Presentation Panel
Digital Credentials and The Lifelong Learning Backpacker
Date Thursday, Nov 23 Time –
The role of universities to assess, acknowledge and certify an individual's "fitness for employability" is eroding. Through cryptographic methods, verifiable credentials now offer a tamper-proof distributed tool to certify one's learning outcomes, and could turn the entire education landscape upside down.
In this session, speakers will explore the growing ecosystem of distributed digital credentials, where citizens transition from employer to employer carrying an e-portfolio of acknowledgment into their “lifelong learning backpack”. In this landscape, the distinction between "students" and "employees" is getting very vague and universities and employers are getting "mixed up" as never before.
Stuart Martin
Founder, George Angus Consulting, New Zealand
Stuart is the founder of George Angus Consulting, he has significant experience developing micro and digital credential policy & development, assessment design & writing, quality assurance, accessibility, and research around the world from the UK to New Zealand.
Sabine Zander
Senior Project Manager, imc information multimedia communication AG, Germany
Moderator
Rolf Reinhardt
Member of the Executive Committee, International Council on Badges and Credentials [ICoBC], Germany
Rolf Reinhardt works for LinkedIn at the intersection of government, education and organizational learning. He is also an active member of the International Council on Badges and Credentials [ICoBC] to ensure a systemic view of badges and credentials for individuals, organizations and societies. Additionally, he serves as a Council Member to the Union of International Associations, as a Council Member to the OEB Global and as a Certified Supporter to the Corporate Social Responsibility community of ZiviZ at Stifterverband (W.I.E.). Prior to joining LinkedIn in 2016, he worked for Pearson, the largest education company in the world, on secondary, post-secondary and corporate training initiatives across Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
From 2011 to 2012, Rolf was tinkering on various visionary projects such as eLearning quality (epprobate), streaming (TEDx etc.), ePortfolios, Immersive Worlds, Networks of Change Structures as well as Coworking and Community Spaces.
The focus of his work from 2007 till 2009 was on the ROI of eLearning programs for larger corporations. This focus changed with his assignment as Executive Manager of the European Foundation for Quality in E-Learning where innovation and technology as an enhancer of personal, organisational and societal development became a central topic.
By the time he obtained his Engineering degree in Media Technology, Rolf worked on large digital transformation projects, for instance, for the L&D department of L’ORÉAL. Rolf later designed and managed complex eLearning projects mainly for corporate customers.
The Value of Credentials, Stuart Martin
There is a lot of discussion around the 'value' of credentials. This presentation aims to explore the arguments and will showcase how not all credentials are the same.
Stuart Martin will explore the different values and impacts of credentials and provide insights and significant new research on what credentials can do in different circumstances, be it for workers, learners, employers or others.
Upskilling and Reskilling of Employees: How Organisations Can Use Digital Credentials to Tackle Skills Shortages, Sabine Zander
The shortage of skilled workers already observed in many places will intensify in coming years, both within the private and the public sector. To tackle this problem, companies and public institutions need to develop new systems for reskilling and upskilling of their employees.
In this presentation, Sabine Zander will discuss the potential of micro and digital credentials for organisations for reskilling and upskilling and present innovative use cases from the skills & education domain developed as part of the Gaia-X MERLOT project. The presentation is also intended as a call for participation and co-creation of the MERLOT ecosystem.