What is Digital Badging?
A digital badge has been defined by Alliance for Excellent Education as “credentials that represent skills, interests, and achievements earned by an individual through specific projects, programs, courses, or other activities.” These credentials are:
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A record of achievement
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An acknowledgement of an accomplishment
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Indication of a proven skill or ability
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Evidence of learning
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Verification of a competency
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Validation of non-traditional skills or experiences
A badge is not just a gold star or a stamp of approval. Rather, a badge represents a particular skill or accomplishment by the individual who earned it. There are multiple aspects to consider when creating and earning a badge. The graphic below illustrates these considerations.
Resources To Learn More about Digital Badging
Here is a listing of curated resources for those interested in digital badging. Click on the images or embedded links to learn more.
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Image Source: Open Badges Anatomy by Kyle Bowen, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Digital badging is currently used in multiple ways:
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In the workplace and by professional organizations (e.g., IBM, Badges for Vets, Digital Promise, Educause)
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In communities (e.g., Cities of Learning, Loveland Public Library, Detroit Digital Adventure)
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In K-12 schools (e.g., Aurora Public School, Maine State of Learning, Chicago’s City of Learning)
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In higher education (e.g., Penn State, Purdue, UC Davis)
Badges recognize the learning that occurs in a non-traditional settings too. Grades, GPAs and resumes do not always reflect learning that may have occurred via webinars, MOOCs (i.e., Massive Open Online Courses), YouTube Tutorials or community activities. Moreover, digital badges go a step beyond these traditional credentials by providing the full story of the learning that took place. Badges illuminate the evidence of knowledge and skills the learner acquired along with the metadata surrounding the achievement in an attractive, hyperlinked package.
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Digital badging also provides motivation to learning by adding a gamification element that makes learning fun, flexible, and personalized. Learners can choose the badges they earn to best fit their lifestyles, strengths and learning needs. Badges may be earned in traditional and non-traditional settings, giving merit and validation to the learning that takes place outside of credit-bearing institutions.
What Is a Badge?
A video from the MacArthur Foundation on digital badging and what it looks like in contexts outside of video games and scouting activities
Introduction to Open Badges (CC BY-SA 4.0)
A video by City & Guilds where they unpack digital badging and discuss the idea of Open Badges.
Digital Badge Research
This webpage has a comprehensive list of conference proceedings, scholarly journal articles, book chapters, dissertations, and other academic publications that mention digital badging.
Show Me Your Badge
In this article, Bradley (2016) explained why traditional forms of academic reports (e.g., progress reports, grade-point averages, transcripts) do not adequately represent what an individual can do in today’s digital world. Digital badging systems are one way individuals can document their knowledge and skills “through dynamic online platforms” in a transparent manner for future employers (Bradley, 2016, p. 7).
Badges: A Common Currency for Learning
Bowen and Thomas (2014) noted that traditional resumes do not allow individuals to highlight all of the knowledge and skills they acquire in a variety of contexts (e.g., formal classes, community activities). The authors suggested that digital badges could be the solution to this problem. Digital badges provide a "visual representation and evidence of the [individual's] skills and abilities" across multiple learning paths (Bowen & Thomas, 2014, p. 22).
Show Me Your Badge
Carey (2012) provided an introduction to badges in his New York Times article. He discussed ways that badges were being used when they were beginning to become popular, such as instructors of online courses implementing a badging systems to motivate students.
Digital Credentialing
The value of digital badging is acknowledged by many as a better way to document learning across various contexts and over time. Yet, the implementation of badging systems is still in the early stages. In his article, Hart (2016) outlined the potential reasons (e.g., trusting the organization distributing badges) why digital badging has not become more widely-accepted and utilized.
Digital Badges: Beyond Learning Incentives
Hurst (2015) described what badges are, terminology often associated with badging systems (e.g., Open Badges, badge ecosystem), and specific contexts badging systems may be implemented (e.g., education, medical field, micro-credentialing).
Badges Hit the Big Time: Micro-Credential Programs Target Professionals Needing a Skills Boost
Zalaznick (2015) shared various universities that have instituted digital badging systems for both students and faculty. He explained that digital badges are more than “overshared gimmicks from the latest trendy game or social network” but rather serve as valuable documentations of learning across a myriad of contexts (Zalaznick, 2015, p. 18).