Digital badge

Digital badges (also known as ebadges, or singularly as ebadge) are a validated indicator of accomplishment, skill, quality or interest that can be earned in various learning environments.

Origin and development

Traditional physical badges have been used for many years by various organizations such as the Russian Army and the Boy Scouts of America to give members a physical emblem to display the accomplishment of various achievements.

While physical badges have been in use for hundreds of years, the idea of digital badges is a relatively recent development drawn from research into gamification. As game elements, badges have been used by organizations such as Foursquare and Huffington Post to reward users for accomplishing certain tasks. In 2005, Microsoft introduced the Xbox 360 Gamerscore system, which is considered to be the original implementation of an achievement system.

According to Shields & Chugh (2017, pg 1817), "digital badges are quickly becoming an appropriate, easy and efficient way for educators, community groups and other professional organisations to exhibit and reward participants for skills obtained in professional development or formal and informal learning".

In 2007, Eva Baker, the President of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), gave the Presidential Address at their annual conference on the need to develop merit-badge-like "Qualifications" that certify accomplishments, not through standardized tests, but as "an integrated experience with performance requirements." Such a system would apply to learning both in and out of school and support youth to develop and pursue passionate interests. Baker envisioned youth assembling "their unique Qualifications to show to their families, to adults in university and workforce, and to themselves." Ultimately, Baker believed "the path of Qualifications shifts attention from schoolwork to usable and compelling skills, from school life to real life."

In early 2010, the digital badge service provider Basno launched a platform that allowed users to create and collect badges that represent real-world accomplishments like running the 2011 ING New York City Marathon. The effort marked a strong shift from viewing badges as game-like elements to creating badges to certify learning. Many instructional sites such as P2PU and Khan Academy make use of a digital badging system.