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ACCREDITATION

The EU has been advocating the recognition of informal learning as this kind of learning is vital for people to lead a sustained life. We have to realise that people do not only learn useful knowledge in a traditional setting of a class, but rather, people learn from all sorts of daily activities. Many organisations have evolved to address the need to recognise these informal learning, many of which follow the gamification strategy, where informal learning is rewarded by an Open Badge. The Open Badge system is widely used, and can be added to social media like Linked-In, Facebook, email signature.

BADGE ALLIANCE

It is an international network of organisations working on the specifications to provide a compatible standard for open badges platforms, and develop the ecosystem of Open Badges Community.

P2PU

The Peer 2 Peer University looks at peer learning, community and openness. They believe everyone can be an expert and conversations between learners and experts can benefit both parties to learn new things. P2PU allows organisations to create their own badges.

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How it works:

A->B->C

People can obtain the badge from one of the members who obtained the badge previously.

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Step:

  1. You will submit the materials needed to show you meet the criteria.

  2. These materials will be sent to a member who already obtained the badge via P2PU

  3. You will be given feedback and will be awarded the Badge submitted materials have been approved

  4. You are accredited upon receiving your Open Badge, and can award the Badge to others.

 

Pros:

  • You can enrol as a learner or a master

  • It allows organisations to create courses and create a Badge

  • It recognises community-based projects and eco-civic activities.

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Cons:

  • Currently no learning circles set up in the UK

BESTR

This organisation recognises the skills that employers look for and experiences that help you grow. The partner companies can build courses that fit their company, and users can take these courses and be certified with these skills.

 

Pros:

  • Simple laid out website that clearly says what it is and how to use it

  • Provides an open catalogue of badges

  • Good for organisations who want to create and issue their own Open Badge

 

Cons:

  • Not many types of badges are offered currently.

YOUTOPIA

You can set up an account for your organisation to run activities, and participants will be awarded a badge upon completion of the activity (master:CLASS)

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Pros:

  • Free to join, but also provides different paid plans

  • Tutorials provided

  • Organisers can create their own classes there, so that the program will be tailored to suit the nature of the project

  • Recognises eco-civic curriculum

  • Engaging

 

Cons:

Not the easiest layout to follow

OPEN BADGE ACADEMY

To capture valuable learning that takes place outside of formal settings’

 

  • Free app

  • Join as individual or manager

  • Can log in through Linkedin

  • Library of 60+ public badges

  • Current academies include NHS, The Uni of Manchester, O2, Public Health England, Siemens etc.

  • Also includes social enterprises like Mozilla that recognises soft skills like volunteering and being a facilitator

  • IT skills, sustainability, health, science, employability

 

Evidence examples:

  • Uploading photos to record what you have done then sharing the photos on social media with a given hashtag

  • Uploading a description of how you have achieved the skill

  • Uploading a reflective feedback

  • Uploading a video of your skill in action

  • Full lists of media types: video, image, audio, document, text and link

 

Managers can create their own academies and badges specifying what evidence will be needed to achieve the badge. Evidence is emailed to the managers so they can accredit each individual.

CREDLY

Credly considers itself as the universal way to recognize, store and share evidence of longlife achievement in any setting. The credit recognizes those who have joined and are now active members of the growing Credly community.

 

It is a free app but users have to pay for packages to gain access to different functions - starting at $495/year.

 

Pros:

  • Can log in with Facebook, LinkedIn or Credly account

  • Can sign up as individual or organisation

 

Cons:

  • Initially feels like a more complicated interface than OBA

  • Even as a free member you have to pay an annual fee for verification. 

BADGR

It recognises your achievements and you can keep track on your progress. It also uses the Open Badges platform.

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Pros:

  • Free to join, or you can pay for a pro version with analytical tools

 

Cons:

  • Not for recognising eco-civic activities

ACCLAIM

It recognises the informal learning through different ways stated by different organisations, e.g. by  attending classes, real life experience, and completing exams.

 

Pros:

  • CV worthy

  • Partnered with big companies like Adobe & IBM

 

Cons:

  • More commercialised, not related to eco-civic activities

  • Have to sign up if you want to know how it really works

  • No tutorials on how to use the website, and is slightly confusing.

MAKEWAV.ES

REMIX LEARNING

It is a cloud-based platform that allows educational bodies to safely connect children to other opportunities that are not provided by the school.

 

Pros:

  • Safe for children

  • Recognises extra-curricular activities

  • Affordable

 

Cons:

  • Still in beta version

It is an online platform recognising young people’s talents and also a tool for them to share their achievements to the public online through blogs, videos, and photos. Schools can also award students who completed extracurricular activities.

 

Pros:

  • There are badges that award eco-civic activities like learning about local food production and fundraising activities

  • Young people can share their stories through this platform safely

  • Works with organisations like WWF

  • Free to use

 

Cons:

  • Not for other organisations who wants their eco-civic activities to be recognised.

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