Originally published here.
The eCampusOntario Micro-Credentials Forum 2024 convened over 1200 people online and in person from across Ontario, Canada and the world to participate in discussions on Developing Tomorrow’s Workforce.
The focus of discussion was on how we can work together to build a more responsive postsecondary education system. One that helps everyone see themselves into the future. This is important for preparing people for careers and upskilling and reskilling, as much as it is about preparing tertiary education to change to meet the demands of the 21st century.
For today we know that education is more important than ever. Today we also know that education as we know it is changing rapidly.
There are two important things about micro-credentials that are worth pointing out.
The first is that Micro-credentials represent increased access to education.
As of November 2020, micro-credentials in Ontario are eligible for student loans (OSAP). For the first time in Canada, in Ontario learners can get a student loan for part time study. This acknowledges that not everyone can afford to leave the workforce to gain new skills. More than any change to postsecondary education this alone will have the largest long-term effect on access.
The second point is that Micro-credentials represent a signal of change.
We have always had micro credentials – we call them courses and continuing education certificates. The main difference now is that these types of courses are constructed as more consequential components of lifelong learning. And most importantly, micro-credentials focus on competencies learned, not just learned content.
In the online program of the Forum we heard about the importance of industry-academic partnerships in creating micro-credentials that are responsive to the labour market. And about global perspective on micro-credential development, including in Australia, where expansive definitions of what is a micro-credential enable more people – and more institutions – to see themselves into the future of education. This is instructive.
The point here is that micro-credentials represent a key indicator of change; a shift in the mindset about how we offer education to all of us that now stream movies and music, rather than buy DVDs and records.
The in-person component of the Micro-Credential Forum was (somewhat appropriately) held on Digital Learning Day – 29 February 2024, and included hundreds on the livestream who gathered to dive deeper into the change represented by micro-credentials.
The day was started by Elder Whabagoon who opened the circle of conversation, reminding us to reflect on the value of community and inclusion. The Honourable Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities, spoke about how micro-credentials are essential for ensuring access and upskilling in a rapidly changing world. There were inspiring words that were emphasized by eCampusOntario Board Co-Chairs Steven Murphy, PhD, ICD.D and Ann Marie Vaughan, Ed.D., who reminded us that we are all active participants in the midst of change to postsecondary education. We may not see this change when we are in the midst of it, and it is important for us to be aware of our role as agents of change. There were many highlights from the day:
Rhonda Barnet from Palette Skills spoke of the work that Upskill Canada is doing to incentivize broad changes in preparing the workforce of tomorrow with a key measurement of people hired through education and training they fund.
Adrienne Madden from the Canadian Colleges for a Resilient Recovery (C2R2) at Mohawk College, Kiley Bolton and Sherrie-Lee Neill from Seneca Polytechnic shared Seneca Polytechnic and Quick Train: The Impact of Micro-credentials from a Learner, Educator, and Organizer Perspective.
Graham 📊 Dobbs Senior Economist from The Dais at Toronto Metropolitan University discussed Who’s Using Micro-credentials in Canada?
Michael Burt from The Conference Board of Canada spoke about Better Decision Making: Using Labour Market Information to Inform Training Choices. The Conference Board tool Opportunext is excellent and powers the eCampusOntario Micro-Credentials Portal.
Kelly Archer spoke eloquently about Connecting People with Jobs: Training and Canada’s National Job Bank. This was an excellent overview about the importance of providing people who leverage Canada’s Job Bank with relevant, empirical information on program outcomes – check out their School to Work Transition tool – a real game changer for informing people about outcomes associated with specific programs.
Kelvin Bentley, Ph.D. from the University of Texas System provided key insights about the importance of helping to “unpack the suitcase of degrees” and to empower students to tell a better story about what they know how to do. The goal being people that are “broadly educated and specifically skilled.”
Deschamps Lorrie and Kim Falcigno presented their use of a holistic, culturally and trauma informed pedagogy while balancing best practices in online and face to face education. This was particularly instructive. Oshki-Pimache-O-Win: The Wenjack Education Institute is a real leader in digital by design education that supports competencies and cultural context with engaging learning.
Partha Roy from the NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) discussed an important theme of the day: Employer and Employee Perceptions of Micro-credentials.
Sarah Stokes and Fiona McArthur from Ontario Tech University provided an overview of Core Skills Across the Campus via micro-credentials.
Susan Boehnke, PhD from Queen's University and Saurabh Bhaskar Shaw, PhD from Western University discussed the Development and Deployment of the Neurotech Micro-credential Program at Queen’s University, emphasizing the importance of micro-credentials to support medical advances and practice change.
We heard about the IM4 Lab Indigenous Storyteller Micro-credential Virtual Production Training Program: An Overview of the Achievements and Challenges from Loretta Sarah Todd, Founder/Creative Director, IM4 Media Lab and Shenaz Baksh from the Screen Industry Training Hub (SITHub).
Victoria Jackson, PhD from the FNTI First Nations Technical Institute and Jeanine George from Aboriginal Shelters of Ontario (ASOO) spoke about Micro-credentials in Collaboration: FNTI and ASOO Micro-credential Partnership.
The day ended with a panel discussion with three thought leaders - Dr. Marilyn Herie (Centennial College), Darian Kovacs (Jelly Academy) and Jake Hirsch-Allen (LinkedIn and Lighthouse Labs) – who discussed the importance of industry-academic partnerships, the importance of iteration is designing micro-credentials, translating learner interests and passions, access and the importance of providing learners with wrap around supports while providing learner-centred approaches to tertiary education. Education is changing and micro-credentials represent one way that learning providers – public and private – can work together to help navigate these changes.
And speaking of change, eCampusOntario released a new prototype for how people can interact with the Ontario Micro-Credentials Portal. This proof of principle tool is available now at SkillsFinder.ai. It uses a custom GPT powered by OpenAI to help learners to better understand their skills gaps. You can even upload your resume to find out what skills you have, and what skills you need and which micro-credentials best suit your learning journey today. By enabling people to test the new SkillsFinder.ai we will be able to learn how people interact with and use AI in supporting their personal learning journey.
This is part of the eCampusOntario mission to support change management in tertiary education while helping learners access the programs they need for the careers they want. Fundamentally we want to make explicit the tacit assumptions inherent in education:
We are helping people understand the competencies inferred by the credentials that are conferred.
And that brings me to the lightbulb moment for micro-credentials.
Back in April 2022 I wrote about how “Micro-Credentials are having their Napster moment.” The point of that piece was to articulate the current moment education is in as analogous to the disruption faced by the music industry with the advent of streaming.
The motif for the eCampusOntario Micro-Credentials Forum 2024 is a lightbulb. It reminded me of something I heard once that emphasizes the importance of recognizing change and the importance of innovation – incremental and disruptive – that helps us see outside of the change process itself:
The lightbulb was not created by continuous improvement of the candle.*
eCampusOntario: Where Education meets Innovation.
*I’m not sure where I heard this but I googled it for attribution. It is attributed to Oren Harari.
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