Our latest newsletter for the ICDE World Conference on Online Learning in November profiles the keynote address by Professor Beverley Oliver on the emergence of micro-credentials in higher education set against the wider backdrop of graduate employability, life-long learning and new and emerging online learning models.
In 2018, ICDE published a report on The Present and Future of Alternative Digital Credentials and this presentation will build on and help extend the discussion. Professor Oliver, formerly Deputy Vice-Chancellor Education (2013-2018) at Deakin University in Australia, recently published a new report on Making Micro-credentials Work for Learners, Employers and Providers. In this new report, which we strongly encourage delegates to read before the World Conference, Beverley argues that Micro-credentials and other forms of non-formal learning are emerging as potential solutions to the rapidly changing nature of work and up-skilling needs that will be required in the future. However, the report argues that a more strategic and coherent approach is needed which aligns with both national and international qualification frameworks.
In other news we report that thanks to the OER Foundation we are able to offer a special cohort instance of the micro-course “Open Education, Copyright and Open Licensing in a Digital World” for free to all ICDE World Conference registered participants. We have partnered with the OERu to provide free and unrestricted access to this online course, which begins on October 7th, with Dr Wayne Mackintosh, UNESCO/ICDE Chair in Open Educational Resources (OER) facilitating the discussion over two-weeks. Registered ICDE WCOL2019 participants will also receive a free access code to take an online competency test to earn the Certificate of Competency in Copyright and Creative Commons Licensing. More information and registration details is available on the course website.
We are also delighted to share news of a special post-conference event that has been organised in partnership with the US-based Training Magazine. Innovations in Training (IIT) Dublin features visits to cutting-edge simulation labs, innovation centres and training sites, along with in-depth conversations and immersive experiences that demonstrate innovative approaches to workplace learning. This event is essentially a three-day Dublin field trip for learning and development professionals who want to experience innovative ways to push beyond traditional approaches to workplace learning. Site visits include IBM Research Ireland, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and Ernst & Young Dublin. More information is available on the ITT Dublin website.
The full newsletter is available from the ICDE World Conference website and you can subscribe to receive future issues by signing up to bi-monthly ICDE news service.
Digital Learning Dispatches 