Building Educator Capacity Through Microcredentials

This practical guide shows leaders how to implement and sustain a robust microcredentialing program in their school or district.

Teachers require rigorous professional learning that ensures mastery rather than simply marking time served. Microcredentials offer a competency-based approach to professional learning that can be tailored to individuals' context, needs, and interests. In this timely book, veteran educators and microcredentialing experts Eric M. Carbaugh, Laura McCullough, Meghan Raftery, and Ebbie Linaburg detail the characteristics of high-quality microcredentials. They explain how leaders can

* Set school and district goals for microcredentials.
* Select third-party microcredentials or design their own in-house.
* Implement a high-quality microcredentialing process.
* Structure and support microcredentialing at scale.

Building Educator Capacity Through Microcredentials demystifies microcredentialing and shows schools how to take advantage of this powerful approach to professional learning. Readers will acquire the information and tools to launch and scale an effective microcredentialing program that meets the professional learning needs of their staff and, by extension, improves the learning outcomes of their students.

Eric M. Carbaugh, PhD, is a full professor in the Department of Middle, Secondary, and Mathematics Education at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, where he instructs both undergraduate and graduate courses. As an educational consultant, he has worked with teachers and leaders at more than 100 schools and districts on a variety of topics related to curriculum, instruction, and assessment. He is a coauthor of Designing Authentic Performance Tasks and Projects and the quick reference guide Principles and Practices for Effective Blended Learning. He has teaching experience at both the elementary and secondary levels and serves as the journal editor and a board member for the Virginia ASCD chapter.

Laura McCullough, EdD, recently retired after serving nine years as executive director of ASCD's Virginia affiliate, where she was responsible for designing and overseeing a range of professional learning programs as well as outreach services such as innovation forums, VASCD's Profile of a Classroom, and a statewide network for new teachers. McCullough is active in policy and advocacy work, representing VASCD in the legislature and other policy arenas. She has taught at the elementary, middle, high school, and university levels, and has experience as an elementary principal and district administrator.

Meghan Raftery serves as the chief design officer of Edjacent, an educator design collaborative that provides resources for educators interested in leadership, collaboration, and entrepreneurship outside traditional K–12 school environments. As a freelance educator, Raftery also supports schools, businesses, and nonprofit organizations through curriculum design, innovation project management, and professional development. Raftery previously taught in elementary schools as a classroom teacher and gifted resource teacher and served as a curriculum coordinator and school/community partnerships coordinator.

Ebbie Linaburg retired after approximately 40 years in public education and continues to support education as a member of a local education foundation and as a board member of VASCD, where she currently serves as chair of the awards committee as well as collaborating on VASCD's microcredential initiative. During her career in public education, Linaburg taught secondary social studies and later had experience as an elementary assistant principal, a middle school principal, and the assistant supervisor for special education and student services. In the final years of her public education career, she served as assistant superintendent of instruction.