“Microcredentials are emerging as a major force in the future of lifelong learning”

Curtiss Barnes is the CEO of 1EdTech, a non-profit consortium of educators and suppliers committed to building an open, trusted, and innovative digital learning ecosystem. Curtiss has over 30 years of experience in the education industry and expertise in a broad range of enterprise and instructional systems supporting education’s core missions. He has held roles at universities, technology start-ups, large enterprise businesses, and courseware and publishing companies. Curtiss is a passionate believer in the power of technology to transform businesses and of education to transform lives and society. Curtiss holds an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Clark University.

We interviewed him (Part I) during Learning Impact Europe 2024,the conference hosted by the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) from October 9 to 11, in which he participated with the opening address in his position as the new CEO of 1EdTech.

What are the main objectives of 1EdTech Consortium in this era of technological changes?

Our primary objective is to foster an open, trusted ecosystem for educational technologies that support innovation and ensure seamless interoperability. In this rapidly evolving digital age, education is undergoing significant transformation due to advancements in AI, adaptive learning, immersive technologies, and data analytics.

We are the only technical standards organization that spans the lifelong learning continuum and supports technical and practice standards broadly across the education enterprise architecture. Our key goals include:

• Enabling interoperability: The heart of 1EdTech’s work is ensuring that different edtech systems and platforms can seamlessly connect and share data to facilitate a more connected and personalized approach to supporting learners.

• Engaging the entire ecosystem: It is vital that our work represents the interests of all the players in the ecosystem. Certainly, institutions and their educators and administrators are key, and commercial suppliers, governments, and non-governmental agencies all support and benefit from our work. This approach brings down the cost of doing business, reduces barriers to market access, and spurs more innovation.

• Ensuring data privacy and security: As digital tools become more integrated into education, the importance of protecting personal data cannot be overstated. In Europe, it is crucial to comply with regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). 1EdTech is committed to aligning all its standards with policy and regulation to ensure that both privacy and innovation are balanced in a way that protects students and supports institutions in maintaining compliance.

• Promoting inclusive and accessible education: Technology has the potential to make education more equitable. We prioritize creating standards that encourage inclusivity, ensuring that learning tools can cater to diverse learners, including those with disabilities or from disadvantaged backgrounds.

• Supporting innovation: We aim to provide a foundation upon which edtech providers and institutions may innovate. By establishing clear, scalable standards, we make it easier for new technologies to be integrated into educational environments, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and growth.

• Building a global edtech community: With members from across the globe, we’re focused on building partnerships and collaborations that are community-driven and ensure the tools and standards we develop can be adopted and adapted universally, while still respecting local contexts.

In this fast-paced era of technological change, our mission is to ensure that the education sector remains agile and able to take advantage of the latest advancements in ways that benefit learners, educators, institutions, commercial partners, and align with regional standards.

How is AI affecting the edtech market? Will all new AI-based edtech companies be sustained over time?

Obviously artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping many industries, and edtech is no exception! While the potential is vast, we must bear in mind that AI does not truly understand the world, it has no capacity for empathy, and is subject to systemic biases because it only knows what it has been fed. This poses treacherous risks when it comes to educators and learners. Furthermore, the education sector has historically been resistant to rapid change, which presents unique challenges – especially for commercial suppliers and AI-based start-ups entering the market.

Commercial vendors and suppliers, including those offering AI-driven solutions, must navigate this resistance carefully. Many educational institutions are hesitant to adopt new technologies unless they are proven to improve outcomes or integrate seamlessly with existing systems. This cautious approach can slow down the adoption of even the most promising innovations.

I think it is essential that any business proposing AI-based solutions begin with a clear, value-driven objective. It cannot be “we are solving the two-sigma problem by replacing the educator!”, rather a documented and instrumented way to ensure proven effectiveness at the outset. Keeping human educators in the loop, building trust and support early and often, working closely with customers and 1EdTech to promote interoperability with legacy systems, and ensuring safety and security of the learners are critical requirements. In the longer run, I have no doubt that the learning sector will reap significant benefits from AI-powered solutions.

Will microcredentials play a major role in the future of lifelong learning?

Microcredentials are indeed emerging as a major force in the future of lifelong learning. The building blocks are in place for a fundamental transformation over the next decade. I like to think of it as an “enlightened phase” of combining academic and skills to more fully represent the learner and even serve as an incentive to keep learning!

As workforce demands evolve rapidly, traditional degree programs are being supplemented – or even replaced – by more flexible, modular approaches to learning. Microcredentials, which offer recognition for specific skills or competencies, are becoming increasingly valued by both learners and employers for several reasons:

• Flexibility and accessibility: Microcredentials allow learners to acquire specific skills on their own schedule. This flexibility is particularly beneficial for adult learners and professionals balancing work, family, and education. Microcredentials offer a way to continuously upskill or reskill without the need for a long-term degree commitment.

• Alignment with workforce needs: Employers are looking for candidates with practical, demonstrable skills. Microcredentials provide a clear pathway to showcasing these skills, and many are co-developed with industry standards. By focusing on the specific competencies required for a role, microcredentials help learners remain competitive in fast-changing industries.

• Personalized learning pathways: Lifelong learning is highly personalized, and microcredentials enable individuals to tailor their education to their specific career goals or interests. They can “stack” credentials over time to create a portfolio that reflects a broad range of competencies, empowering learners to design their own educational journeys.

• Recognition and transferability through 1EdTech standards: One of the challenges for microcredentials is ensuring they are recognized and valued across different institutions and industries. This is where 1EdTech’s leadership becomes critical. 1EdTech supports key standards, including Open Badges and Comprehensive Learner Record (CLR) standards, which ensure that microcredentials are interoperable, portable, and trusted. These standards allow learners to share their credentials across platforms and institutions seamlessly, giving their microcredentials more value and wider recognition.
  • Open Badges: Open Badges, an open standard for digital credentials, provide a way to visually represent a learner’s skills and achievements. These badges are not only verifiable but also shareable across platforms, helping institutions and employers recognize the accomplishments behind them.
  • Comprehensive Learner Record (CLR): CLR takes credentialing a step further by supporting a detailed, holistic view of a learner’s achievements. CLR records academic and co-curricular learning, achievements, and skills in a structured format, making it easier for employers and institutions to understand a learner’s full capabilities.

• Lifelong learning for all stages: Microcredentials are valuable for learners at any stage – whether they’re just entering the workforce, advancing in their careers, or pivoting to a new field. As technology evolves, especially in areas like AI, the need for quick and efficient skill acquisition becomes even more critical.

Conclusions to Part 1 from the eLinC’s Observatory of Educational Trends

The present world has present needs but it also has future needs. 1EdTEch helps higher education institutions and companies tackle the challenges of today’s edtech market, accompanying them on the path of standards and embracing new developments for their benefit in learning and teaching. Adopting AI-driven technologies may be a challenge for society and educational institutions, even though many companies are doing their best to offer long-lasting solutions to adapt to the future of these technologies. These exact challenges are passed on to citizens who need to permanently adapt their skills to new knowledge and its application for their jobs and daily tasks. Microcredentials can be the perfect vehicle to deliver this training as they offer rapid and often tailored solutions to lifelong students.