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A European approach to micro-credentials. Output of the Micro-credentials higher education consultation group : final report


Auteur(s) :  Andersen, Tine ; Shapiro Futures, Hanne ; Nedergaard Larsen, Kristine

Editeur(s) :  European Commission (EC) - Network of Experts in Social Sciences of Education and Training (NESET)

Date :  02/2021

 

Increasingly rapid advances in technology and the labour market require graduates and professionals in the workforce to be familiar with state-of-the-art knowledge, and to possess the skills and competences needed to make full use of technological and non-technological know-how. Content-laden degrees are not always effective for adult learners in today’s fastpaced environment and employees also need ‘just-in-time’ skills development that is immediately applicable. This trend is likely to accelerate with the economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A European approach to micro-credentials will increase personalised learning opportunities for all. It will help widen learning opportunities and strengthen the role of higher education and vocational education and training (VET) institutions in promoting lifelong learning by providing more flexible and modular learning opportunities. While it requires a change in mindsets, culture and structures, it also opens up new opportunities for the higher education sector.

Micro-credentials are useful not only for professionals, but can also complement the curriculum for students at bachelor, master and doctoral levels. A growing number of adults, with or without a higher education degree, will need to reskill and upskill through more flexible alternatives than a full degree in order to overcome the gap between the learning outcomes of their initial formal qualifications and emerging skills needs in the labour market. The need for more flexible and inclusive learning paths will increase as the student population is becoming more diverse and the learning needs more dynamic.

While a growing number of higher education institutions, including those involved in the Erasmus+ European Universities initiative, are already working on the development of these microcredentials, a common definition and a common approach on their validation and recognition is lacking (Commission, 2019a). In this context, the Commission aims at filling this gap by presenting a proposal for a Council Recommendation in 2021 to build trust in micro-credentials across Europe and aims at having all the necessary steps in place by 2025 for their wider use, portability and recognition (Commission, 2020c).

This report (pdf, 37 p.) was finalised in December 2020 and prepared by Hanne Shapiro Futures, Tine Andersen and Kristine Nedergaard Larsen under contract No 1000245 (awarded under Framework Contract EAC 02-2019), led by the Danish Technological Institute.

Pour compléter,

- un document de 20 p. (en anglais) rassemble les principaux résultats de ce projet.

- l'étude analytique qui a précédé le rapport final, réalisée par le réseau d'experts NESET, est également disponible dans le catalogue des publications de l'Union Européenne, téléchargeable sous le titre Towards a European approach to micro credentials. A study of practices and commonalities in offering micro-credentials in European higher education : analytical report (pdf, 124 p. - et son résumé en français de 16 p.)

- des réflexions convergentes sont menées par l'EUA qui a publié en septembre 2020 un rapport intitulé Micro-credentials linked to the Bologna Key Commitments (pdf, 63 p.), préparé dans le cadre du projet MICROBOL.



Télécharger le document :  https://op.europa.eu/.../7a939850-6c18-11eb-aeb5-01aa75ed71a1


mot(s) clé(s) :  diplôme et certification, enseignement supérieur