All about badges
(in 20 minutes or less)
Badges from MoodleBadges.com licensed under
digital badge
an online representation of a skill or achievement
open badges
an open technical standard anyone can use to create, issue, and verify digital badges
Badge Alliance: Why Badges: http://www.badgealliance.org/why-badges/
Mozilla Open Badges: http://www.openbadges.org/
Imagine that...
- your skills and competencies could be captured more granularly across different contexts (formal and informal)
- evidence of your skills could be collected and associated with your online identity (blogs, eportfolios, websites)
- you could discover relevant opportunities and craft your own learning pathways based on your own interests, at your own pace
- you could present a more complete picture of yourself to key stakeholders: employers, mentors, peers, collaborators
Enter....Badges!
Bull, B. (2014, Sept. 4). 15 Reasons Why People are Using Digital Badges. Retrieved from: http://etale.org/main/2014/09/04/15-reasons-why-people-are-using-digital-badges/
Emerging research on primary functions
Intended practices for badge systems include:
- Recognizing learning (that may not be otherwise visible)
- Assessing learning (awarding credentials for achievement, often leveled or cumulative, often used with eportfolios)
- Motivating learning (increase engagement, encourage participation, can be linked to privileges or reputation)
- Studying learning (emerging research and evidence on the impact of digital badges on learning)
Design Principles Documentation Project: http://dpdproject.info/
How do you make them?
- Roll your own: BadgeLab , Purdue
- Plug-ins for LMSs (Moodle, Blackboard), CMSs (WP, Drupal)
- 3rd-party badge issuing platforms: Credly, Open Badge Factory (there is now a Canadian branch of this service called CanCred Factory )
What are they made of?
* badge name
* description URL
* badge criteria
* badge image
* issuer
* date
* recipient
* alignment (standards)
* evidence URL
- a digital image
- with metadata "baked" in
Criticisms, challenges...
- Extrinsic vs. intrinsic motivation
- Gamification skepticism
- Trust, rigor, validity
- Trivial, juvenile
Casilli, C. (2012). Mozilla Open Badges: building trust networks, creating value. Retrieved from: http://carlacasilli.wordpress.com/2012/08/24/mozilla-open-badges-building-trust-networks-creating-value/
Hickey, D. (2014, Aug. 5). Of Course Alfie Kohn Dislikes Open Digital Badges: Transcending a 40-Year Old Debate. Retrieved from: http://remediatingassessment.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/of-course-alfie-kohn-dislikes-open.html
Who's using them?
- Industry: (eg: National Manufacturing Institute)
- Education: (formal & informal)
- Professional Associations & Service Organizations
- and many others
Showcasing Co-curricular:
- Notre Dame University - E2B2 (ePortfolios with Evidence-Based Learning)
- University of Michigan - Mblem badges
- University of Central Oklahoma - Transformative Learning Record
Considerations:
- Value proposition (why earn the badge?)
- Who is it for?
- What skills/behaviours does it represent or encourage?
- Criteria (what do you need to do to earn it?)
- Evidence (what artefacts or information?)
- Who awards it?
- Who endorses or recognizes it?
- Will it be cumulative or part of a larger badge system?
- Institutional policy implications?
Mozilla Badge System Design Worksheet: bit.ly/:badge_design_worksheet
Digital Me. Badge Canvas. http://www.digitalme.co.uk/assets/pdf/DigitalMe-Badge-Design-Canvas.pdf
KPU's Badge Pilot
"I Cite My Sources"
KPU Library Online Plagiarism Tutorials: http://libguides.kpu.ca/plagiarism
Moodle badge link:
* Badge is displayed in students' Moodle profile ( & Mozilla backpack if they choose).
Thanks!
Meg Goodine (meg.goodine@kpu.ca)
Manager, Learning Technology
Teaching & Learning Commons
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
For more information about badges, visit the Reconnect Learning website