Tuesday, 5 August 2025
3:00 pm PDT / 6:00 pm EDT
(Wednesday, 6 August – 8:00 AM AEST)
Duration: 60 Minutes
Where: Online via ZOOM
Watch on-demand the webinar co-hosted by Edalex, Education Design Lab and Unicon Inc. where the panelists explore how XCredit created an interoperable ecosystem that validates skills and connects learners to careers.
Watch the Recording:
- 2:44 – The Why of the XCredit Ecosystem
- 5:03 – The How of the XCredit Process
- 12:23 – The Technology behind the XCredit Interopability
- 22:36 – Real Stories of the XCredit Participants
- 33:05 – Reflection of the XCredit So Far
- 37:48 – Q&A
ABOUT THE SESSION
Imagine a world where every skill you acquire, through any experience, is recognised and seamlessly connects you to career opportunities. The Education Design Lab (the Lab), in close collaboration with Edalex, SmartResume, and Unicon, is making this vision a reality with the XCredit initiative.
The panelists take you on their journey of building an interoperable ecosystem that empowers learners by validating their skills and making them visible to employers. We’ll dedicate roughly half of our time to exploring the human-centered design and the other half to the intricate technical infrastructure that underpins this innovative solution.
What the webinar covered:
- The “Why” (Human Focus): Understand the Lab’s mission to validate existing skills and empower learners in the talent marketplace. Hear about the challenges faced by individuals whose skills aren’t always recognised by traditional credentials.
- The “How” (Human Focus): Discover the practical steps taken to establish an ecosystem where learners can take assessments, earn credentials and showcase their verified abilities on platforms like SmartResume.
- The Technology Behind the Magic (Technical Focus): Learn about the critical role of data interoperability and how Edalex’s Credentialate acts as the central nervous system, connecting various technologies to ensure a smooth learner experience and verifiable skill data.
- Lessons from the Field (Both Human & Technical): Gain valuable insights into the obstacles overcome, the successes achieved, and the key learnings from building this complex, multi-partner system.
- Real Learner Stories (Human Focus): Hear how individuals are leveraging the XCredit ecosystem to advance their careers and gain recognition for their diverse skills.
- Answers to Your Questions: The panel will address questions posed by attendees. You can submit questions ahead of the webinar via email (further details in the confirmation email, sent after registering).
Panelists:
- Tara Laughlin, EdD – Director, Skills Development + Validation, Education Design Lab
- Mary Gwozdz – Software Architect, Unicon, Inc.
- Margo Griffith – Principal Skills Consultant, Edalex
- Dan McFadyen (Moderator) – Managing Director, Edalex
Recognised for Innovation:
The impactful work of the XCredit project has been recognised as a finalist in the prestigious Learning Impact Awards, awarded by 1EdTech.
Read the Press Release here: https://vxx8dbpd1q0.c.updraftclone.com/news/edl-xcredit-powered-by-credentialate-2025-learning-impact-awards/
Learn More:
Read the Use Case here: https://vxx8dbpd1q0.c.updraftclone.com/credentialate/use-cases/first-stackable-end-to-end-credentialing-integration-for-xcredit/
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Dr. Tara Laughlin – EdD Dr. Tara Laughlin is a leader in competency-based education, skills validation, and digital credentialing. As Director of Skills Development & Validation for Education Design Lab, she leads the Center for Skills Validation and drives strategy for scalable, human-centered approaches to make durable skills visible and valued. Tara brings over 15 years of cross-sector experience spanning K-12, higher education, workforce development, and edtech. Her strengths lie in taking a human-centered approach to micro-credentialing, learning experience design, and the use of authentic assessment and performance data to promote learner agency and economic mobility. She holds a Doctorate in Curriculum and Innovation and regularly contributes to national conversations through publications, conference presentations, and cross-sector partnerships advancing the future of learning, work, and equitable opportunity. |
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Mary Gwozdz Mary Gwozdz is a Software Architect at Unicon, where she has been making an impact since 2017. She has designed and developed software solutions for clients such as California Community Colleges, Cisco Networking Academy, Lumen Learning, and major publishers. She has also worked on SIS integrations with Instructure products like Canvas. Mary is passionate about breaking the paper ceiling for STARS (Skilled Through Alternative Routes) and has provided data modeling and architectural guidance for organizations embracing competency-based education using standards like OB/CLR and LER-RS. She specializes in integration architectures, particularly the LTI specification from 1EdTech, and is proficient in Java Spring Boot REST web services, React JavaScript, AWS architecture, and other 1EdTech standards such as Common Cartridge and OneRoster. Mary actively participates in 1EdTech community workgroups for LTI, Edu-API, and OpenBadges/Comprehensive Learner Record. |
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Dan McFadyen For the past 20+ years, Dan has focused on enabling innovation in education powered by educational technology and long-term partnerships with educational institutions. This passion fuelled varied roles from a start-up developing the CODiE award-winning EQUELLA software to global educational powerhouses Blackboard and Pearson. Since 2016 Dan has served as the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Edalex, tackling skills- and employability-related challenges by supporting the definition, development and recognition of skills through education. On a personal level, as a dual American-Australian citizen, he struggles daily with the conflict between raising his two children on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, or vegemite. |
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Margo Griffith Margo’s in-depth knowledge and experience of skills, the skills ecosystem and digital credentials is the result of working in and with higher education providers and edtech leaders, nationally and internationally for 30+ years. She is passionate about the positive impact of technology within education and the enablement of lifelong learning, learner agency and mobility. Margo is a convenor of the Australian micro credentials Network and consults with Government, industry and education sectors around a skills first approach to learning and workforce. Her recent publications include “Creating the University of the Future: A Global View on Future Skills and Future Higher Education” (Contributor) (Springer 2024) and “Technology Enablement of the Skills Ecosystem” Naomi Rose Boyer and Margo Leanne Griffith (International Journal of Information and Learning Technology ISSN: 2056-4880, 2023). |
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