A blockchain-based smart contracts platform to competency assessment and validation.

During last years, several competency management systems (CMSs) have been proposed to support the acquisition, allocation, and improvement of competencies. However, competency information and associated proofs are still not tracked and shared in a trustworthy and immutable way. In this context, blockchain technology provides a prominent manner to keep track of competencies and achievements and to ensure their sharing in a secure and transparent manner. Particularly, given the decentralized nature of immutable and distributed ledgers enabled by blockchain, the potential for using this revolutionary new technology for lifelong competency tracking and assessment is tremendous. In this paper, a functional architecture using smart contracts and blockchain is proposed to support competency tracking and assessment in learning networks. Thus, by implementing the proposed architecture, all the different stakeholders involved can be connected, namely, learners, authors, and assessors. Besides, a full traceability of acquired proofs of competencies and competency profiles is warranted, while ensuring their authenticity and integrity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]