Framing a Problem of Practice…and understanding micro-credentials

Career-long professional learning: How do we recognize and reward it? FLICKR/ARGONNE NATIONAL LABORATORY

Competency-based System To personalize professional learning Desired Outcomes Evidence of Learning Multiple Ways to Learn

Micro-credentials Micro-credentials allow learners to gain a much stronger sense of agency – to understand their own skills and skill development goals and the broader range of experiences and paths they can create to achieve them. Micro-credentials can strengthen assessment practice by providing an evidence-driven methodology that requires the learning provider and learner to manage the learning experience using clear criteria, evidence, and methods in a very transparent way. In good hands, badging/micro-credentialing can be a valuable tool in an assessment designer’s toolkit. Micro-credentials provide a method to formally recognize skills that are important to other consumers – for example, colleges and employers – skills that often lie beneath the surface of courses or cut across them and that traditional schooling and professional development methods usually have no formal way to recognize (or even assess). Micro-credentials provide a methodology for mapping out a more flexible array of learning pathways and trajectories, including pathways that cut across traditional courses and educational settings, and for packaging skills in creative and meaningful ways Educator professional learning that is personalized, relevant, and results-oriented.

What are micro-credentials? Micro-credentials allow learners to gain a much stronger sense of agency – to understand their own skills and skill development goals and the broader range of experiences and paths they can create to achieve them. Micro-credentials can strengthen assessment practice by providing an evidence-driven methodology that requires the learning provider and learner to manage the learning experience using clear criteria, evidence, and methods in a very transparent way. In good hands, badging/micro-credentialing can be a valuable tool in an assessment designer’s toolkit. Micro-credentials provide a method to formally recognize skills that are important to other consumers – for example, colleges and employers – skills that often lie beneath the surface of courses or cut across them and that traditional schooling and professional development methods usually have no formal way to recognize (or even assess). Micro-credentials provide a methodology for mapping out a more flexible array of learning pathways and trajectories, including pathways that cut across traditional courses and educational settings, and for packaging skills in creative and meaningful ways Micro-credentials are a digital form of certification indicating that a person has demonstrated competency in a specific skill, such as data literacy, teacher leadership, or growth mindset. Rather than learning by watching, reading, or listening alone, micro-credentials promote learning by doing. Educators apply their learnings in their practice and collect evidence, thereby demonstrating their competence.

Traditional “sit and get” workshops assume that the only challenge facing educators is a lack of knowledge of teaching practices and when that knowledge gap is corrected, teachers will then be able to change practice. However, research tells us that teachers’ greatest challenge is actually putting what they’ve learned into practice in the classroom -Bloomboard

Micro-credentials are… Micro-credentials allow educators to focus on a discrete skill related to their professional practice, student needs, or school goals. For instance, they may want to explore ways of checking for student understanding across their whole class. They learn a particular method and collect the required evidence such as a classroom video to demonstrate their understanding. Through an agile online platform that clearly identifies the competency associated with each micro-credential as well as the required evidence, educators can complete the process of earning micro-credentials at their own pace. Provide an opportunity for educators to engage in rigorous, self-paced, job-embedded professional learning that is connected to the daily skills teachers need in their classrooms. Offer a way for teachers to earn recognition for the skills they acquire through formal and informal learning opportunities, to personalize their professional learning that meets their needs, and to take what they learn and apply it to their classrooms Competency-based: Micro-credentials allow educators to focus on a discrete skill related to their practice — for instance, checking for student understanding — and collect the evidence — such as classroom videos or student work to demonstrate ability in that specific skill.   On-demand: Through an agile online platform that clearly identifies each micro-credential’s competency and required evidence, educators can start and continue the process of earning micro-credentials on their own time. Personalized: Because educators are able to select the micro-credentials they wish to earn, they can create their own professional learning journey aligned to their specific student needs and school-wide instructional goals. Shareable: Once educators earn micro-credentials, they can display the digital badges on Edmodo, LinkedIn, or a blog to signal their demonstrated competence wherever their professional journey might take them. Competency-based Personalized On-Demand Shareable

Micro-credentials are part of an “eco-system” that include 3 distinct roles: The micro-credentials that educators earn exist within a larger micro-credential ecosystem. This ecosystem requires three unique and distinct roles: issuers, earners, and recognizers. Issuers are the organizations — non-profits, universities, etc. — that are supported by Digital Promise to develop the content of the micro-credential. Earners are the educators — classroom teachers, librarians, instructional coaches, principals etc. — who seek a micro-credential and develop the evidence of learning to submit in order to earn the credential. Finally, recognizers give the micro-credentials value and accept them as evidence of learning. They are the districts, states, and others that define the various ways micro-credentials have value in an educator’s professional career. Issuers Earners Recognizers

Within the eco-system of MCs, there are 5 distinct paths to the issuer/earner process Issuer identifies and describes competencies Issuer establishes requirements for earning micro-credentials Earner produces and submits artifacts that demonstrate competency and meet submission requirements defined by the issuer The submitted artifacts are assessed by experts or peers; and Credentials are awarded and shared

…can be displayed as DIGITAL BADGES. Specific Support interests, goals and immediate needs Transparent Include data about the issuer, the earner, and the evidence. Stackable Can be combined to create greater meaning and coherence Portable and shareable Can be shared by the earner wherever and with whoever they prefer

Metadata is embedded in the micro-credential and therefore has the potential for becoming part of an online record of achievements. By simply hovering over the micro-credential with a mouse, the specific information (description and competencies) about that micro-credential can be viewed. The micro-credentials provide information regarding who issued the micro-credentials as well as the competencies that were attained in order to get them. Earners can "collect" the micro-credentials in a virtual portfolio.

Share sample micro-credential

Artifacts and Evidence Demonstrating competency Types of Evidence: Videos of teacher and student interaction Lesson, project, and unit plans Student work samples Teacher and student reflections Observations Assessments Peer and self evaluations and reviews What else?

Providing evaluation and feedback Assessment Process Providing evaluation and feedback Assessed to ensure submission meets rubric criteria

Findings from Friday Institute 1. Teachers who earn micro-credentials want to earn more 2. Micro-credentials encourage teachers to apply skills to classroom practice 3.Micro-credentials scaffold teachers to engage at an increased level of rigor 4.Teachers can demonstrate competency/mastery in a variety of ways 5.Instructional design and online platform matter 6.Micro-credentials should not have a one-size-fits-all approach 7.Many questions still exist around micro- credentials

Micro-credential Topics A growing ecosystem of 250+ Deeper Learning STEM Teacher Protocols Learning Differences Media Literacy Coding Teacher Leadership Financial Literacy Effective Coaching Virtual Community Organizing Data Literacy English Language Learning Maker Spaces Computational Thinking Fractions Global Competence

Exploring Micro-Credentials Go to Bloomboard.com Create an account if you do not already have one (or reset your password if you don’t remember it! ) Spend 10-15 minutes exploring resources and micro-credentials Share what you find!

Framing a Problem of Practice Search for Framing a Problem of Practice in Bloomboard search bar

Review Submission Requirements Allow participants some time to review what the micro-credential entails.

Let’s take a look… Personalized Learning Stacks Digital Promise Foundations Core Components Relationships and Roles Elements Learning and Teaching Elements Digital Promise

Get Started! Find 2-3 partners Identify a micro-credential of interest Hands-on Activity Find 2-3 partners Identify a micro-credential of interest Discuss: What do you already know about this skill? How can you implement that skill in your practice? What evidence would you collect? How could you learn more about this skill?

Frequently Asked Questions Q: How many professional develop hours can I receive? A: KVEC does not identified the number of credit hours that can be received. The school/district will need to review the micro-credential and determine hourly value. Q: Can I receive EILA credit? A: Just as with all EILA credit hours, a proposal needs to be provided to KDE for approval of EILA credit hours. Q: Are the micro-credentials free? A: Currently, all micro-credentials are offered through Digital Promise at no cost unless one is trying to receive graduate credit from a participating education institution. In the future, however, issuers may apply a fee to cover the costs of assessors.

Questions? Contact: Jennifer.Carroll@wolfe.kyschools.us Robert.brown@hazard.kyschools.us