The Blockchain Technology and the Tokenization of Learning

By Dr. Michael J. Garbade on ALTCOIN MAGAZINE

Published in

The Dark Side

5 min readOct 18, 2018

The blockchain technology is creating major disruptions across several sectors, and the education sector is not being left behind.

Since we were introduced to the exciting technology through the rise of successful cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, blockchain is promising to bring what the education sector has been missing: efficiency, reliability, and convenience.

Rohit, who is an experienced blockchain developer and currently teaches people his skills, says that “with the power of the blockchain technology, decentralized learning will take the power away from centralized institutions and traditional education approaches, which will result in a whole host of benefits.”

What is blockchain technology?

The blockchain technology, which came to the fore in 2009 when a mysterious personality called Satoshi Nakamoto concocted Bitcoin and released it into the world, has kept everyone by surprise.

The concept refers to a repository that contains a growing list of records, which are in the form of blocks.

Interestingly, the blocks are chained together, with each block containing details of the previous block, to form a blockchain.

This way, if any block is altered within the chain, it will cause its details to change, making the rest of the setup invalid.

If you want to modify the contents of a block and walk away scot-free, you must also alter the details of all the other blocks connected to it, something that is strenuous and difficult to realize.

Furthermore, to maintain the authenticity of the chain, the blockchain technology employs a computationally exhaustive system that complicates the process of adding new blocks.

For example, in the Bitcoin network, producing new blocks takes about 10 minutes. Therefore, making changes to the blockchain requires a lot of computing power and resources, something not for the faint hearted.

More so, the blockchain technology rides on the concept of a decentralized, distributed ledger system for undertaking the financial transactions.

Information is open to the public, and a self-regulating, peer-to-peer network does the management — which reduces the risks and disadvantages of central management.

Consequently, bringing the revolutionary blockchain technology to online education could break the traditional barriers and revamp the industry.

Tokenized learning

A token refers to a type of cryptocurrency that is often released on top of another blockchain infrastructure.

Although tokens require blockchains to exist, they have a market value and can be used for various purposes, including purchasing for goods and services and investing fiat money into crypto projects.

For example, the Education Ecosystem (LiveEdu) uses LEDU tokens to empower the growth of its decentralized online learning platform.

The LEDU tokens are used for various purposes, including paying for monthly subscriptions to watch premium projects, rewarding people who create awesome educational content on the platform, and rewarding developers who extend the functionalities of the platform.

The LEDU tokens are based on the Ethereum ERC-20 standard. As such, the LEDU tokens can be purchased directly with bitcoins (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), or other cryptocurrencies.

The LiveEdu platform represents a way that learners can mint their LEDU tokens and take their professional skills to the next level.

Furthermore, the peer-to-peer platform enables learners to coordinate directly with content creators, allowing them to experience personalized learning without any centralized control.

What are the benefits of tokenized learning?

Improved accessibility to education

Tokenized learning approach is a shift from the conventional standards to the modern techniques; where knowledge is easy to acquire and not limited to the walls of a classroom.

Blockchain empowers educators and learners to easily interact without the obstructive involvement of intermediaries.

This way, education becomes more accessible and affordable to anyone looking to acquire new skills.

Improved quality of learning

A blockchain-powered decentralized platform enables learners to interact directly with educators.

This way, learners can ‘learn by doing’ and get immediate feedback, which improves the ability to acquire new skills.

Furthermore, a peer-to-peer knowledge-sharing community like the LiveEdu platform allows users from around the world to exchange ideas freely with each other without any geographical limitations.

When learners use mutual feedback, they can abandon misconceptions and adopt better practices to propel their professional growth.

Reliable delivery of training content

Blockchain-based online education guarantees reliable delivery of training content, without learners incurring hefty fees.

For example, learners can use tokens in a decentralized learning environment to vote for high quality content.

This way, unscrupulous content providers with questionable credentials will be automatically wiped out from the system.

Furthermore, ratings and reviews can be integrated into the blockchain, guaranteeing their verifiability and authenticity.

Improved efficiency and security

Tokenizing a learning environment can reduce costs associated with acquiring professional skills.

Also, the blockchain network provides an added layer of security and efficiency when making transactions.

For example, in the case of LiveEdu, tokens can be used to securely and comfortably pay for education services.

LEDU makes it easy for learners to use their tokens to incentivize content creators, request for quality educational materials, and carry out other tasks to support the growth of the platform

Wrapping up

Tokens are secondary assets based on certain blockchain ecosystems. Their use can revamp online education and democratize how learning is carried out.

Tokenization in the education sector is a revolutionary alternative to the traditional, inefficient learning approaches.

It puts the control in the learners’ hands and provides them with an innovative technique of acquiring the skills they need to accelerate professional development.

Via the blockchain, online education is quickly taking a new trend.

What are your thoughts about the uses of blockchain in education?

Please share your comments below.

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The purpose of ALTCOIN MAGAZINE is to educate the world on crypto and to bring it to the hands and the minds of the masses. This article was written and composed by Dr. Michael J. Garbade on ALTCOIN MAGAZINE.