Digital Credentials and Microlearning: Alternative Pathways to Mastery in Business Skills
Dr. Corrine Sweet
Keywords:
digital credentials, microlearning, alternative education, business skills, badges, lifelong learning, skill-based hiring, competency development, personalized learning, business education.Abstract
In this article, Dr. Corrine Sweet explores how digital credentials and microlearning are transforming the development and validation of business skills in both professional and educational settings. As traditional degrees often fall short in addressing rapidly evolving workplace demands, microlearning offers flexible, focused, and accessible training through short, objective-driven modules. When paired with digital credentials—such as badges and micro-credentials—learners gain tangible, verifiable recognition of specific competencies. The article highlights successful implementations like IBM SkillsBuild and Google Skillshop, and discusses their increasing role in business classrooms to supplement instruction, personalize learning, and align with industry needs. Sweet underscores how these innovations can promote lifelong learning, facilitate skills-based hiring, and close the gap between academia and workforce expectations. Despite their promise, challenges such as standardization, access, and employer acceptance remain. Nonetheless, these learner-centered, skill-focused approaches offer alternative, adaptive pathways to mastery in the modern business landscape.
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