Since the formalization of public education well over 100 years ago, as a society we have tended to only validate the learning that happens in classrooms during the school day over a course of 180 school days per year. In more recent decades, we’ve limited even further to learning that aligns with curricular standards. The fact is that learning is not, and never has been, bounded by the classroom, clock, calendar, and curriculum. We all — children and adults — are learning 24/7, 365 days per year. It’s in our human nature.

While philosophically most/all educators and citizens may agree with the above statement, young people continue to be judged almost exclusively by their academic record, which reflects only the learning that happens within those boundaries. Why is that? How can we change it? Why must we? Allow me to make the case.

As each of us reflects on our formative years, what lessons do we value most? What kind of learning was most impactful? Perhaps some happened in classroom settings, but other powerful lessons may have taken place in extracurricular activities (sports, the arts, debate, volunteerism), work experiences, after school and summer programs, family vacations, in a backyard clubhouse, a household project with a parent/relative, or an interpersonal conflict. 

As more and more school districts across the state and country engage their community members to create a “Portrait of a Graduate”, they identify and articulate the durable skills that matter most for future success — i.e., being a self-directed lifelong learner, a culturally competent and globally aware citizen, an effective communicator and collaborator, a critical and creative thinker, multilingual, adaptable, resilient, responsible, empathetic, curious, etc. These competencies, skills, and mindsets may be practiced and demonstrated within the confines of the classroom, school day and school year, but certainly not exclusively so.

As school districts seek ways to capture student demonstration of these competencies, it is in our best interest to broaden the pool of youth-serving adults — coaches, after school providers, camp staff, workplace supervisors, volunteer coordinators, faith-based youth group leaders, scout masters, arts instructors, and yes, family, friends, and neighbors — who may have a viable role in witnessing and reporting powerful demonstration of learning. 

We tend to think of teachers as the only legitimate “certifiers of learning”. We can probably agree that it is appropriate for a math teacher to certify math competence, and an English teacher to certify writing skills or improved fluency of an English learner. However, as we think about a broader set of competencies that define student readiness for future success, there are ways to be more expansive and incorporate input from a broader pool of adults, even peers. A coach or mentor may be a better judge of resilience or collaboration. A youth-group leader may better assess capacity for empathy or curiosity.

Broadening the pool of “certifiers of learning” also is a matter of equity. Unfortunately, in our communities, there continue to be a percentage of students who simply do not feel a sense of belonging and safety in our schools, perhaps because of bullying, language barriers, or identity issues. In these cases, even if students attend school regularly, they often remain quiet, on the periphery, reluctant to engage for fear of mockery or retribution. Many of those students may more easily show up as their authentic selves at a local cultural center, in a faith-based youth group, in a family business, or at a workplace. Often, these spaces become more impactful learning environments. Somehow, we must find a way to capture the rich learning that students experience in these settings and incorporate them into the official student learning record. Only when we do so will we honor, value, and officially recognize the range of learning opportunities that students experience in their diverse lives.

What would enable us to do so? Here are several ideas:

  • ADULT ROLES. Schools should officially acknowledge, value, and validate the critical role that youth-serving adults (beyond the teacher ranks) have always and continue to offer our children by formalizing their status within our learning ecosystem.
  • STUDENT PORTFOLIOS. Schools and districts should support learners to curate examples and reflect on their growth as a learner, using portfolios to demonstrate competency of both academic and durable skills captured from both in- and out-of-school learning experiences. 
  • ED TECH. Educational technology platforms (i.e., learning management systems, or LMS) must adapt to grant access beyond the typical limited users (student, teacher, parent), if not directly, then at least indirectly giving other youth-serving adults a chance to input information for approval by an authorized user.
  • STUDENT TRANSCRIPTS. Student transcripts — which I’ve referred to as the “currency of education” — must evolve to capture the demonstration of durable skills that are essential for future success in college, career, and life. (See examples from Mastery Transcript Consortium and the International Big Picture Learning Credential).
  • DIGITAL BADGES. Issue digital badges or microcredentials to students for their demonstration of durable skills, and assure that they can be used as portable credentials valued by local employers, colleges, military recruiters and others.
  • ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEMS. Modify state accountability systems to reflect the diversity of learning environments and the resulting demonstration of skills and competencies.

These are not new conversations, but our existing educational infrastructure and bureaucracy tend to hinder our ability to move beyond legacy thinking and traditional ways of capturing student learning. Students know that our current system is not meeting their needs; they are voting with their feet, leading to chronic absenteeism. Families also are flocking to home schooling, microschools, voucher programs, and other alternatives that may better provide flexible options for their children. If we continue to clutch onto the familiar functions of schools, the system as we know it will continue to unravel, perhaps even become obsolete. It’s time to adapt and adjust to the needs of our students, families, communities, and economy.