SUMMER ENDORSEMENTS FOR TEACHERS START MAY 13th!

Expand your opportunities. Advance your career. Get SET this summer with summer endorsements for teachers.

Arrow

Credit Where It’s Due: Prior Learning Assessment Counts Previous Learning Toward Degree Completion

Published: April 13, 2021

When Assistant Professor of Organizational Leadership Mark Thomas began a training program in prior learning assessment (PLA) last January, he expected to bolster his PLA abilities. He didnt realize the true breadth of skills he would gain.

I have had about a hundred opportunities to utilize what I learned, Mark says.

The program, provided by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), strengthened Marks ability to assess students pursuing degree completion for prior learning experiences that might count for credit in their degree completion journeys. But, he says, it also brought unexpected benefits:

1. Assisting students with unique needs. PLA course material inspired Mark to create different assessment methods for an online student with a learning disability. Although this task wasnt PLA-related, the PLA training helped him generate ideas.

2. Measuring student knowledge thoroughly. Rather than assess whether students demonstrate college-level learning in the abstract, Mark can now equate what theyve learned to specific courses and expected outcomes for those courses. Its a much more precise way to measure what students have already learned.

3. Heightened ability to spot PLA credit opportunities in a students background. Thanks to his training on interviewing students and directing student self-reflections, Mark now captures a more holistic view of their backgrounds and identifies prior learning that a surface-level interview sometimes overlooks.

4. Improving the PLA program. Mark drew from his training as he revamped the Universitys current PLA plan. His suggested revisions will hopefully be approved this academic year.

Marks new and improved skill set came just in time. He reports that inquiries about PLA credits are increasing among students looking to finish their degree. His observations follow new research that links students with prior learning credit to higher degree completion rates.

Related Articles

Back to School Just a Little Later in Life: Five Keys to Making It Work

Organizational Leadership Program Online at Greenville University

Growing a Business by Degrees

Ready for your next steps?