Blockchain technology is going to change the world around us. The education sector can issue unique digital assets that verify the credentials of academic degrees and certifications. Along with credentials verification, there are various use cases for blockchain in the education industry.
Do you want to know more about blockchain use cases in the education sector? If yes, you have come to the right place. In this article, let’s take an in-depth look at some of the main challenges encountered in the education sector, and find out practical blockchain use cases to improve those problems in a much better way.
1. The Principal Issues faced in the Progress of Education Sector
Massive investments are made in the education industry across the world. Global spending in this industry is expected to reach $7.3 trillion by 2025, according to experts. The education industry is undergoing a paradigm transition at the time of writing. The following inefficiencies in the educational system must be addressed:
- Inefficient procedures of recordkeeping: Educational institutions handle academic records, diplomas, and credentials using paperwork-intensive and inefficient systems. These procedures are vulnerable to impersonation.
- Identity management manual processes: Manual procedures for managing identities are used by educational institutions to handle student identities. It's difficult for students to keep track of their qualifications and certifications as a result of this. Forgery carries a huge danger.
- Inadequate methods for establishing teacher-student accountability: A teacher devotes all significant effort to ensure that pupils complete their assignments according to the established guidelines. It might be difficult to devote this time to all students.
- Processes for tracking inefficient learner performance: To track the success of students, educational institutions utilize time-consuming paperwork-intensive methods. The flow of information is slowed by these procedures.
- Transcript management challenges: Transcripts of academic records from educational institutions are difficult to get for students. This situation is caused by manual processes.
2. Blockchain in Education: Real-life Use Cases
a. Comprehensive and transparent record-keeping
The school's registrar's office will only have to establish a student record once, thanks to immutable blockchain storage. It is then available to all educational system participants and may even be shared between institutions. Every work, assignment, school involvement, and extracurricular activity participation is added to the student's digital record as blocks, which may be viewed on the student's profile. As a result, instructors, counselors, and school administrators can keep a close check on their students' progress.
"Certificate Register" creation in Blockchain-based Educational Record Repository. Thanks to immutable blockchain storage, the school's registrar's office will only have to establish a student record once.
To grant access to their profile, all a student has to do is share a link or their digital address. Because the full history of modifications with signatures is recorded on the blockchain, this sort of solution assures the total validity of credentials and student records.
b. Smart contracts enhance student accountability
Blockchain smart contracts can be used by teachers to enter into digital agreements with students regarding the completion of their tasks. All of the assignment requirements, including the instructions, conditions, due date, and deadlines are spelled out in the agreement. After a student completes the task, meeting all the terms in the agreement, they can be automatically granted access to the next part of the course or receive a credit and completion certificate.
Ultimately, smart contracts can play an important role in providing individualized learning within a conventional classroom setup and create the motivational element missing in traditional education systems.
c. File storage & Partnership platform
It will need a lot of file storage space for institutions to store digital curricula, records, diplomas, and other materials. We get the impression that the files are centralized since we save everything on local hard drives. If the hard drives are damaged or compromised in any way, it would be a significant issue. Although cloud storage is an option, many institutions are unable to obtain the required amount of cloud storage.
Not only will blockchain function as a transparent record-keeping system, but it will also act as a sharing and communication platform. Universities and colleges seek to ensure that students have a positive educational experience. Relationships between students and instructors are critical: when students receive adequate advice and personal supervision, they can study without having to pay someone else to do the task.
Furthermore, departments can use the blockchain-based platform to submit information about significant events and lectures. As a result, long-term and effective ties between alumni and professors are ensured. This is a simple method to eliminate possible obstacles.
d. Seamless payments
Since student payments are demanding in terms of labor and might include the student, parents, bursary agencies, financial institutions, administrations, and educational institutions, the DLT facilitates the process much. The blockchain enables students to keep their own crypto-currency money, covering their higher education expenses above useful overtime.
Although many educational institutions are hesitant about taking bitcoin as payment, there are notable exceptions, such as King's College in New York City, which was one of the first colleges in the world to do so. All of the hidden costs were also removed as a result of this procedure.
Any new technology confronts major obstacles in achieving broad acceptance without actual application. Consider some examples of integration of blockchains with education leading to enhanced learning and sharing of information.
e. Protection of copyright and digital rights
Aside from student data, a student's certificates and credentials, like their grades, can be stored on a blockchain. Blockchain systems can monitor and facilitate school, college, and university accreditation, secure intellectual property rights, and prevent diploma and transcript forgery. It keeps students from lying to future employers by presenting fake degrees, which happens all too often. Educational records stored on the blockchain can be accessed and transmitted rapidly to other schools and organizations, including future employers. Rather than contacting the institution that produces a paper copy certificate, any employer should just have access to the digital diploma.
Plagiarism is a serious issue in the academic world. Copyrighted information can be distributed via the Internet using blockchain technology. The technology's main purpose is to protect the data that has been captured in a chain. As a result, data inside the chain cannot be manually changed because of the sophisticated encryption mechanisms in place.
Blockchain systems can be used to control the dispersal of copyrighted material across the Internet.
The academic resources will be accessible, secure and unchangeable, as a result of this. Every time material is used, it is logged in the chain, and the owner has complete control over who has access to it. Online usage can be traced, and ownership may be simply established. Simultaneously, robust security procedures protect this information from tampering.
SotaTek’s team of developers is exploring blockchain use-cases and supporting research and implementation projects. We have officially signed a Joint Name Contract to develop the Public Blockchain System, which will secure and record all the graduation certificates and diplomas issued by the Ministry of Education and Training. As an official contractor, SotaTek will plan, develop and deploy a National Qualifications Archive (NQA) system, which would record and protect the data of all recognized certificates on the Blockchain.
In the middle of a dramatic transformation in the education industry, stakeholders will benefit from higher value. The building blocks are efficiency, confidence, and accountability, here too. These may be decentralized booklets, security, and smart contracts using Blockchain. We examined important use cases in the education sector of blockchain and looked at examples of the firms that apply them.
Developers at SotaTek provide enterprise-grade blockchain solutions, consulting, and custom blockchain development services. With the integration of the latest decentralized technology, identity solutions, and smart contracts, our blockchain specialists will help you deliver your school high levels of mobility and security. Request assistance from our blockchain experts in integrating blockchain technology into your school.
