To truly assess a student’s readiness to advance in college and/or career, the American education system must evolve to measure, record and report every student’s mastery of well-defined core competencies, including both subject-matter content knowledge and other competencies, such as critical thinking, collaboration and communications. 

In this white paper, we propose a next-generation badging approach for measuring, recording, and reporting student learning. With a focus on evaluating mastery of competencies, this next- generation badging approach supports meaningful advances in the personalization of learning for all students.

A strategy of assessing K-12 student learning based on badging of explicitly stated competencies will provide colleges and employers with a clearer and more complete picture of a student’s knowledge, skills and preparation.