The Blockchain and Kudos: A Distributed System for Educational Record, Reputation and Reward

Abstract

Abstract. The 'blockchain' is the core mechanism for the Bitcoin digital payment system. It embraces a set of inter-related technologies: the blockchain itself as a distributed record of digital events, the distributed consensus method to agree whether a new block is legitimate, automated smart contracts, and the data structure associated with each block. We propose a permanent distributed record of intellectual effort and associated reputational reward, based on the blockchain that instantiates and democratises educational reputation beyond the academic community. We are undertaking initial trials of a private blockchain or storing educational records, drawing also on our previous research into reputation management for educational systems.

Exploring blockchain technology and its potential applications for education

“…The first three stages use the verification mechanism of Proof of Work, and the fourth stage uses Proof of Stake. The Proof of Stake requires the certifier to show the ownership of a certain amount of cryptocurrency (Sharples and Domingue 2016). "Proof of Zero Knowledge" is the consensus mechanism used in Zcash which can provide better privacy to its users.…”

“…Most people do not know about the term "blockchain," not to mention the potential applications of using blockchain technology. Although researchers discussed the usage of blockchain in the commercial area (Swan 2015), several studies focused on how blockchain technology can be applied in education (Devine 2015;Sharples and Domingue 2016).…”

Blockchain and Smart Contracts for Insurance: Is the Technology Mature Enough?

“…A number of enthusiasts already proposed using this technology in various sectors and contexts, including: -Government [35], to record in a transparent way citizens' votes, or politicians' programs (for verifying if promises made have been kept) or to enable autonomous governance systems [36]; -Intellectual property [24], to certify the proof of existence and authorship of a document; -Internet [25], to reduce censorships, by exploiting the immutability of data stored in the blockchain; -Finance [37], to transfer money between parties without having to rely on banks; -Commerce [38], to record goods' characteristics as well as their ownership, especially for luxury goods, thus reducing the market of counterfeit/stolen items; -Internet of Things (IoT) [39][40][41], e.g., by exploiting smart contracts to automatically process data coming from sensors, in order to let intelligent machines interact with each other [42] and autonomously take actions when specific situations occur; -Education [43], to store information on qualifications acquired by learners, e.g., to reduce job application frauds; in this context, multiple actors (e.g., universities, training institutions, etc.) could write qualifications achieved by a person on the blockchain; human resources staff could then easily obtain information about when and where a given competency was obtained.…”

Blockchain en Educación: introducción y crítica al estado de la cuestión

“…Siendo una tecnología que puede asegurar "registros educativos acreditados fielmente combinados con un sistema de reputación negociable" y el primer beneficio es obviamente un sistema de acreditación transinstitucional (Sharples & Dominique, 2016). Un cambio que tendrá un alto impacto en el sistema educativo, pero también que, según algunos autores, tardará más de 4 años para que comience a implantarse (Sharples et al, 2016).…”

“…Pero debe entenderse no como un mero registro de titulaciones formales sino como un auténtico registro de aprendizajes acreditados (Sharples & Domingue, 2016).…”