Plausible Utopias: the future of Open Recognition
Exploring the Evolution of Trust in Networks Over the Next Decade
Previously, we discussed working towards a manifesto for Open Recognition, an initiative which involves envisioning what we might call ‘plausible utopias’. This is work for and on behalf of the Open Recognition is for Everybody (ORE) Community, which is stewarded by WAO and sponsored by Participate.
In this post, we explore these plausible utopias over five-year and ten-year time horizons, bearing in mind the balance between institutional credentials and community-based recognition. It’s not a case of either/or but both-and. We need credentials from institutions to prove everything from our identity to our ability to perform at a high level. But we also need a way of giving and receiving recognition in ways that go beyond credentials. In short, we want to create a world that eliminates unfair hoops and hurdles that go along with systemic injustices and institutional bias. But read on for more specifics.
What is Open Recognition?
A quick reminder of what we mean by Open Recognition, from this post:
Open Recognition is the awareness and appreciation of talents, skills and aspirations in ways that go beyond credentialing. This includes recognising the rights of individuals, communities, and territories to apply their own labels and definitions. Their frameworks may be emergent and/or implicit.
Open Recognition by 2029: A Five-Year Outlook
Considering the significant interest and investment in skills-based hiring, it is likely to fully develop within the next five years. The progress of this trend is likely to be unevenly distributed; the USA, where the bulk of the funding is available, will no doubt lead the way.
Skills-based hiring is an approach to recruitment that prioritises a candidate’s skills and competencies over traditional credentials. This includes the actual abilities required to perform a job well, and is a combination of technical skills, ‘durable’ (aka ‘soft’) skills, and the ability to problem-solve. The idea is that it widens the talent pool, reduces bias inherent in the hiring process, and aligns candidates more closely with the needs of the job.
Going Beyond Work
While it can be useful to put people into categories and to match them to jobs, there is more to life than work. So while skills-based hiring is an important step into a plausible utopia for Open Recognition, let’s paint a broader and more holistic picture.
The definition of Open Recognition used above includes “recognising the rights of individuals, communities, and territories to apply their own labels and definitions.” We envisage a continuing focus on the right of self-determination of all people, including within online and offline networks. We also see a world in which peer recognition is valuable and honoured in hiring and acceptance processes. This means, where appropriate, badges for everything from knowledge within indigenous communities to recognition for the determined and resilient person who shows up for others, no matter what.
CVs and resumes will start to be replaced by digital portfolios which can be shown via mobile devices and shared with others via web links. Whereas CVs and resumes are claim-based, in that the person they represent claims to know or have done a thing, badges are evidence-based, as they provide evidence that the person can do something — or stands in a particular relationship to another individual or organisation. In addition, digital portfolios will begin to hold Verifiable Credentials, both those issued by governments or higher learning institutions, as well as VCs issued in communities and by peers.
Community learning is particularly well-placed to provide the recognition of talents which are so valuable in all aspects of society. People who participate in communities of practice develop all sorts of skills that often go unrecognised. For example, facilitation skills are useful not only in the world of work, but also in the contexts of family life, sports, and activism. Being able to quickly see what experience and abilities you have within a group of people can be particularly useful, especially in times of need.
Open Recognition in 2034: A Ten-Year Vision
The next decade could see significant shifts in how we approach education and professional development. There has long been talk about the ‘disruption’ of formal education systems which are (mistakenly) labelled as being fit only for the Industrial Revolution. While teachers do a great job in difficult circumstances, when looking a decade into the future, we can begin to imagine a world where educational journeys are bespoke, mapped out through different forms of recognition.
Some of this recognition may be through formal institutional credentials, gained as a result of summative assessment. In other words, you are still likely to get credentials for passing exams, but these will increasingly be digital.
Innovations in Recognition
But there are more ways to prove that you know or can do a thing than through high-stakes examinations. One of our favourite ways of using badges for Open Recognition includes pledging for a badge and then working towards it. Another is self-issuing badges for skills you have taught yourself, and then asking others to endorse those badges. Other approaches include mentorship, participation in community events, and interest-based badges — for example with creative pursuits.
We expect some strides to be made towards the automation of what is often called APL (Assessing Prior Learning) or RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning). While it will still be useful to keep a human in the loop, AI technology is advancing to help us use Rich Skills Descriptors (RSDs) to help with misunderstandings around semantics.
Take volunteering, something which is sadly on the decline in the western world. There are many different ways to donate your skills to groups or organisations that need help. With a little help from technology, it will be normal to be matched with opportunities based on the recognition you have received in the form of badges.
In ten years time, the digital portfolios of credentials, badges and other pieces of recognition will be commonplace. They will be built on top of open technology, like open source wallets, and using W3C standards. The best way to ensure that the ecosystem around Open Recognition flourishes in the future is to build it in the open.
Trusting Recognition
Both the short term and long term vision described here relies on the evolution of trust within our networks. Luckily, for over a decade, technologists have been working on standards and methods to help people verify their skills through both claims and evidence. Hundreds of millions of digital credentials based on standards-compliant technologies are issued every year. We are no longer working on spreading awareness of what digital credentialing is or could look like.
Years ago, we needed to get people to accept the idea of digital credentials as a plausible alternative to physical credentials. What we need now is an ecosystem that places value not only on the reputation of the issuer, but the story the earner wants to tell about themselves. Because this ecosystem is built on open standards and increasingly on top of open technologies, we are building trust into digital credentialing writ large.
Conclusion
None of this vision is free, cheap or easy. In fact, it’s taken over a decade and millions invested into wide reaching projects and problem spaces. When you’re building an alternative to a system that was built before the invention of the World Wide Web, it can take some time to convince people that a different way is possible. Open Badges, Verifiable Credentials and the people who build and make the projects and ecosystem around these technologies need support to continue advancing a system that is designed to level the playing field for everyday learners and earners.
If you’re looking to enhance your professional development programme or educational initiative through Open Recognition, get in touch with We Are Open Co-op — we’re here to help!
