Thread by @DrJoannaT

Back for day 3 of #UniSTARS. Opening by @rachaelfield68 & @kjnnelson! Rachael acknowledges that conference funding is scarce and informs us that STARS is a not-for-profit conference where fees go towards the organisation of the best experience possible, and to support the journal

Now @KiftSally online to introduce our next keynote speaker, Mark Brown @mbrownz. She acknowledges Country. Mark has many leadership roles in digital and distance learning and while he calls Ireland home now it seems he hails from NZ!

My gosh it's 2am over there...

#UniSTARS

@KiftSally @mbrownz Mark also acknowledges Traditional Custodians and pays respect to elders present. His talk today is about "Untangling the Micro: is Small Beautiful?"

He is referring to microcredentials within the "innovation sandbox" - which might be viewed as separate to everyday business.

Of course, in the sandbox, we might just be building sandcastles - which don't last so long. How can we add durability to microcredentials? It's talked about as the "next big thing" but will it last.

Mark's favourite quote about microcredentials - "absolute catnip to politicians" (Usher 2021) - also says the same to VCs - and across Europe, UK, US, and here in Aus & NZ.

Also refers to Merlin Crossley's piece in CMM: campusmorningmail.com.au/news/theres-a-…

Oh! such a beautiful metaphor extended - you don't want your cats doing their business in the sandbox, since you then need to chuck it out and start again since it is tainted.

Teehee 😁

Mark says if we don't understand what micro-credentials are and why they might be useful, then it'll be hard to implement them well. So he'll share on some of the current things happening in Europe as well.

He's introduced some poll qns for us to participate in about our knowledge & practice on micro-credentials. And now is sharing a little more about online learning and learner perspectives and work that he's done recently. Check out his whole profile here: dcu.ie/nidl/director-…

Sounds like attendees this morning know about micro-credentials and many work at institutions where they're already implemented, and also expect them to become more commonplace.

Apparently literature is burgeoning with work on micro-credentials or similar terms, but only half of employers in Ireland (or was it Europe?) have actually heard about them prior to a survey. Short courses common though.

Mark references @ProfBevOliver's report "Making micro-credentials work" - available here dteach.deakin.edu.au/2019/08/02/mic… and says she is now doing work for UNESCO on definitions.

European Commission has also done work in this place - final report here: op.europa.eu/en/publication…

"proof of learning outcomes" - not just a "warm body badge"

EC resource page here: ec.europa.eu/education/educ…

Useful diagram... Mark talking about different dimensions of credentials - x & y axes about types, reasons, topics of learning, and then the diagonal which links them together... he's not sure it's 100% accurate but matches the uncertainty in the field.

However, what we each consider as micro-credentials probably depends on our experiences so far and the context/environment that we are in. So variation already exists - are MCs alternative, complementary, supplementary, or disruptive??

So now onto part 2 of the talk - the why of MCs.

Short courses not a new concept at all, and can see this tradition of participation in adult learning in Europe especially in some countries. 'lifelong learning' important for ongoing development of society

MCs also good for personalisation and flexibility - to fit individual needs. Coincides with digital education drive - seem to go hand in hand. And, employers qn value of uni degree (esp in US) - not directly preparing graduates for work? so MCs could step in...

...and providers of MCs are broader - e.g. Google, since ? cheaper than US uni fees. Marker of this shift - Trump signing decree that fed employees to be recruited on basis of skills rather than degrees.

New claims about people believing a large proportion (65%? 85%?) of jobs will no longer exist in the future - Mark argues that no empirical evidence for these figures, displacement by IoT, AI, plus demographic shifts will occur though so important to consider

If we are focussed on skills, then MCs might be able to do something about this (as opposed to Uni transcripts which don't generally break things down to LOs or skills).

Could also be more responsive to industry/society needs.

Mark also interested in what's happening with the development of marketplace for microcredentials in Australia ... If anyone has an update please let him know.

Notes that it's all about industry (as someone famous said - about the economy) ... and that we've got lots of commercial/commodity language in this space. Like a "wallet" (or purse?) for personal gain.

This has occasionally been critiqued - e.g. link.springer.com/content/pdf/10…

Now we're watching a video about the "ledger" - which tracks all the "edublocks" you gain (per hour of learning - but what is an hour of learning?!?!) and how much $$ you've made off it, and employers can recruit on this, and others can invest in you for specific areas...

...you can earn 'edublocks' from both formal & informal learning environments ...and of course, it's built on the blockchain. Oh dear... it's this video:

Anyway, Mark was only using it as something to spur discussion and isn't necessarily endorsing that model! He is moving to summing up now with some examples of MCs and current work in the space including regulatory frameworks

Suggests we check out this website/project across EU: microcredentials.eu

And also how EU is working on the interoperability part - europa.eu/europass/en

So, "is small beautiful?" - Mark says it could be responded to with "does size matter?" he thinks it does. There is overwhelming evidence on the impact of HE on people's lives and society. No evidence so far on MCs' private & public benefits. Need to have that data.

So back to the sandbox - you can shake sand from your shoes, but not from your soul. The gut feel is that lifelong learning is important for the future of societies, and MCs has to be another channel to promote this beyond what we already have/do well.

Now @KiftSally comes back as chair. Comments on the wide variety of "MCs" in Aus, some of which want to claim AQF equivalence but others don't care. 1st Q about identifying learners in EU. Mark responds they have a single learner account.

Since interoperability is big part of EU philosophy - mobility and multi-lingual nature. Wouldn't be able to do the same say in US. But English dominance is going to be problematic.

Q about role of professional bodies and industry. Mark responds that many varieties of collaboration and independent work. So need to bring things together a bit more.

Now my question gets asked! What are the traps in moving to MCs? How do we differentiate, and what assessment should be used.

Mark says goes back to the qn "is small beautiful"? Need to look at what learners want, expertise of academics.

Do we really want to just unbundle everything to a "pick and mix" across the supermarket/world? MCs are not just MCs - it is a bigger transformation of HE. Should be about the big idea, not the big idea itself - here, it's about a more educated society rather than just paid work

So while pick n mix might work for some clearly defined professional/discipline groups with standards that can be signed off, it might not work for other contexts.

Hmm, lots to think about in terms of purpose of MCs still.

Final q about QA and learning outcomes. Mark responds that voluntary self-policing register of MCs might have to be what happens so information is available - maybe industry partners could also play a role.

Great effort by @mbrownz at such an unsociable hour! @KiftSally gives our collective thanks.