101 What are Open Badges?

This course will become read-only in the near future. Tell us at community.p2pu.org if that is a problem.

Task Navigation 

Start Conversations and Get Connected


Complete all 4 tasks to get connected and start virtual conversations about badges.
 
  1. On Twitter:

    1. Join Twitter and join the #openbadges and #p2puopenbadges101 hashtag discussions or create a hashtag to discuss the topic.
    2. Ask questions and get people discussing your topic.
    3. Follow @openbadges on Twitter.
    4. Build up your Social Media Badges Personal Learning Network.
    5. For a place to start, check out my list on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/leahmacvie/badges
  2. Join Facebook and join a group or create a group about badges to discuss badges. Like the Mozilla Open Badges page.
  3. Join the Open Badges Google Group here: https://groups.google.com/group/openbadges. Subscribe to the posts in order to receive updates via e-mail. Introduce yourself in a post to the group, add your experience, and offer to help. Reply to at least 2 other posts.
  4. Join the weekly conference call on badges: https://openbadges.etherpad.mozilla.org/openbadges-community-2

 

What types of conversations about open badges are you interested in?

Task Discussion


  • ToddF said:

    Your "href" tag is missing for the link "www.badgestack.com", so it just brings you back to the current page...

    on Aug. 7, 2012, 11:17 a.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

    Oh, I see. Thanks for letting me know Todd. I just took the link out and kept the second link.

    on Aug. 7, 2012, 2:30 p.m. in reply to ToddF

  • fboss said:

    I found this to be a great collection of resources and information.

    Following some of the information ment that I had to go in and dust off my Tumblr and Scoop.It accounts (enjoyed doing that).

    I use Twitter a lot (some would say a bit too much), so thanks for the link to your List and am now subscribed to it and following those on it too.

    Have to say, I'm not 100% confident about my abilities to use or mani[ulate any code, so am looking forward to a drag 'n' drop approach being made available. I think that I'll be looking into the Certified Networked Teacher badge at P2PU soon.

    on July 27, 2012, 12:11 p.m.

  • fboss said:

    https://p2pu.org/en/groups/how-do-i-make-a-badge/

    This looks to be another interesting course hosted by P2PU as well that deals with badges too. Am finding a lot of great resources around this topic.

    By the way, Doug Belshaw tweeted this link to a Wordpress plug in for displaying & hosting badges: goo.gl/fb/QkdUR

    Worth the look.

    Fred.

    on July 26, 2012, 5:05 a.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

    Hey there Fred, 

    Yeah, I've been following along with Doug's tweets/articles about installing the new plug-in for Wordpress. I installed it, just haven't had a chance to try it out yet. 

    Also, yep- I went throug the 'How do I make a badge' course and I highly recommend it. It's how I got the badge set up for this challenge :)

    on July 27, 2012, 1:51 p.m. in reply to fboss

    fboss said:

    Hi Leah,

    I like badge you've designed. I have a few I'm thinking about too. I still have to get to grips with how badges are awarded. I like the Community method, but it means that people could be waiting for a badge to be agreed on by a set number of others. The Skills badge is based on a person demonstrating a skill and so can be awarded based on set criteria.

    All in all, I'm getting my head around the whole thing still, but really enjoying the process.

    Thanks for making your course public.

    on July 27, 2012, 5:51 p.m. in reply to Leah MacVie

  • Liz Renshaw said:

    I really enjoyed the posts from Planet Open Badges and found myself reading back through past posts. Carla's post on Badge System Design: seven ways of looking at a badge system provides a great range of perspectives or 'lens' through which we can conceptualise badges.  It is also a good starting point for questionning all those assumptions and underlying beliefs that we might have about knowledge and how knowledge is created.

    I'm very excited to read about the badgestack projects they are the most wonderful innovations. Hopefully these projects will provide models that Australian museums can use to create innovative learning badge opportunities.  At the moment the projects focus on school learners ( Im thinking?)  hopefully we will see projects for more mature aged people who are into life wide learning and looking for something to engage their grey matter. Maybe some are already on the drawing boards?

    on June 20, 2012, 1:06 a.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

     

    Oh, I also see the many possibilities for adult learners- especially those within the P2PU community. 

    One of the reasons I identify so well with the badges movement is I see a lot of the same challenges and paradigm shifts that occur in online education. Teachers are sometimes afraid to give up that ‘control’ over the curriculum and let learners ‘teach themselves and each other’. Also, it’s a challenge trying to convince people that it’s a great ‘option’- it’s not for everyone and it’s not for every course. We have to get over this ‘one-size-fits-all’ mentality, because it just doesn’t anymore. 

    on June 21, 2012, 11:58 a.m. in reply to Liz Renshaw

    Selim said:

    Hi Leah

     

    I think I am guilty of being one of those teachers that doesn't like to let go of control over the curriculum.  I am trying to be more of a "faciliatator" as I am told I need to become, but truthfully I find it exceedingly frustrating.  I wonder what was the point of earning two masters degrees if my job is really just to set aside and let my students somehow learn this material on their own.  I am sure that with trial and error my students could learn to make a cake if I gave them enough ingredients and time, but I would rather show them how to do it and then have them try and do it after they learned from me.  Does that analogy make sense?

    I am not trying to be a Negative Nancy but I do wonder if badges will help overcome many people's passive nature - many of my students are consumers and not producers of knowledge, this is fairly normal for high school freshmen.  

    I guess what I am saying is that I think badges can offer an external motivation for students to achieve more, but I think students need to reach a certain age and neurological maturity level  before they are truly ready to teach themselves and one another.  What do you think?

    on July 13, 2012, 5:19 p.m. in reply to Leah MacVie

    Leah MacVie said:

     

    Hi Selim, 

    In my day job I teach teachers how to teach online. This is one of the biggest challenges I see- shifting from the paradigm of a provider to a facilitator. I the sessions I do, I've actually found it to be less work and people get more out of it. But what is a good strategy? Try providing experiences instead of teaching content. Use games, scavenger hunts, etc. These may sound childish, but they can be offered in a mature fashion. This doesn't mean you can't show them first, but you don't have the time sometimes to show them, let them try, allow them to fail and recover. 

    I think your second statement is true, but only in schools. Today's students come from a very sharable generation: they are creating youtube videos, posting images to instagram, tweeting (yep they are there, too), and creating sites on Google. They are sometimes bored in high school because we are pulling them away from what they do best- creating to learn. As an instructor you do need to offer them guidance on HOW to use these tools to teach themselves and explain WHY you are changing the paradigm. Or, ask them what they prefer (hey, maybe we are all wrong).

    Bring this back to badges- they are a way to motivate those that need that step in between. "Great work, you completed this round, now take it one step further". Also, why not offer extra credit for informal and DIY explorations they are doing on their own?

    These are great thoughts. I work sometimes with K-12 at conferences and these questions and thoughts come up a lot!

    on July 20, 2012, 12:19 p.m. in reply to Selim

    Peter Rawsthorne said:

    Hello Selim (and Leah),

    I have found myself thinking similarly as both of you at different times of my professional career as both a K12 and adult teacher. I am also deeply involved in being an educational technologist. I think that badges offer many opportunities and as a motivator for youth and young adults could be a strong tool.

    I still believe all the possibilities for badges has not yet been identified, and this is what makes them very exciting.

    I think what you are referring to in the cake scenario is being a super-mentor as Curtis Bonk refers; http://worldisopen.com/postscript.pdf

    Looking forward to further discussions,

    on July 20, 2012, 7:16 p.m. in reply to Selim

  • Sunny Lee said:

    Also worth noting our OpenBadger tool which is in active development. It's a light weight badge issuing tool that enables you to get started on creating and issuing badges with little tech experience. To stay up to date on it, check out the github wiki page. https://github.com/mozilla/openbadger/wiki

    on May 23, 2012, 10:25 p.m.

    John Martin, aka EdVentures said:

    This is exactly the tool that educators (and other badgers) need. If we want to hit the ground running, we need to simplify the process so that the technology isn't a barrier. I look forward to seeing this develop!

    on May 24, 2012, 2:05 p.m. in reply to Sunny Lee

    Leah MacVie said:

    Oh thank goodness Sunny! I take back my previous comment from the last forum- this is EXACTLY what I was talking about!! This page still doesn't make much sense to me...but I am quite confident that Mozilla will include pictures soon to illustrate the concepts for us 'laypeople'. Thank you!

    on May 24, 2012, 3:36 p.m. in reply to Sunny Lee

  • rcitow said:

    What is a Social Media PLN? Tell me more about this task...

    on May 22, 2012, 12:41 a.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

    Hello rcitow!

    PLN means Personal Learning Network. I have updated the task for others who may not know the terminology. :)

    on May 24, 2012, 3:39 p.m. in reply to rcitow

  • opencontent said:

    Is there a way to subscribe to the Planet site directly? I ended up subscribing to each contributer's blog directly...

    on May 18, 2012, 4:46 p.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

    I didn't find a way either...believe me, I looked too! If anyone else figures this out, please let us know!

    on May 21, 2012, 10:04 a.m. in reply to opencontent

    Sunny Lee said:

    Worth noting our planet blog is broken. We'll get it fixed soon!

    on May 23, 2012, 10:20 p.m. in reply to Leah MacVie

    John Martin, aka EdVentures said:

    Yup, I went old skool longhand too. No worries, but an aggregated feed would be sweet!

    on May 24, 2012, 2:06 p.m. in reply to Sunny Lee

    Liz Renshaw said:

    Hi There

     

    Just spend some time looking for the siteRSS still doesnt seem to be there. Shame its a great site!

    on June 19, 2012, 2:02 a.m. in reply to John Martin, aka EdVentures

  • Christopher Crawford said:

    Great Resources! If I remember correctly, Audrey Watters from Hack Education and Inside Higher Ed was one of the co-organzers of P2PU's Writing for the Web challenge

    on May 9, 2012, 10:12 p.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

    I believe so too, now that you mention it.. :) P2PU is such a connector!

    on May 21, 2012, 10:05 a.m. in reply to Christopher Crawford

  • Jonas Backelin said:

    I belive in 'Learning by doing' and are over the moon that eduToolkit was Scooped by DML Competition on 4/5.  Other badge influencers? Can't really tell right now, but Sunny Lee from the Mozilla community has offered help with any questions, that is pretty cool! 

    on May 5, 2012, 3:32 p.m.

    Leah MacVie said:

    It's a great site! I may have even found it on the DML Scoop page! Oh- cool, I'll have to connect with Sunny. I am following a few other people on the Badge team- whcih I think is REALLY helpful for staying up to date on the progress. :)

    on May 8, 2012, 7:44 a.m. in reply to Jonas Backelin

    Doug Belshaw said:

    As well as Erin and Sunny you might also want to have a look at the blogs of:

    on May 19, 2012, 5:24 p.m. in reply to Jonas Backelin