SL Cert Process Document

SL Certification

Process Guides:

• SL Certification Process
• Roles Guide
• Certification Guide
• SL KB Style Guide
• Skills List Template
• Training & Certification

Companies:

• Schools
• Certifiers (Candidates)

Skills Lists:

• Land Management:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Textures:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Terraforming:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Scripting:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Event Hosting:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Machinima:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Building:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Sculpty:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Marketing:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced
• Tutoring:
  Basic, Intermediate, Advanced

Other Information:

• SL Certification Participants

• Meeting Minutes

This article describes the SL Certification Process. It is intended as a "living" document,and will evolve with time.

Education vs. Certification EXAMPLE

Do you have a Driver's License? Do you remember taking Driver's Ed Classes? That's education. Do you remember having to pass the Government Driver's Test to get your license? That's certification.

In Second Life, education exists already in the form of many SL Skills Schools. But certification does not yet exist in the form of SL Skills Certifiers. The goal of the SL Certification Project is to create these certifiers.

Catalog vs. Curriculum vs. Certification EXAMPLE

• The Wiki Topic Skills Pages list WHAT people need to understand and be able to do ("Catalog").
• They do NOT tell HOW to do it ("Curriculum"). That's for course designers and instructors.
• Ultimately, the Wiki Topic Skills Pages feed WHAT people need to be performance tested on ("Certification").
• EXAMPLE:
  • Catalog: "Understand and be able to prepare marketing materials that reach the majority of varied learning styles of the general public."
  • Curriculum: "Use images with visual weight proceeding from bottom left to upper right for visual learners, Use text grouped into chunks of seven or less major subheadings for textual learners."
  • Certification: "Prepare a one-page advertisement for web and print that gets 50% of people who look at it to immediately ask for more information."

Overview

Certification will be task-driven. Criteria will be outlined by assigned moderators who will act as subject matter experts (SME's) to define the criteria, check that training created by in-world schools matches (and exceeds) the levels required by the certification, and continue to update the criteria as changes to the environment take place. A list of schools will be maintained to outline where approved training for certification takes place to enable residents to develop towards certification.

Process

SKILLS LIST DEVELOPMENT (SL Certification Developers)

• Topic suggested and agreed
• Moderator / Subject Matter Experts assigned to the topic
• Moderator and Contributors produce outline of topics to be tested at the three levels: Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced.
• Moderator defines pre-requisites for each certification level

SKILLS TEST DEVELOPMENT (SL Certification Developers)

• Moderator determines best types of tests appropriate for subject (Written, Performance, Other)
• Moderator and Contributors develop, test, and adjust tests until satisfactory
• Communicate tests to SL Schools and SL Certifiers

NEW COURSE DEVELOPMENT (SL Schools)

• Schools develop content for training.
• School content checked by Moderator for synergy with related certification tests
• School's capability added to the Schools List

CERTIFICATION OPERATION (SL Certifiers)

• Tests provided to 3rd party certification company
• Candidates apply for testing
• Tests administered, appropriate documentation given to candidates passing the tests

PROCESS MONITORING (SL Certification Developers)

• Periodic review by Moderators (e.g., passing rates of candidates; success of candidates getting new work; other)
• Periodic adjustments to criteria, courses, tests

Education vs. Certification Content

Education developed for certification will be guided by the criteria developed for each topic but will typically cover a broader range of skills.