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Why blockchain could mean fewer hassles for students and workers proving their credentials

Why blockchain could mean fewer hassles for students and workers proving their credentials

This article was originally published at: theconversation.com

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Microcredentials — attestations of proficiency in a specific skill or knowledge base that are certified by an authority — can provide evidence of a person’s skills to employers.

While microcredentials are becoming more popular, the concept is hardly new: A driver’s licence or the St. John Ambulance certificate could be considered as microcredentials, attesting respectively to a person’s driving skill or their competency in administering first aid.

Blockchain technology is appropriate for microcredential implementation. Blockchain can best be described as a digital ledger that records information that can be shared among a community of users. Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies are the best-known examples of blockchain, but blockchain has uses beyond financial transactions.

Student records stored in blockchain for security limit access only to legitimate users, such as institutional administrators and potential employers selected by students or job seekers. Traditionally, institutions own and control certifications like degrees, but that could shift with “digital degrees” and microcredentials that rely on blockchain.

Verifying accomplishments

Besides providing effective security and privacy for users, blockchain can also facilitate the maintenance and dissemination of the credentials, while ensuring that access is readily available for students under their control.

Because of its immutability, blockchain can be used to attest to and verify students’ accomplishments. This is important for students seeking to have their credits recognized whether because they are studying to obtain new professional accreditation, studying in multiple institutions or because they are moving for study or employment.

Blockchain is distributed, meaning that multiple copies of the same information are stored on different computers. So, blockchain is not controlled by any central authority and the “blocks” in the “chain,” linked chronologically, are shared in a P2P (peer-to-peer) network, which can be accessed from any node or point on the network.

These blocks are immutable, as any change to the original leaves the first iteration intact and accessible.

When students or job seekers want to have credits transferred between institutions, gatekeepers — for example, post-secondary institutions or employers — typically insist on receiving copies of diplomas and degrees directly from each institution. As more students gain credentials from multiple institutions, this process becomes increasingly untenable.

Students need to control this process and blockchain can provide a solution.

Securely validates learning

In 2019, McMaster University announced it was awarding “digital degrees” using blockchain to Faculty of Engineering students after the university implemented microcredentials using blockchain to securely validate students’ learning.

Some post-secondary institutions are implementing pilot projects with eCampus Ontario and industry partners to award microcredentials using blockchain.

Microcredentials are now offered by post-secondary institutions, sometimes in partnership with corporations to target labour market needs. These may come in the form of “digital badges.” Digital badges are easily verifiable testaments to when, where and how skills have been mastered. Meta data in digital badges allows viewers to click on the badge to learn things like criteria for earning the badge, the date it was issued or when it expires.

Maintaining privacy of data

Certification by blockchain begins when a trusted institution issues the microcredential and creates a blockchain. The student then sends a public key password to the institution, requesting a transcript be sent to a potential employer.

The institution then adds a block onto the blockchain and sends the micro-credential, which is verified and forwarded to the potential employer. The learners can keep private keys to their credentials in an offline digital wallet.

Maintaining the privacy of the data is essential. With blockchain, the ownership of the microcredential rests with the individual, not the institution.

Blockchain supports more control for students and has the capability of further democratizing education. It empowers students to maintain control of their now-secure credentials and allows them to be confident their acquired skills and knowledge will be valued.

Potential concerns

However, there are some ethical and logistical concerns. Right now, when a person seeks to transfer credits through traditional channels, they can choose which documents or certifications to share with employers: mistakes, or aspects of one’s past credentials and experience deemed less salient or undesirable can be addressed or ignored.

But blockchain is immutable and this immutability can cause its own problems when mistakes cannot be erased.


Read more: Protecting the ‘right to be forgotten’ in the age of blockchain


Students cannot omit blocks from the chain that they do not feel are appropriate or that could damage their reputation. So, how can they create different narratives for diverse purposes or highlight and/or hide different experiences? What happens if someone wants or needs to start anew? Is there a right to forget?

What if a student loses their keyThe New York Times reports that lost passwords have locked millionaires out of their bitcoin fortunes. Will students and workers fare any better when it comes to academic and professional records? Who will respond to these problems within institutions?

These are questions post-secondary institutions and our society at large will increasingly need to navigate.

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Blockchain is a key technology – a computer scientist explains why the post-crypto-crash future is bright

Blockchain is a key technology – a computer scientist explains why the post-crypto-crash future is bright

This article was originally published at: theconversation.com

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People hear a lot about blockchain technology in relation to cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, which rely on blockchain systems to keep records of financial transactions between people and businesses. But a crash in public trust in cryptocurrencies like TerraUSD – and therefore a massive drop in their market value – doesn’t mean their underlying technology is also worthless.

In fact, there are plenty of other uses for this type of system, which does not rely on centralized storage and where many people can participate securely, even if they don’t all know each other.

As a computer scientist exploring new technologies for future smart communication network technologies, I, along with many engineers and developers, have shown that blockchain technology is a promising solution to many challenging problems in trust and security of next-generation network-based applications. I see several ways blockchains are proving themselves useful that aren’t tied to cryptocurrency.

Supply chains

Modern global supply chains require a huge amount of information for the massive number of products being shipped around the world. They suffer from limits on data storage capacity, inefficient paper processes, disjointed data systems and incompatible data formats. These traditional centralized data storage methods cannot efficiently trace the origin of problems, like where a poor-quality product came from.

Storing information on a blockchain improves integrity, accountability and traceability. For example, IBM’s Food Trust uses a blockchain system to track food items from the field to retailers. The participants in the food supply chain record transactions in the shared blockchain, which simplifies keeping track.

Health care

Data ownership and privacy are top concerns in the health care industry. Current centralized systems cannot meet all the diverse needs of patients, health service providers, insurance companies and governmental agencies. Blockchain technology enables a decentralized system for access control of medical records where all stakeholders’ interests are protected.

Blockchain systems not only allow health care service providers to securely share patients’ medical records but also enable patients to track who has accessed their records and determine who is authorized to do so.

Banking and finance

Banking and finance benefit from integrating blockchain networks into their business operations. Instead of trying to develop cryptocurrencies with new or different capabilities, the financial sector has recognized that blockchain systems are a reliable way to store information about traditional currencies like the dollar, euro and yen, as well as financial products.

Blockchains provide consumers with the convenience of being able to monitor their transactions as they are processed, almost in real time from anywhere. Banks also benefit from blockchains, with the opportunity to conduct business between institutions more efficiently and securely.

Property records

Today’s manual process of recording property rights is burdensome and inefficient. Traditional paper documentation is time-consuming, labor intensive, not transparent and vulnerable to loss. Blockchain technology eliminates inconvenience, inefficiency and errors, and reduces the cost by migrating the entire process into a digital form.

Blockchain systems allow owners to trust that their deed is accurate and permanently recorded. Remote access is particularly meaningful to people living in areas without sufficient governmental or financial infrastructure.

Voting

Validating votes and maintaining voter privacy seem like conflicting requirements. Blockchain systems hold promise as a means to facilitate a fair and transparent modern voting system. Because it’s almost impossible to tamper with a blockchain-enabled voting system, it can maintain a transparent electoral process.

In the November 2018 midterm elections in West Virginia, a blockchain-based voting system was used and found to be secure and reliable.

Smart cities

A smart city embeds information and communication technologies into its facilities, infrastructure and services to provide its residents a convenient, intelligent and comfortable living space. A smart city is essentially a network of many devices that can communicate with each other to share data. Connected devices can include people’s smartphones, vehicles, electrical meters, public safety monitoring systems and even homes.

These systems have performance, security and privacy requirements that centralized information systems cannot handle. Blockchain is a key networking technology for building smart cities because it’s able to optimize operations, enhance security guarantees and increase mutual trust among participants.

The future of information technology is all about decentralization. Today’s centralized architecture fails to meet the increasingly diverse needs of people who want freedom to personalize their own services, control their digital assets and more easily participate in democratic processes. Blockchain is a key enabling technology for building any secure and durable decentralized information system.

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