PORTFOLIO EVALUTION TOOL HELPS VETERANS GET THEIR DEGREES
Military Experience May Be Worth College Credit at www.LearningCounts.org
Veterans interested in completing their degree will be interested to know about a new program that translates work experience, including their military service, into college credit and should visit www.learningcounts.org, Pamela Tate, CEO and president of the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) announced today. The program assists adults with their educational endeavors, finding practical ways to transfer prior professional experience and skills learned outside the classroom to college course credit to help them complete their degrees.
Tate, in speaking before a group in Washington, DC, on the 69th anniversary of D-Day, noted that student veterans tend to be mission and project oriented, can be relied upon to complete tasks, and are able to manage time toward task completion – all qualities desirable for employers. “But our nation’s veterans need career and educational guidance—to translate military experience into civilian jobs and college-level learning, to navigate postsecondary education and most importantly, to obtain recognition of their military learning for credit,” she added.
Veterans face challenges after leaving their branch of service. There is, for example, only limited information on career pathways in different industries. College-level learning while in the military is not always recognized for college credit, especially if it not part of formal training. Veterans need to find practical ways to transfer their prior professional experience and skills learned outside the classroom or training program to college course credit to help them complete their degrees.
Tate noted that there are several approaches to utilizing “prior learning assessment” to earn college credit, but that learning portfolios offered by CAEL, through its LearningCounts program, are based on course objectives and subject matter expertise.
In discussing the program Tate said, “Adults know their knowledge comes from more than just a course, a classroom or a lecture, and we know it too. CAEL has developed a system that evaluates learning experiences including employment, military service, volunteer activities or participation in massive online open courses (MOOCs) which is then documented and assessed in a learning portfolio.”
The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) is a nonprofit 501(c) (3) organization based in Chicago, Illinois that assists adults with their educational endeavors, finding practical ways to transfer prior professional experiences and skills learned outside the classroom to college course credit and the completion of a postsecondary degree.
LearningCounts.org is managed by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), and operates with support from Lumina Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, the State Street Foundation, the Houston Endowment, USA Funds, and Brown Foundation. The Walmart Foundation is also providing support and funding scholarships for eligible users of LearningCounts.org.
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