A MATTER OF TRUST: Now that the college credentialing process, which for long has been what Stanford prof Mitchell Stevens described as a "gentleman's agreement among government, schools and accreditation agencies," is under intense scrutiny, how can online learning platforms offer a more viable, transparent solution? These were the issues discussed by John Katzman (Noodle Education, 2U) , Richard Arum (NYU prof of sociology), Emily Goligoski (Mozilla Foundation), and Therese Cannon (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) at a recent Education's Digital Future forum at Stanford (an initiative of its Graduate School of Education). In the face of rising doubts rise over whether traditional credit hours actually reflect the work put in (or more realistically, last-minute cramming), the panelists weighted the pros and cons of alternative measures such as badges. "All learning doesn't merit college credit," says Cannon, as even digital badging system still relies on some good faith. Check out The Stanford Report's coverage of the evening.
