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Unboxing micro-credentials: an inside, upside and downside view

Brown, Mark orcid logoORCID: 0000-0002-7927-6717 and Nic-Giolla-Mhichil, Mairéad orcid logoORCID: 0000-0003-1885-6723 (2022) Unboxing micro-credentials: an inside, upside and downside view. Education and Culture, 34 (4). pp. 938-973. ISSN 1578-4118

Abstract
Micro-credentials are the latest shiny new thing attracting the attention of politicians, policy-makers and educational leaders. This paper endeavours to ‘unbox’ the micro-credential by peeling away inherent tensions in competing definitions and underlying drivers. It reports the tripartite methodology adopted for a state-of -the-art literature review which offers an inside, upside and downside view on the micro-credential. Selected findings illustrate how the growth of the micro-credential needs to be understood in a wider socio-cultural context. The micro-credential movement is part of a complex credential ecology steeped in history, politics and cultural norms. In response to major societal and technological change forces, the paper invites debate on what counts as valued skill and knowledge in today’s rapidly changing digital society. It challenges existing business models for higher and further education and the traditional status of the university degree. Therefore, the micro-credential is not just another passing educational fad, as it brings into question much bigger issues concerning employability, the changing nature of work and new models of life-long learning.
Metadata
Item Type:Article (Published)
Refereed:Yes
Additional Information:Article also published in Spanish.
Uncontrolled Keywords:Micro-credentials; Higher Education,
Subjects:Social Sciences > Adult education
Social Sciences > Distance education
Social Sciences > Education
Social Sciences > Educational technology
DCU Faculties and Centres:DCU Faculties and Schools > NIDL (National Institute for Digital Learning)
DCU Faculties and Schools > Institute of Education
Publisher:Routledge (Taylor & Francis)
Official URL:https://doi.org/10.1080/11356405.2022.2102293
Copyright Information:© 2022 The Authors.
ID Code:28543
Deposited On:30 Jun 2023 16:19 by Prof Mark Brown . Last Modified 30 Jun 2023 16:19
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