agenda
• Introduction
What is the Issue?
• Literature Review
What is Credit for Prior Learning?
• Discussion & Recommendations
• Conclusion

3. Introduction – The Issue
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0
10
20
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40
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60
70
Percentage of Adults Age 25–34 with Tertiary Education
OECD Education at a Glance 2010
Table A1-3a Population with Tertiary Education 2008
Caption: Chart 1: Percentage of Adults Age 25–34 with Tertiary Education (Associate Degree or
Higher in US, 2008 Current Population Survey, US Census Bureau)

4. Credit for Prior Learning
• What is Credit for Prior Learning (CPL)?
It is:
– Learning gained outside a traditional academic environment
– Learning and knowledge your students acquire while living
their lives:
• working,
• participating in employer training programs,
• serving in the military,
• studying independently,
• volunteering or doing community service, and
• studying open source courseware.
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning, 2015

5. Credit for Prior Learning
• History of CPL
– World War II and the G.I. Bill
• DANTES
– McDonald’s
Hamburger University
• American Council on Education
(Fain, 2012, May 7)
(Darton State College Military Resource Center, 2011)

6. Credit for Prior Learning
• Types of Assessment
– Standardized Exams
• Advanced Placement (AP) exams
• College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams
• ACT/PEP exams
• DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSST) exams
– Challenge Exams
• Instructor based
– Portfolio Assessments
• Created by students under the direction of college faculty

7. Credit for Prior Learning
• Quality of Assessments
– How do institutions establish and maintain quality
of the assessments?

8. Credit for Prior Learning
• Quality of Assessments
– CAEL’s 10 Standards for Quality Assurance
I. Credit or its equivalent should be awarded only for learning, and not for experience.
II. Assessment should be based on standards and criteria for the level of acceptable learning that are both agreed
upon and made public.
III. Assessment should be treated as an integral part of learning, not apart from it, and should be based on an
understanding of learning processes.
IV. The determination of credit awards and competence levels must be made by appropriate subject matter and
academic or credentialing experts.
V. Credit or other credentialing should be appropriate to the context in which it is awarded and accepted.
VI. If awards are for credit, transcript entries should clearly describe what learning is being recognized and be
monitored to avoid giving credit twice for the same learning.
VII. Policies, procedures, and criteria applied to assessment, including provision for appeal, should be fully disclosed
and prominently available to all parties involved in the assessment process.
VIII. Fees charged for assessment should be based on the services performed in the process and not determined by the
amount of credit awarded.
IX. All personnel involved in the assessment of learning should pursue and receive adequate training and continuing
professional development for the functions they perform.
X. Assessment programs should be regularly monitored, reviewed, evaluated, and revised as needed to reflect
changes in the needs being served, the purposes being met, and in the state of assessment arts.
(Fiddler, Marienau, & Whitaker, 2006, pp. 13-14)

9. Credit for Prior Learning
• Value of Prior Learning

10. Credit for Prior Learning
• Value of Prior Learning
– Georgia
“60 percent of future jobs will require a post-secondary
education, while only 42 percent of Georgians have one”
(Diamond, 2012, p.4)

11. Credit for Prior Learning
• Shortcomings
Low Student Usage

12. Credit for Prior Learning
• Shortcomings
– Inconsistent Application of Services
– Inconsistent Nomenclature
– Marketing Issues
– Resistance from the Status Quo

13. Discussion & Recommendations
• Administrative Issues
– One Central Office
• Serves as a contact point (students and faculty)
• Oversees entire process
• Reduced pressure for faculty
– Institutional Standards & Guidelines
– Faculty Training

14. Discussion & Recommendations
• Faculty
– Develop faculty buy-in
• Content Experts extremely important
• Outside Experts to consult
• Develop faculty ownership of prior learning

15. Discussion & Recommendations
• Best Practices
– American Council on Education (2015)
1. Gauge current practices & ways to improve
2. Develop a CPL checklist for student use
3. Identify and develop strategies for effective outreach
4. View examples of websites that aim to make CPL
options learner-accessible

16. Discussion & Recommendations
• Best Practices – Student Veterans
– Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (2012)
Includes:
o Outreach and information
o Recognition of skills and competencies
o Recognition of Veterans as a group with specific needs
o Student Support
o Transition Support
o Disabilities and Mental Health
(Darton State College Military Resource Center, 2011)

17. Conclusion
• Retention & Graduation are serious issues
• Credit for Prior Learning
is a great tool for
institutions to
BRIDGE the gap

18. Multimedia References
Darton State College Military Resource Center. (2011). img_second.jpg
[image] Retrieved March 19, 2015, from: http://dcmrc.com/
Kanter, M. J. (2011). American Higher Education: “First in the World”. Change:
The Magazine of Higher Learning. Retrieved March 19, 2015, from
http://www.changemag.org/archives/back%20issues/2011/may-june%202011/first-
in-the-world-full.html
Learning Communities. [eduteknia]. (2009, March 10). Year 2020 Goal set by
President Obama [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xOCZUfLLCU

19. References
American Council on Education. (2015). Best Practices: Credit for Prior
Learning. Retrieved February 12, 2015, from http://www.acenet.edu/news-
room/Pages/Best-Practices-Credit-for-Prior-Learning.aspx
Bailey, L. W., & Bankus, T. (2014). NCO 2020. Military Review, 94(5), 36-42.
Berry, C. A., & Stanley, E. S. (2014). The intentionality of education. JFQ: Joint
Force Quarterly, 2014 3rd Quarter (74), 84-90.
Brigham, C., Klein-Collins, R., & Council for Adult and Experiential Learning.
(2010). Availability, Use and Value of Prior Learning Assessment within Community
Colleges. Council for Adult and Experiential Learning.
Colvin, J. (2012). Earn college credit for what you know (5th ed.). Chicago, IL:
Kendall Hunt Publishing Company.
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning. (2012). Best Practices for Serving
the Student Veteran. Retrieved March 9, 2015, from http://www.cael.org/pdfs/best-
practices-handout-final

20. References
Council for Adult and Experiential Learning. (2015). Prior Learning Assessment
Portfolio Services. from http://www.cael.org/pla.htm -
What%20Is%20Prior%20Learning%20Assessment%20(PLA)?
Diamond, L. (2012). Colleges Granting Credit For Out-of-Class Learning.
Community College Week, 24(26).
Fain, P. (2012, May 7). Prior learning assessment catches on, quietly. Inside
Higher Ed. from http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/05/07/prior-learning-
assessment-catches-quietly
Fiddler, M., Marienau, C., & Whitaker, U. (2006). Assessing learning:
Standards, principles, and procedures (2nd ed.). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt
Publishing Company.
Galagan, P. (2011). 90,000 served Hamburger University turns 50. T+D, 65(4),
46-51.

21. References
Gast, A. (2013). Current Trends in Adult Degree Programs: How Public
Universities Respond to the Needs of Adult Learners. New Directions for Adult &
Continuing Education, 2013(140), 17-25. doi: 10.1002/ace.20070
Hoover, E. (2010). Where life earns credit: 'Prior learning' gets a fresh
assessment. Chronicle of Higher Education, 56(27), A23-A24.
Jacobson, K. (2015). Powerful Work-Based Learning. Techniques: Connecting
Education & Careers, 90(1), 15-19.
Kamenetz, A. (2011). The Transformation of Higher Education through Prior
Learning Assessment. Change, 43(5), 7-13. doi: 10.1080/00091383.2011.599293
Klein-Collins, R., & Council for Adult and Experiential Learning. (2010). Fueling
the race to postsecondary success: A 48-institution study of prior learning
assessment and adult student outcomes. Chicago, IL: Council for Adult and
Experiential Learning.

22. References
Klein-Collins, R., & Olson, R. (2014). Random Access: The Latino Student
Experience with Prior Learning Assessment Executive Summary. Council for Adult
and Experiential Learning.
Klein-Collins, R., & Wertheim, J. B. (2013). Growing Importance of Prior
Learning Assessment in the Degree-Completion Toolkit. New Directions for Adult &
Continuing Education, 2013(140), 51-60. doi: 10.1002/ace.20073
Kuck, S. (2015). PLA-policies and proposals with revisions. Darton State
College.
Leiste, S. M., & Jensen, K. (2011). Creating a Positive PLA Experience: A
Step-by-Step Look at University PLA. International Review of Research in Open
and Distance Learning, 12(1), 61-79.
Pies, T. (1996). Faculty Ownership of a Prior Learning Program. Adult
Learning, 7(6), 13-14.

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