RPL: Where Rigour Meets Relationships

Image by DAMIAN NIOLET from Pixabay

This week, I read an article that really resonated with me, and I say that as someone who has spent more than two decades designing and implementing learning and RPL/PLAR (Recognition of Prior Learning) systems internationally and across multiple Canadian industry sectors.

The Art and Science of Facilitating RPL – Why recognition is a craft; not a checkboxhttps://hbta.edu.au/the-art-and-science-of-facilitating-rpl/

Vanessa Solomon articulates here something that many of us in this field have observed and felt. RPL is fundamentally a practice that requires empathy, critical thinking and professional judgment, not just a mechanical exercise in evidence mapping.

The framing of RPL as an interplay between art and science is useful because it allows us to think more about how much of the RPL practice is an act of facilitation, coaching and mentoring beyond knowing the technical standards, reviewing the evidence criteria and mapping competencies to credits. The instructional designer in me was genuinely chuffed to see a nod to Marzano and using instructional design theory to elevate RPL as a discipline rather than simply a process.

I have worked across so many sectors from early childhood education to automotive trades to the digital economy and have found that if we only focus on the rigour without any relationship, we get compliance but no advocacy. If we only build relationships without much rigour, we get paper credentials that are not valued. To get to meaningful recognition, we need both rigour and relationships.

Where I'd like to push this further is the focus on the system. How do we build RPL tools, processes, and assessor support structures that help us strike the right balance between rigour and relationship, between art and science? A lot of good RPL work is more upstream than we imagine. I am talking about how competencies are drafted, communicated and 'lived in' by the sector. I am also thinking about the quality principles for the design of assessment tools and processes to be inclusive and usable.

Those caveats aside, I'd love for Vanessa's article to be read widely and for people to hear the point that she makes referring to "Marzano’s core insight: that effective professional practice is never purely technical or purely relational, it is both."

Full article by Vanessa Solomon at HBTA: 
The Art and Science of Facilitating RPL – Why recognition is a craft; not a checkbox https://hbta.edu.au/the-art-and-science-of-facilitating-rpl/ #RPL #PLAR #VPL #Recognition #PriorLearning #RecognitionOfPriorLearning #Skills #LifelongSkills #WorkforceDevelopment #Validation #SkillsDevelopment

Recognition Begins with Learning

Photo by Taruna Goel

One of the most significant learning experiences of my life has never appeared on my résumé, even though it demanded problem-solving, cultural fluency, resilience, adaptability, and continuous learning. When I immigrated to Canada in 2011, I gained no formal credentials for what I learned along the way. My informal learning became visible and transferable only through reflection and dialogue. Once I recognized my learning, it found expression through volunteer work with immigrant-serving organizations, where I supported others navigating similar transitions.

After more than 25 years in Learning & Development, one consistent lesson from my practice is that our systems rarely capture the many ways adults learn.

Learning is neither linear nor tidy. We learn by solving problems, navigating new spaces, making mistakes, and receiving feedback. This learning is real and tied to identity and contribution, yet it’s often invisible. Much adult learning can be tacit and embodied, and it doesn’t come with a transcript. Adults also struggle to name their learning because it doesn’t feel legitimate unless it occurs in a formal course. Surfacing this internalized learning requires agency, confidence, and guided reflection.

Competencies help make this learning visible and translate it into something observable and measurable by capturing the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and context. Through my work across sectors including career development, early childhood education, digital and IT, automotive, and construction, I have designed and applied competency frameworks to support clearer articulation of learning and performance standards.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) enables individuals to see the value of their learning while giving universities/industries a trusted way to acknowledge competence. Instead of forcing everyone through a single gate, RPL opens multiple doors by recognizing that learning happens in diverse and valuable ways: on the job, in the community, and in living life.

When engaging in the RPL process, it is important to note that experience alone does not guarantee learning. Neither do the years working in a role nor the job titles. What matters is how we engage with and reflect on the experience to surface the learning.

This is why RPL is called recognition of prior learning, and not recognition of prior experience, because it is the learning that counts, not merely having had the experience. And this intersection of learning and experience is where my practice is grounded, supporting individuals to translate lived experience into articulated, valued learning.

This article was originally published as a Spotlight feature in the Nova Scotia Career Development Association (NSCDA) members-only newsletter, Issue 2, January 2026.

(I was recently invited to write a feature article for the Nova Scotia Career Development Association's (NSCDA) RPL newsletter, RPL in Nova Scotia: Here to Stay (Issue 2, January 2026). Using my own immigration journey as a starting point, this article looks at how adult learning often remains invisible within formal systems. It highlights the role of Recognition of Prior Learning in bridging learning, lived experience, and credible recognition. Sharing it here for colleagues working in RPL, PLAR, workforce development, and skills recognition.)

hashtag#RPL hashtag#PLAR hashtag#VPL hashtag#Recognition hashtag#PriorLearning hashtag#Skills hashtag#LifelongSkills hashtag#WorkforceDevelopment hashtag#Validation hashtag#SkillsDevelopment

Additional Resources:

What Does Competency Mean? https://hrmhandbook.com/hrm/skills-competencies/meaning-definition/

eCampusOntario “The Open Competency Toolkit”: https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/competencytoolkit/

CAEL - Competency-Based Education and Credit for Prior Learning: https://www.cael.org/hubfs/C-BEN%20CAEL%204-pager_2022.pdf

PLA and Competency-Based Education: Friends? Family? Or Only Acquaintances?: https://www.plaio.org/index.php/home/article/view/206/236

Experience Alone Does Not Guarantee Learning: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/experience-alone-does-guarantee-learning-taruna-goel-rhftc/

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL/PLAR) is Opening Doors for Many: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/recognition-prior-learning-rplplar-opening-doors-many-taruna-goel-v4ajc/

Recognize Before You Retrain: ‘Work Fingerprints’ (Podcast): https://www.linkedin.com/posts/shvetamalhan_futureofwork-rpl-humanskills-activity-7408514632035889153-7gkb

Looking Back, Moving Forward

As the year comes to a close, I have been reflecting about the people, the ideas and the conversations that stayed with me throughout 2025.

Competencies and Recognition of Learning 

This year, much of my focus was anchored in recognition of prior learning, developing and assessing competencies, and valuing lived experience whether through training needs, environmental scans or RPL and competency-based assessment pathways. Some highlights include:

• RPL-Based National Certification Program (Canada): Designed, developed and launched a Recognition of Prior Learning-based certification for Career Development professionals. Awarded Professional Certification Programme of the Year by the e-Assessment Association.

• Training Needs Analysis: Reviewed and analyzed structures, curriculum, and training model to define the current state; led consultations to define the desired state; conducted gap analysis with best practices and EDI considerations; and delivered actionable curriculum enhancement recommendations.

• Competency-Based Faculty Development Program: Designed a structured yet flexible Faculty Development Program to build foundational skills in teaching, curriculum design, facilitation, and educational technology while advancing equity, diversity, inclusion, and Indigenous ways of knowing. The goal: support faculty growth from basic to advanced levels to enhance the quality of teaching and learning across the institution and cultivate a culture of teaching excellence and innovation. 

• Environmental Scan on Recognizing RPL Practitioners: Conducted a comprehensive environmental scan to assess the training needs within the field of Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR/RPL) across Canada. The project included practitioner and employer surveys, focus groups, interviews, and research to gather insights aimed at shaping the future of RPL/PLAR in Canada, including potential development of a national RPL certificate or voluntary certification program.

Takeaway: Partnerships and collaboration with clients and interest holders make recognition and learning systems stronger, sustainable, and capable of amplifying human potential.

Learning, Teaching, and Community Engagement

This year, I had the privilege of teaching my Instructional Design course at UVic CACE guiding adult learners to design meaningful, evidence-informed learning experiences while learning alongside to shape the practice of instructional design.

I wrote many blog posts and LinkedIn Articles and contributed to BCcampus's Digital Pedagogy Toolbox with my article: Who Are We Leaving Behind? where I reflected on the hidden costs of digital pedagogy and explored how we can address these challenges and promote more inclusive learning environments.

I attended CredX: B.C.'s Inaugural Symposium on Micro-credentials, Badges, and Recognition and BCPLAN Symposium and The Accessible & Inclusive Design Conference 2025 by The Training, Learning, and Development Community and met friends and colleagues, who like me, are passionate about promoting innovative solutions, sharing insights, and supporting recognition practices and accessibility across learning and work. 

I also presented at:

• CAPLA Conference (May)

• CAPLA Community of Learning (June) - "Reclaiming the L in RPL/PLAR"
  Experience alone doesn't guarantee learning

• CAPLA Fall Webinars (Nov)

• BCcampus Digital Learning Strategy (DLS) Forum (Nov)
  
  

Takeaway: Ideas grow stronger when tested in dialogue with a curious and engaged community who isn't afraid to challenge you. Collaboration is where learning multiplies.

Podcasts and Panels

Being invited for podcasts and panels offered a slower, more reflective space to explore. These conversations were less about answers and more about sense-making, which felt timely.

• Getting Comfortable with AI

• Fingerprints of Work: Humanizing Learning & Recognition in the Age of AI 
  Work Fingerprints

• Competencies in a Changing World of Work
  Competencies make the invisible, visible

Takeaway: Thoughtful dialogue and reflection together with peers and practitioners help navigate complexity and encourage innovation.

Questions That Kept Resurfacing

Across projects, presentations, and dialogue, two questions kept resurfacing: 

• How do we design learning, assessment, and work systems with a human-first mindset?

• How do we move beyond tools and trends to address authenticity, trust, and belonging in learning systems?

Looking Ahead to 2026

I am deeply grateful for the practitioners, educators, sector leaders, and peers who engaged thoughtfully and generously and for my colleagues, clients, partners and collaborators who trusted me with work that matters.

As we move into 2026, my commitment remains the same: to design and support learning and recognition practices that are collaborative, equitable, and deeply human.

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I want to acknowledge that this reflection captures some of the visible work from the year, but not the failures, challenges, or breaking points that sat alongside it. Growth is uneven, learning is messy, and meaningful work is shaped as much by uncertainty as by accomplishment. So, if this resonates, I hope it does so not as a "checklist of achievements", but as a reflection on learning, partnership, and the questions that continue to shape my work and as an invitation to learn/share, and to give ourselves and others a little more grace as we continue the work.