For the Badge Alliance Community Call January 20, 2016: http://etherpad.badgealliance.org/CC2016January20

1. Open Badges, ePortfolios
and Co-Curricular Records
Suggestions for loosely coupled solutions
for authentic graduate outcomes and
lifelong employability
January 20, 2016
Don Presant

2. “Paper Silos”
Issues with certification today
freedesignfile.com/92259
Transparency issues
 “Dumb” paper often needs other
documents, e.g. syllabus
 Proxy only – not the “whole story”
 Easy to forge
Physical issues
 Difficult to share, easy to lose
Recognition issues
 Lack of granularity
 Lack of context
 no links to supporting evidence
 Experiential learning not valued
 Lack of alignment, transfer,
articulation (“stackability”)

3. Soft Skills disconnect...
2015 AACU Study

4. 70:20:10 Rule
Not all learning takes place in the classroom
deakinprime.com wikipedia.org
Estimated time spent in school and
informal learning environments.
Best available statistics for a whole year basis on
how much time people at different points across the
lifespan spend in formal instructional environments.
(Reproduced with permission of The LIFE Center.)
Continuing Education
learning delivery model at
DeakinPrime (Australia)
“Balances the need for you to
practise and learn in the workplace
while providing you with the
foundational understanding
required to reposition your mind.”

5. Co-Curricular Records
A transcript for graduate employability
ccr.utoronto.ca bit.ly/TrentU_CCR

6. Good for Student Recognition?
Issues with Co-Curricular Records
Only “approved” (campus) activities
 No academic service/experiential learning, research
 No off-campus employment, community service
Portal-generated, mostly time-based
Little/no reflection, evidence, integration
 Few tools or opportunities, especially after upload
 No ePortfolio integration
Summative, “one time ”paper report from a
database
 A “laundry list”: linear, siloed, inflexible, archaic
(NB: some variation in functionality between platforms & product suites)

7. Why Such a Narrow Scope?
Academic
Transcript
Co-
Curricular
Record
Approved
Co-Curricular.
Activities
Personal Life
Experience
-past
-currentWork
Experience
-past
-current Accredited
Experiential
Learning
Unapproved
Co-Curricular
Activities Courses
Thesis /
Capstone Project
PLAR/RPL
Experienced
Learning
Formal
Learning

8. Is LinkedIn enough?
With ideas from: Does LinkedIn work as an ePortfolio?
PRO
Awareness
Workplace focus
Evidence
Slideshare, infographics, videos
Recommendations (?!)
Social network
“Friend of a Friend”
Personal Learning Network
LinkedIn Groups
Timelines
Lynda.com
CON
Lack of flexibility
Customization, alignment
Versioning
Interoperability - feeding
to/from other sites
No Archiving
File storage
No private modes
Reflection, formative assessment,
mentoring
Minimal learning support
Self-assessment, plans, rubrics, etc.
Audience bias
White collar
Older worker (79% are 35+)
Ownership/privacy control
Terms of Use, business model

9. Your “Accidental ePortfolio”
Tracking your digital footprints – study
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Use Google or other search engines to
research candidates
Research the candidate on Facebook
Monitor the candidate’s activity on
Twitter
Employers who would…
n = 2,775 US/Canada July 2013 cb.com/18xbgez
Some of the search activity happens
before candidates are even called
for a job interview.

11. ePortfolios
Electronic portfolios (ePortfolios) are collections
of digitally represented artifacts that:
• document practice
• include reflection
• integrate experience
• map to goals and/or standards
• promote deep learning & knowledge transfer
Tracy Penny Light, CAPLA 2013
• Formative/Summative (FOR/OF)
• Workshop/Showcase

12. >75%
5 key learning outcomes:
critical thinking, complex
problem-solving, written and
oral communication and applied
knowledge in real-world settings
“It Takes More than a Major”
2013 survey of 318 employers
bit.ly/AAEEBL13_AACU
Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U)
93%
Candidate’s demonstrated capacity
to think critically, communicate
clearly, and solve complex problems
is more important than their
undergraduate major
>80%
An electronic portfolio would
be useful to them in ensuring that job
applicants have the knowledge and
skills they need to succeed in their
company or organization

13. University President’s Vision
Alan Davis, Kwantlen Polytechnic University
BC RPL Summit presentation March 2013

14. Benefits of ePortfolios
Employer
acceptance
2015
AACU survey
aacu.org 2015
EVIDENCE OF SOFT
SKILLS IS KEY
e.g. “effective
communication, applied
skills, evidence-based
reasoning, and ethical
decision-making”
Designed for learning and development
More supportive, flexible than Web 2.0 tools; good for RPL
Personal control and privacy
Not at the mercy of social media business models
Integrated public/private use
Archive, reflective chamber, showcase, recognition tool

15. Critical mass in the US
52% US undergraduates use ePortfolio
Campus Computing 2013 (n=451)

16. ePortfolios: Not a Magic Bullet
Questions that need asking
Are ePortfolios really student-centred?
Is an ePortfolio just another way of getting a grade?
Is ePortfolio just another way of “reporting up”?
If ePortfolios are used for learning assessment, are you prepared to
assess for prior learning?
If it is a tool for transition:
 What happens when a student brings an ePortfolio to your institution,
say from high school?
 Will your students want to keep their ePortfolios after they graduate?
 Will you do this as a favour, or a deliberate strategy?
Are they too much work?

18. Lipscomb University/Polaris
Fortune 500 Competency Performance Model
www.lipscomb.edu/professionalstudies/core-for-employers
“CORE measures 15 competencies on a badge system, which is based on a nationally respected and
Fortune 500-proven competency performance model—the Polaris Assessment System. Companies
already utilizing this system include Nike, PetSmart, Disney, Mars, Wendy’s among many others.”

19. Recognizing Co-Curricular Learning
University of Michigan

20. “If you add up all the time undergraduate students spend in
their four years at college, only about 8 percent of their time is
on the curricular, and 92 percent is on everything else.
....the light really went on when we saw how well the service
learning students picked up on this opportunity to earn badges
and showcase them in their eportfolios, at the same time truly
highlighting, as never before, their co-curricular experiences.”
G. Alex Ambrose
Professor of Practice, Associate
Ass. Director of ePortfolio Assessment
Kaneb Center for Teaching and Learning
University of Notre Dame
Showcasing the Co-Curricular
ePortfolios & Open Badges at Notre Dame
campustechnology.com

21. Deakin University
Badges for Employability Soft Skills
“Communication is the
fundamental generic
skill needed to attain
employment and to
engage in professional
written, oral and
interpersonal
communication with
colleagues, clients and
the general public.”
deakin.edu.au

22. Deakin University
Displayed on Social Media
t.co/ior8y5pbqe

23. DeakinDigital: Credentials for your career
deakindigital.com
Recognition of
Professional Practice
Targeted at mid-career professionals;
an alternative to traditional higher
education
Lower cost, less time commitment
Modular evidence-based credentials
for capabilities achieved through
independent learning, experience and
employment
Meaningful to employers
Used for continuous career
development

24. Career
Pathways
Humanitarian PLE - across the career lifecycle
Talent
Pipeline
Recruitment
Induction
Formative Assessment
Gap Training
Team Building
Performance Management
Talent Management
Experience
Achievements
Professional Development
Career Development
Leadership
Development
SME Specialization
Career Change
Outplacement
External
Performance
Support
Google, YouTube
External repositories
Coaching
and
Mentoring
Other External Learning
MOOCs, Open Ed Resources,
Personal Learning Network,
Communities of
Practice
OCBA
OCG
Academic
recognition?
New
Career?
OCB
OCA
OCP
Other
MSF LMSs
such as:
HRIS/ERP
Systems
Performance
Management
System Talent
Management
System
Skills
Marketplace
Demand
Supply
Badge
Passport/
ePortfolio
Digital
Credentials
External
Recognition
Other
Humanitarian
LMSs such as:
Workplace
Assessments
&
Achievements
New
Mission?
New
MSF role?

25. A Badge-Enabled Skills Ecosystem
“Small pieces, loosely joined”
Promotion
New
Specialization
New
Career
New
Mission
TYPES OF LEARNING
AND RECOGNITION
RECORD
OF LEARNING
DISPLAY
OF LEARNING
TRANSFER
OF LEARNING
and/or:
Mozilla Backpack
Open Badge Passport
& other Backpacks
Websites:
Online Communities:
ePortfolios:
Skills
Passport
LMS Profiles:
Informal and
Non-formal
Workshops, CoPs
Formal
PSE/PD
e-Campus
Logistics
Roles
Awards &
Recognition
Experiences
(debriefed)
HAITI
2010
Functional
Skills
Trainer
WatSan

26. Open Badges, CCR, ePortfolios
Friends...with benefits?
Academic
Transcript
Co-Curricular
Record
Experienced
Learning
Formal
Learning
ePortfolio/Passport
Accredited
Experiential
Learning
Degree
Courses
Thesis /
Capstone Project
Unapproved
Co-Curricular
Activities
Work
Experience
-past
-current
Open
Courses,
PD
Approved
Co-Curricular.
Activities
Personal Life
Experience
-past
-current
PLAR/RPL

27. Potential Institutional Reach
Constellation of Possible ePortfolio Stakeholders
“Documenting Learning with ePortfolios: A Guide for College Instructors”
Penny Light, Chen, Ittelson 2012
Continuing
Education,
Professional
Development

28. Small pieces…loosely joined
Personal Learning
Environment Social Media
Backpack
(Passport)
Badge
Platform
Outside
Community
Institution
LMS, SRS
ePortfolio Badge
Claim
Story
Story
Badge
Badge
Badge
Badge Badge
Badge
Badge
Artefact
Artefact
Badge
Badge
With assistance
from @szerge
Campus Portals
CCRWIL
•Other institutions
•Trainers
•Open learning
•Employers
•Volunteer organizations
Badges
Careers

29. The future is already here;
it’s just not very evenly dis
tributed.
William Gibson
Final thoughts
en.wikiquote.org
openepic.eu

30. @donpresant
littoraly.wordpress.com
bit.ly/ep_ccr