Currently...

• Officially-recognized learning only takes place inside formal credential-issuing institutions.

• Institutions “own” the records of learning.

• Learners do the onerous work of collecting and circulating their learning records.

The world is changing...

• The range of experiences, attributes, skills, and knowledge sought by learners or needed by institutions and employers is expanding;

• The range of contexts—formal and informal—in which they can be acquired is broadening;

• The technical skills and knowledge acquired are coming in smaller grain sizes (and are increasingly measurable); 

• The durable, adaptive skills and mindsets are in larger, broader grain sizes (and are increasingly measurable), and

• Current institutional practices and systems are insufficient to capture this information.

What if...

• Learners owned their own records and institutions were freed from processing repeat processing?

• Knowledge and skills in smaller grain sizes were captured so employers could easily understand an applicant's’ potential to meet their needs?

• Learning for a more diverse array of providers, purposes, and individuals was recognized?

• Institutions could easily access and integrate this information for recruiting and advising?