Digital Badging To Inspire Student Success

The Rubidoux high school football team is on a roll. This team has already made history by going 10-0 for the first time since 1981 to win the Mountain Valley League Championship. They are currently ranked #1 in division 10 and have won their first two playoff games. Tomorrow night they play in the CIF Semi-Finals against St. Anthony's of Long Beach.

In a recent interview (min 12:56) Head Coach Patrick Thompson and his team discuss the sledge hammer helmet stickers they earn if complete their assignments during the game. Players earn the stickers by making tackles, getting an interception, and completing their individual game assignments. Each position has a unique standard and criteria they must meet to earn their sticker. Every Monday, the team has a meeting to give out their Sledge Hammer Award Stickers. Players proudly display the stickers on their helmets for all to see.

The stickers reminded me of the opportunity for digital badging in education to motivate learners who otherwise may not be motivated by traditional report cards and transcripts. @dajbelshaw defines digital badges as "useful moments of transition. They are human-scale way to credential knowledge, skills, and behaviors using the web". Digital badges, like the Sledge Hammer stickers, can be showcased to a larger audience. The Sledge Hammer stickers are worn on helmets for everyone in the stands and on the field to see. Digital badges can be showcased through social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Another similarity is, like the Sledge Hammer stickers, each digital badge has a unique standard and set of criteria before the badge is earned. The badges form a digital resume.

In Jurupa we've started our digital badging journey by encouraging staff to earn Leading Edge Badges, Google Apps for Education Badges, Common Sense Certified Educator and others.

We've created our own badges for staff that complete education technology staff development.

Other districts are providing badges for attendance, behavior, work habits, meeting math standards, developing career plans, fulfilling college-entrance requirements and scoring proficiency on state exams. The possibilities for digital badging in education are endless:

Credit: @bryanmmathers, visual thinkery and @dajbelshaw