UNEVOC Connect

Blockchain is a cumulative list of digital records that are linked together and where each successive entry links to the complete record of what has gone before as verified by transaction data and a time stamp. This makes data in a blockchain resistant to historical modification. In education, blockchain technologies can be used primarily for student records and credentials.

A blockchain is an an application of distributed ledger technology, in which the ‘ledger’ comprises ‘blocks’ of transactions. In a distributed ledger, information about a transaction is recorded onto the system permanently, and the information is simultaneously held by all the ‘participants’ (nodes) in the system, without the need for a central authority to certify that the transaction took place. This technology is the foundation of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.