BadgeTour VET Micro-credentialing in the tourism sector

Digital media has created unprecedented opportunities for communication, interaction, and learning in non-formal and informal environments. Digital badges serve as evidence of “an accomplishment, skill, quality, or interest that can be earned in a variety of learning environments.” In the field of education, badges are becoming a recognized way to identify and acknowledge smaller units of competence, micro-credentials, which may be related to specific parts of an educational program.

Oulu University of Applied Sciences, School of Professional Teacher Education (Amok), is involved in the project to develop guidelines for micro-credentials (Result 1) and provide supplementary training on the use of micro-credentials (Results 2 and 3) for vocational educators and leaders in the tourism sector.

BadgeTour – Micro-Credentials in Vocational Education in the Tourism Sector is an Erasmus+ project aimed at enhancing the readiness and skills of vocational education leaders and trainers in recognizing competence and certifying the learning process in the tourism sector.

The project aims to create a collection of various tools and materials to ensure that vocational education leaders and trainers have the capacity to recognize competence and certify the learning process in the tourism sector using micro-credentials. The project also plans and implements supplementary training on micro-credentials and badges.

The project aligns with the European Commission’s 2020 “European Skills Agenda,” aiming to develop a common approach to ensure the quality of earned micro-credentials, cross-border comparability, recognition of competence through badges, and transferability of knowledge.

1. BadgeTour Guidelines for Creating Micro-Credentials in the Tourism SectorThe guidelines are a collection of recommendations designed to guide vocational educators and leaders in creating and using badges, considering various criteria and frameworks (e.g., EQF, ECVET). The recommendations provide key information about badges and the actions and roles related to the badge process.
2. BadgeTour ToolsBadgeTour tools consist of open learning materials for vocational educators and leaders regarding the creation and utilization of micro-credentials in validating learning processes. Vocational education leaders and trainers can enhance their skills and abilities in recognizing competence and certifying the learning process in the tourism sector. The tools consist of five course modules integrated into the BadgeTour training path, enabling continuous competence development in the tourism sector.
3. BadgeTour Training PathThe project implements training for vocational educators and leaders on a European level regarding the use of micro-credentials. Participants in the training will be able to design and award badges recognized by employers, educational organizations, and society as a whole in the tourism sector. The training addresses the need to develop micro-credential-level learning opportunities and competence recognition in the tourism sector. The training helps understand the technical aspects behind badges and the broader micro-credentials ecosystem in educational organizations.

In the first project objective, BadgeTour Guidelines for Creating Micro-Credentials in the Tourism Sector, Amok is responsible. Amok is a pioneer in competence-based education and a recognized international developer of digital badges and badge-driven learning. The guideline manual is being created by Amok lecturers Lotta Pakanen and Minna Sandberg and will be published soon.

For the second project objective, BadgeTour Tools, Amok is responsible for a course module. This module helps educators and leaders in the tourism sector understand the purposes of badges and the criteria for competence-based assessment.

In the third project objective, BadgeTour Training Path, the tools are integrated into a comprehensive training for vocational educators and leaders in the tourism sector. The project partners will pilot the supplementary training at Oamk’s Linnanmaa campus in May 2023. The pilot will include vocational educators and supervisors from the tourism sector in each partner country.

BadgeTour is a European Erasmus+ project, and the collaboration partners are: Training 2000 (Coordinator – Italy), Oulu University of Applied Sciences, SBTC Consulting (Turkey), Mindshift Talent Advisory (Portugal), INFODEF – Institute for the Promotion of Development and Training (Spain), and the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI).