These days, the concept of verification pops up everywhere you look. Need to log into your bank account? Use multi-factor authentication. Want a blue check mark next to your username? Pay a small monthly fee on your preferred social media site. Such verification might confirm you are who you say you are. But how often does third-party verification confirm what you can do, what you stand for, and how you drive your work forward?
Digital Promise has built two separate, but related digital badging ecosystems in education that center transparency, evidence, and equity: micro-credentials and product certifications. Micro-credentials are awarded to learners who demonstrate competency in a particular area, and product certifications signal edtech products that have been developed with particular priorities, such as Research-Based Design and Learner Variability.
Both of these ecosystems provide earners with recognition of the ways in which the work they do is informed by learner-focused and research-backed practices. Earners receive Open Badges—static digital badges that serve as proof of qualification—which provides ownership, agency, and flexibility in how recipients may share what they’ve earned.
Let’s dive in and learn more about what micro-credentials and product certifications are, how they differ, and how they align to help boost transparency, evidence, and equity in the education world.
Key Difference
Who earns:
- Micro-credentials are person-facing. Learners from a broad spectrum of backgrounds and work environments apply to and earn micro-credentials, which can be used for professional development and certification, and on their resumes.
- Product certifications are edtech product-facing. Product developer teams put together an application to demonstrate how the product’s design centers the area of certification.
How applications are assessed:
- Micro-credentials are reviewed double-blind against a rubric by a team of subject matter experts. That is, educators’ identities are hidden in their application to reduce the possibility of bias.
- Product certifications are reviewed non-anonymously by assessors from Digital Promise, or by assessors from another organization if that organization issues the certification.
How Digital Promise micro-credentials and product certifications are designed:
- Micro-credentials are born through a collaborative process, often between Digital Promise and an issuing partner—such as a school district or area education agency—who co-develop the micro-credential and its rubric using an equity-centered, competency-based framework.
- Product certifications, whether issued by Digital Promise or a partnering nonprofit organization, are co-designed with subject matter experts, learners, and educators, in addition to edtech developers to ensure relevance to the field.
Key Similarities
How micro-credentials and product certifications are earned:
- These aren’t certifications you earn just by clicking through a few videos as quickly as possible or by sitting in a training session for 45 minutes. For both types of digital credentials, applicants are required to submit evidence, such as artifacts, writing, work samples, and so on, that demonstrates fulfillment of detailed criteria. Competence, with evidence to back it up, is a crucial component.
Who assesses applications:
- There are no multiple-choice questions being auto-checked here. Trained assessors with expertise in the subject matter, working at issuing partners or Digital Promise, evaluate submitted evidence closely against a rubric. After a submission is assessed once, it’s passed to another assessor for a second round, ensuring consistency in evaluation.
Equity as a driving force:
- Digital Promise’s mission is to expand opportunity for every learner. All micro-credentials and product certifications are built to enable a more equitable present and future, with criteria that reflect the need for education practice to support all learners, particularly those who have been historically and systematically excluded.
With two distinct audiences—individuals and edtech products—micro-credentials and product certifications work in tandem to bring transparency and consistency to an ever-changing education landscape. Micro-credentials offer pathways to help educators develop their practice and demonstrate their abilities. Product certifications shine a spotlight on quality edtech products and make it easier for school districts to find the right tech. Together, they elevate verification from simply demonstrating who you are, to how you can contribute to better learning outcomes for all students.
Visit the micro-credentials and product certifications homepages to learn more about them and how to get involved.
