Pathways to Success: Co-Designing Micro-credentials and LERs for K-12 Learners

Digital Promise recently conducted co-design sessions with two partner organizations to explore the opportunities and considerations for implementing competency-based micro-credentials (MCs) and learning and employment records (LERs) for K-12 students. MCs and LERs have the potential to address skill recognition gaps and enable historically and systematically excluded learners to have more agency and control over their learning. Our partners included Jobs for Maine’s Graduates (JMG), a non-profit serving more than 12,000 students a year throughout Maine’s 16 countries that is focused on strengthening Maine’s workforce and economy by providing students with guidance, opportunities, and skills to be successful in their careers, and Talladega City Schools, a school district located in the rural community of Talladega, Alabama, serving about 1,460 students at four schools. Over 90 percent of students in the district qualify for free or reduced lunch, and about 70 percent of students are African Americans.

The Co-Design Approach

We invited a range of participants to our sessions to break down silos between high school students, high school educators, K-12 education leaders, caregivers, higher education partners, and workforce partners. Our co-design sessions included an overview of competency-based micro-credentials and LER technologies, focus groups on each respective topic, and a competency-based micro-credential design activity. For the design activity, participants designed competency-based micro-credentials to represent a skill that they believe should be recognized but is not currently captured by standard forms of recognition such as course grades, transcripts, and degrees. These skills include communication, creativity, and financial literacy.

Our research leveraged a co-design approach that relies on collaboration between the researchers and participants (Hurley, Dietrich, & Rundle-Thiele, 2021). This method allows for mutual learning and the emergence of innovative solutions while also building community, trust, and transparency. During the co-design process, participants have the opportunity to influence design, promote accessibility, and equity for participants, and provide researchers with a better understanding of their challenges, desires, and needs.

Participant Takeaways in Maine

After two days of co-design sessions with JMG, some reflected on the experience:

• Participants liked the choice of learning experiences that allowed them to demonstrate their competency in skills.
• Participants liked what LER technologies offer regarding storing everything in one place, employer verification, and greater ability to market oneself.

Participants also raised the following questions:

• How can competency-based micro-credentials be personalized for different students’ career interests?
• Will learning experiences still put learners at risk if the expectations and rubrics are inclusive, accessible, and achievable?
• What happens to the information shared on learning and employment record technologies? Who owns the data?
• How will buy-in from the workforce and higher education institutions be obtained to support the implementation of competency-based micro-credentials and learning and employment record technologies, and how will they be trained?

Participant Takeaways in Alabama

After two days of co-design sessions with Talladega City Schools, participants shared their reflections:

• Participants believed that competency-based micro-credentials would give students deserved recognition for skills not acknowledged in the classroom, increase their confidence in their skills, and support credentialing and career advancement for historically and systematically excluded communities through awareness, accessibility, and opportunities.
• Participants believe learning and employment record technologies will provide an overview of an individual’s accomplishments, provide more job opportunities, showcase skills, and level the playing field because they focus more on accomplishments than factors such as background or identity.

Participants also raised the following questions:

• How accurate, reliable, and trustworthy is the data attached to competency-based micro-credentials?
• How can we increase public awareness of competency-based micro-credentials and obtain community buy-in?

Next Steps

Participants’ impressions from the co-design sessions included positive feedback on the potential benefits of competency-based micro-credentials and learning and employment record technologies, especially in providing recognition, confidence, and diverse and equitable learning experiences for K-12 learners. However, they expressed concerns regarding risk and inclusivity, community buy-in and training, data reliability, ownership, and privacy.

Through this research, Digital Promise aims not only to impact employers and postsecondary institutions and programs by addressing skill recognition gaps but also to inform policies that can support the successful implementation of competency-based micro-credentials and learning and employment record technologies for K-12 learners, specifically historically and systematically excluded communities.

Keep on the lookout for our upcoming report exploring the opportunities and considerations of competency-based micro-credentials and learning and employment record technologies for K-12 students.

Digital Promise has been a pioneer in competency-based micro-credentials and has more than 10 years of experience in supporting organizations with their micro-credentialing needs. If you are interested in learning more about micro-credential services, please contact us at microcredentials@digitalpromise.org.