Prior Learning Assessments

UH Faculty values students’ prior learning and skills without discrimination of where and how students acquire their knowledge. Prior Learning Assessments (PLAs) enable members of the current workforce to earn community college credit for previous professional learning experiences. The faculty are refining, marketing, and implementing standard PLAs to acknowledge early childhood professionals’ prior learning and award them with college credit. 

To learn more about PLAs, check out our information below:

 

What are the benefits of PLAs?

For students from racially, ethnically, linguistically, and socioeconomically diverse backgrounds, the credits earned through PLAs can be a powerful motivator for students to begin their studies as well as persist in earning their Associate’s and Bachelor’s degrees. The additional credits earned through PLAs will also assist students in completing their degrees sooner. HonCC is currently working to standardize and align their policies and procedures for PLAs.

 

What are possible changes to PLAs that we can expect in the future? 

Re-examining the process used to evaluate skills and abilities using constructivist and narrative storytelling approaches will make PLAs more accessible and increase students’ self-awareness, self-efficacy, career identity, and goal orientation.

 

What PLAs are already being developed?

As of now, HonCC is examining how the training objectives and assessments of People Attentive to Children (PATCH) align with current Professional and Career Education for Early Childhood non-credit ECE program workshops and ECE credit courses.