Colleges should invest in digital learning records, Education Dept. says

EDSCOOP

Emily Bamforth

June 4, 2021

The U.S. Education Department advised a digital learning record system could make it easier for students to re-enroll after the coronavirus pandemic or transfer between institutions, according to new guidance released Friday.

The document, the department’s latest iteration of COVID-19-era guidelines for higher education, cites digital-learning records as a tool for getting enrollment back up after the pandemic. That could include making it easier for students who dropped out of college during the pandemic to return or recruiting students who might need to get additional credentials to get a job. Through online learning records, multiple institutions would be able to easily access students’ learning histories.

“This ecosystem should be designed around the student with the goal of empowering them with ownership over their digital data and learning records, and control over how and with whom they are shared,” the guidance reads. “Records should be published in a format that facilitates interoperability and the translation of a student’s skills, competencies, and knowledge across different educational and workforce institutions.”

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