Education sandbox/Thinking about Open Badges

Wikimedia UK is currently developing a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) as a tool to help teach people how to use Wikipedia. It consists of several topics, each containing a number of specific modules. Each module is designed to teach a specific task. The VLE is built in Moodle and will eventually be editable directly in Media Wiki via a transclusion function which is currently being written. When complete the VLE will be made freely available, under an appropriate open licence (CC-BY-SA), to other chapters and individuals within the Wikimedia movement. WMUK will also help with localisation and translation.

One of the ways in which the chapter could use Open Badges is as a way of certifying / accrediting students who complete topics within the VLE that they are competent in the relevant skills that they acquire, assuming they reach an appropriate standard. These skills, which they acquire through learning about Wikipedia, will also have an application in the wider world and will include things such as understanding online communities, copy writing, research skills and so on. Badges would differ from barnstars as they would require a certain level of skill, supported by an assessment (for example through a Moodle quiz) lending them credibility and weight that could be seen as missing from the award of a barnstar, which is usually made by a fellow community member for social reasons.

Another way that badges would be useful for the chapter is to award them for certain other skills or knowledge that can be developed through active volunteering. These could include organising events such as meetups, developing relationships with GLAM or education institutions, presenting at conferences, creation of video content, our Train the Trainers programme and so on. If included in a badges backpack, badges related to Wikimedia UK could demonstrate real value to the individual, particularly if the required standards for web-based badges relate directly to Mozilla's Web Literacy Standard.

A third way these could be used is to acknowledge (and verify) membership of a group or activity, such as a student society, an education project, a volunteer GLAM / Education committee and so on. This is really an add on rather than something fundamental.

There are questions that need to be explored in relation to the use of Open Badges within Wikimedia projects. The key one is: “How would the Wikimedia UK of volunteers and the EN:WP editing community respond to the proposed use of such badges?” In my view there would be strong support from many quarters, although this isn't a given and should not be entirely assumed. It's likely there may also be some opposition The second question would be around implementation of the scheme and how this would be managed. For instance, would it be required that there is some kind of formal relationship between WMUK and Mozilla? Thirdly, there is the question of assessment. WMUK would need to have a rational and fair process of assessment to follow before the award (or refusal to award) of a badge and would need to be clear about who makes the decisions and how they do it consistently. The final question, which is probably the least difficult, would be around the technical implementation. There are plenty of clever Wikimedians who could deal with this, just as I'm sure there are many clever Mozillans who could help!

I'm more than happy to discuss this further but for now, these are just some preliminary thoughts. I hope they are useful!