TY - JOUR
T1 - An integrative literature review of the implementation of microcredentials in higher education
T2 - Implications for practice in Australasia
AU - Selvaratnam, Ratna Malar
AU - Sankey, Michael David
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Deakin University. All rights reserved.
Copyright:
Copyright 2021 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2021/2/5
Y1 - 2021/2/5
N2 - Micro-credentials research, which includes digital badges, is a relatively new field of study that seeks to inform the implementation, portability and sustainability of the ecology of meaningful delivery. This paper reviews literature relevant to understanding connections between universities' intent to offer micro-credentials and the environment that is needed to do so. From this integrated study, the paper distils a number of core concerns and identifies some gaps in the literature. One of its primary goals is to clear the ground for the construction of a technical model of micro-credentialing implementation that can be used by the various stakeholders involved in the design and evaluation of new micro-awards. A closely related goal is to help those participating in micro-credentialing research to locate and understand each other's contributions, as fragmentation in research related to micro-credentials makes progress in the field slow. Hence, this review draws together research in the field to identify research foci and gaps, and then also capture some work by micro-credentialing researchers that directly attempts to model the main relationships in the field. The paper ends with a summary of implications for practice, especially for the Australasian higher education context.
AB - Micro-credentials research, which includes digital badges, is a relatively new field of study that seeks to inform the implementation, portability and sustainability of the ecology of meaningful delivery. This paper reviews literature relevant to understanding connections between universities' intent to offer micro-credentials and the environment that is needed to do so. From this integrated study, the paper distils a number of core concerns and identifies some gaps in the literature. One of its primary goals is to clear the ground for the construction of a technical model of micro-credentialing implementation that can be used by the various stakeholders involved in the design and evaluation of new micro-awards. A closely related goal is to help those participating in micro-credentialing research to locate and understand each other's contributions, as fragmentation in research related to micro-credentials makes progress in the field slow. Hence, this review draws together research in the field to identify research foci and gaps, and then also capture some work by micro-credentialing researchers that directly attempts to model the main relationships in the field. The paper ends with a summary of implications for practice, especially for the Australasian higher education context.
KW - Digital badges
KW - Higher education
KW - Microcredentials
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85102571760&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.21153/JTLGE2021VOL12NO1ART942
DO - 10.21153/JTLGE2021VOL12NO1ART942
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85102571760
SN - 1838-3815
VL - 12
SP - 1
EP - 17
JO - Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability
JF - Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability
IS - 1
ER -