Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Cengage Partners with Accredible to Offer Digital Badging in Intro to Computing Courses

Through a partnership with digital credentialing platform Accredible, Cengage is making it easier for students in its Introduction to Computing courses to showcase workforce skills to potential employers. Students using Cengage's MindTap online learning platform will be able to earn achievement badges for competencies that demonstrate proficiency in Microsoft Office 365, the company explained in a news announcement. The badges can then be added to a student's digital résumé, online portfolio, or LinkedIn profile.

Accredible's badging software adheres to 1EdTech's Open Badges v2 standard, ensuring that the badges are verifiable and shareable across platforms. Each badge indicates "milestone achievement" for a specific Microsoft application, such as Word or PowerPoint. The badges will be available in all Cengage Introduction to Computing programs beginning with fall 2023 classes.

"The workforce skills gap is a serious issue that affects organizations in every industry," commented Cheryl Costantini, SVP for Academic Product at Cengage, in a statement. "One way to proactively address the issue is to allow students to master universally adaptable skills, like Microsoft Office 365, before they enter the workforce. Students want to know that the skills they're acquiring will result in employment, and employers want to know that they're hiring the most qualified candidates. Our partnership with Accredible accomplishes this goal, building skilled candidate pipelines that fill a serious need."

For more information, visit the Cengage site.

About the Author

Rhea Kelly is editor in chief for Campus Technology, THE Journal, and Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • CIS Sandbox Tutor Eli Blouin at Bentley University imagines a future technology learning partner that supports curiosity, critical thinking, feedback, and personalized learning.

    Student Voices: Technology as a Future Learning Partner

    A data analytics and marketing major at Bentley University and a distinguished lecturer at the university explore the future of "technology learning partners" — technologies that participate in the learning process by asking questions and giving feedback, not just information search results.

  • lock symbol with quantum bits in dynamic motion

    Microsoft Accelerates Focus on Quantum-Safe Security

    Microsoft is speeding up its quantum-safe security timeline, saying advances in quantum computing and new federal requirements have pushed post-quantum cryptography from a future planning issue into an immediate engineering priority.

  • interconnected nodes with currency symbols

    Gartner: Half of Gen AI Projects Could Exceed Budget by 2028

    Organizations may be underestimating the actual cost of generative AI as they move from experimentation to production, according to Gartner's "10 Best Practices for Optimizing Generative and Agentic AI Costs" report.

  • robot hand holding stacks of coins

    Designing AI Systems for Financial Aid

    Financial aid offices have been slow to adopt AI, risking technological stagnation at a critical early student touchpoint. Systematic AI integration can improve student experiences and strengthen institutional positioning.