Accreditation and Recognition of Prior Learning in Higher Education

Abstract

The recognition of prior learning (RPL) can, and does, play an important role in the accreditation of higher institutional learning, thereby benefitting students, employers, and society. Using rigorous tools that permit learners to bring forward for assessment their experiential learning from various life experiences, RPL can contribute to a fuller and equally valid expression of learners’ knowledge than does traditional assessment. Additionally, RPL contributes to mitigating issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion in education by acknowledging and valuing a variety of learning opportunities. RPL also raises difficult epistemological issues and the question of knowledge ownership, thus making it a contentious and challenging academic concern This chapter reviews the process and pedagogy of RPL practice within the evolving context of accreditation, both at present and in the future, a future which includes innovations such as open educational practice, MOOCs, and micro-credentialling, all of which create opportunities for traditional modes of accreditation and assessment to re-examine their purpose and process.