How can we create meaningful competency-based professional development? Our response -- micro-credentials. Join us as we examine background information and academic language around micro-credentials. Then using a template, participants will brainstorm an idea for offering a micro-credential at their institution.
Micro-credentials are digital representations of educational achievements that identify the specific competencies attained and how the mastery of the competencies or skill acquisition was achieved. Micro-credentials for educators are distinctly different from traditional types of professional development such as the graduate level course which includes completing required assignments, earning a grade for the course, and submitting an official transcript to the school district or state teacher-licensing agency.
In this workshop, participants will explore key understandings of creating and offering micro-credentials. We will discuss the importance of developing specific competencies and providing evidence of educator learning and the application of that learning within the student learning environment. We will also examine background information on micro-credentialing and highlight academic language that will be necessary to define within an organization in order to have a common vocabulary and vision around micro-credentials.
Using a planning template, participants will have the opportunity to brainstorm and develop a potential micro-credential experience for their educational institution. We will conclude by sharing our learning and brainstorming.
This session will be structured like a lesson plan. We will begin with a short engagement activity, followed by an overview of the session goals, and a mini lesson or input section to build background knowledge. The mini lesson will review the definition of micro-credentials and badges as digital representations of validated and sharable competencies and the differences between a micro-credential and a university course offering. Then we will move into a workshop model, sharing our micro-credential planning template, providing examples, and providing time for participants to begin a draft of a micro-credential proposal. The proposal includes the following sections: Micro-credential experience, key methods of understanding, evidence of learning and additional information. Micro-credential experience context includes the who, what, where, when and why with a short description of the micro-credential. Key methods of understanding include a plan to engage participants, opportunities to participate and process the content, and apply their learning to receive feedback. Evidence of learning concludes the micro credential experience with a description of the evidence and evaluation criteria and rubrics.
Participants attending this session will be able to define academic language and practices around micro-credentials as they review our guidebook for designing micro-credentials and our micro-credential website. They will be also be able to apply a planning template to build content for a potential micro-credential at their institution.