Schools
By: David K. Moldoff

Making Sense of the Emerging Manpower/Learner Tracking Standards

Across the postsecondary education sector, one does not have to go too far before running into new acronyms covering collaborative initiatives and technologies currently being touted by workforce and education stakeholders. They are led by shared goals to improve talent management development and outcomes, maximize interoperability across learning technologies, and transform learning experiences. Most of these initiatives center on the responsibilities of the learner, as well how all organizations are part of the lifelong learning ecosystem that is evolving with knowledge creation.

After reviewing many online sources, we find a general discontent is motivating these initiatives. Interoperability across learning technologies is highlighted as an important objective. A quick glance shows overlapping industry and sector efforts that are trying to meld a shared vision of how to best support emerging transformative technologies that impact education and talent development.

This grid is a living document compiled to make sense of the initiatives, authors, sponsors, and objectives of participants who are trying to assemble best practices to specifications. Feedback is welcome. Please forward any thought or questions you have to David Moldoff at dmoldoff@academyone.com.

CLR LER ePortfolio ILR Academic Transcript
What it stands for? Comprehensive Learner Record Learner and Employment Records Electronic Portfolio Integrated Learner Record Learning History
Specification IMS T3 PESC and IMS have specifications IEEE PESC
In Association with AACRAO US Chamber of Commerce Institutions Governments and Agencies AACRAAO, Postsecondary and Higher Education Stakeholders
What is it? The CLR is storage facility of verifiable learning and employment records supporting all nature of academic and workplace recognition and achievements including courses, competencies and skills and employer-based achievements and milestones. The LER is a digital record of learning and work that can be linked to an individual and combined with other digital records for use in pursuing educational and employment opportunities. An LER can document learning wherever it occurs, including at the workplace or through an education experience, credentialing, or military training. It can also include information about employment history and earnings. The ePortfolio is a collection of work (evidence) in an electronic format that showcases learning over time. When you think about your ePortfolio and the types of evidence that it contains, it is important to think carefully about its purpose and intended audience. The ILR is the outcome of the IEEE study group formed to align numerous learner record initiatives based on the Total Learner Architecture (TLA) authored by the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) Initiative funded by the US DOD effort. A transactional based report collecting learning experiences sourced and curated by the academic institution attended by a learner.
Person Centric vs Institutional Centric Person Person Person Organization Institution
Primary Goal Verifiable Records Learner Self-Sovereign Control Documenting and Articulating Learner Accomplishments Interoperability to support manpower development Authoritative Record of Learning Maintained by Institutions
Owned by - Presumably, whoever establishes it and hosts it. Presumably, whoever establishes it and hosts it. Presumably the Institution as part of the academic experience Presumably Government Agency Institution
Hosted by - Government Agency perhaps, Association, Consortium, Vendor for some authority Anyone who wants to stand one up in concert with other organizations. Usually Institution, but can be a shared Consortium or Government Agency on behalf of Learners and Institutions Government Agency Institution – Vendor for the Institution
Can a Learner assert their own claims? Of learning, training, experiences, awards, badges, etc. No, records must be posted by authoritative sources No, records must be posted by authoritative sources Yes, records are assembled, with or without integration with SIS and LMS No, records must be posted by authoritative sources Yes, records can include learner assertions and validated by the faculty
Level P12+ P12+ K12, P16+ P20 K12 version, P16 version
What is Stored? Learning and Employment, Competencies, Skills, Jobs, Badges accumulated from many organizations, employers and educational providers Learning and Employment, Competencies, Skills, Jobs, Badges accumulated from many organizations, employers and educational providers Learning Activities, Outcomes, Assertions, Assessments, learning work product Learning and Employment, Competencies, Skills, Jobs, Badges accumulated from many organizations, employers and educational providers Instructional Activities in the form of Courses, Earned Credits, Mapped to Courses, Academic History recorded by the Institution
How do records get posted? Who curates? Approved organizations join a network sharing the CLR. By Authoritative Systems Learner, except for imports or references to external systems such as the SIS By Authoritative Systems Single institution Transcript. Not shared.
Shared Infrastructure Yes Yes, would presume so Yes Yes Most likely not
How are records certified and validated By the authoritative source posting the event or transaction By the authoritative source posting the event or transaction Learners request or Faculty Initiated by Academic Activities By Digital Access By the institution, college and department posting
Portfolio, enabling learner to control who sees what Yes, learner can share sections of their history – much like LinkedIN or an online Resume Yes, learner can share sections of their history – much like LinkedIN or an online Resume Yes No No, the institution maintains control to validate authenticity and security, learners can request their transcript be sent to them or employer
Trust Participating organizations must abide by rules posting and accessing the learner enforced by the technology. Participating organizations must abide by rules posting and accessing the learner enforced by the technology. Self contained storage center Authenticity linked to GOV sources The individual has an agreed relationship with the institution, FERPA logged. Registrar post records.
Governance Shared by whom? Private Association Institution Government Single Institution manages the transcript they store
Standards What gets posted could be limited by rules Developing Evolving: Institution maintains control over the format and content of the toolset, but the learner can export views and documents. developing Evolving: Institution maintains control over the format and content
Exchange Not as an artifact. It is a repository of events, outcomes, etc. that the learner can share – and the CLR is managed by a single platform. Not as an artifact. It is a shared ledger or repository. Wallet would make accessible to the shared ledger. No, access by permission through the Learner role and sharing artifacts from the Portfolio API specifications Yes, as a snapshot formatted
Analytics Have no idea how this would be supported across learners and institutions Have no idea how this would be supported across learners and institutions Yes, external views can summarize utilization Not clear Yes, external views can summarize utilization
Technologies Promoted Blockchain T3 Hub, Blockchain Proprietary Distributed, Event Driven XML, PDF, EDI