Last class, we learned about digital citizenship challenges and explored topics in terms of Masters project.
In terms of 3D printing, Krystal and I focused on Legal and Ethical Aspects
The pro about 3D printing is that even if people don’t have a lot of experience designing, they are able to use models that are under Creative Commons licenses.
A challenge in the elementary years of education is often related to ownership as kids often say “I made this” instead of quoting who it is from as they are unaware of the importance of giving credit to others.
As such we thought a key example would be for children to be more specific and have an outline such as:
I got this design from …..(TinkerCad, Thingiverse, Printables etc) and I modified it myself or I modified it with a teachers help. Teaching children about Creative Commons objects and rules is thus important and can be done early on. From that students can then make it their own while honouring who originally created the design.
An easy goal for students is to thus learn when they start making presentations, 3D designs etc to make sure to credit pictures and anything that is not your own. As we spoke about last year, with sites like Unsplash, Pexels, Pixabay etc.
All in all, for this post I wanted to expand on What my Digcitcommit is. To further elaborate what is one thing that I will commit to this year to promote digital citizenship in your work or life.
My Digcitcommit is to make clear connections to the digital world as much as possible with students. When teaching how to be a good friend, expand that to how to be a good friend online. How to follow rules at school and online etc. It is my belief that the earlier students learn and are aware of digital literacy, they are able to be responsible online as they can see the impact. Transferring that impact and daily situations to younger students is thus powerful as they can learn to understand how words and actions hurt just as much online as they do in person.
Finally another key challenge with technology and digital citizenship is to make all involved aware and provide tools for not only students, but also to their families so that this knowledge and awareness is practiced and shared at home, at school and in all aspects of life.
For older students, we talked about how powerful it can be to share things as simple as screen time and talk about the impacts of screentime in our daily lives. Making personal connections is very helpful and this exercise also makes me reflect on my screen use, especially during and post Covid. I think there has been a huge increase in screen times for most people and I wonder what research will say later. The balance is thus important to teach. Taking away screens may not be the solution, but teaching skills to balance and learn effective use is important.
As ISTE Digital Citizenship said focus on the how instead of don’t.
I am excited to share that I purchased my own 3D printer, in order to continue my growth and learning in order to support my Masters project plan. Here it is below. I am excited to play and discover projects for educators to use and for students to explore. 3D printers make learning engaging.
According to Cheng et al (2023), “students loved the 3D printing integrated activities and felt amazed at the 3D printed objects. The teachers felt 3D printing integration was beneficial for students, including engaging students by allowing students to hold and visualize objects, promoting hands-on learning, and enhancing students’ cognitive learning. “( p.196).
This goes to show the motivation and future of 3D printing if teachers and students feel adequately supported in terms of resources. Often 3D printing models are openly available through tools such as Thingiverse, making them accessible. With Krystal and my project we hope to make resources widely available using a Creative Commons licence to get 3D printing into the hands of kids and educators, and to create a community of educators.
Im looking forward to diving into this process of hands-on work and learning!
Last week, I chose to focus on our pod meeting, our pair meeting and our 1:1. I submitted a grant funding proposal that I plan to share in my final project and with other organizations. So instead of writing a blog post last week, I dove in to looking at funding options, locating 3D printing companies and options, as well as gathered some important quotes to help us refine our purpose, problem and question for our final project. Here is a nicely laid out MakerBot Grant Guide, that I found helpful. We have now created the outline for our paper and started to write up our stories. Along with continuing our research and finding the theoretical frameworks that we will focus on. So far we are looking at constructivism/socio-constructivism, experiential learning, self-determination theory and TPACK. 3D printing provides choice, differentiation and hands-on learning experiences and we look forward to discovering more.
This weeks blog post I wanted to focus on Open Education Resources. It was empowering to discuss the possibilities of Creative Commons licences. Although, I had some background in CC ressources for post secondary students through the workshops at the Digital Scholarships Commons, which have all lesson plans CC licensed – here is an example of the 3D Print and Design workshop. I never really found good resources that are available with this same license for teachers. As teachers, this is interesting to reflect on. For me teaching is all about collaborating and finding what best meets students needs. However when it comes to finding resources sometimes that means reinventing the wheel even if it exists somewhere as often the resources isn’t accessible or freely available. The BCTF has started to address this issue and created a shared bank of resources, similarly in the past SharedEd BC tried to do the same. It is my belief that Open Educational Resources could change education, if teachers knew about them and contributed to the growth. With many CC licences you are able to modify resources to meet the needs of your class and address growth, instead of starting from scratch. This saves time and money. Although some people and educators, may be afraid to share their personally created resources, they shouldn’t be, no resource is perfect and more brains together can benefit from it but also add to it to make it work.
Furthermore, to tie this to Krystal and I final project, we plan to make an Open Education Resource to address this need in terms of 3D printing. Many articles, addressed the concern of not having enough resources and support. However with this project there will be a community of support and lessons available.
Cheng et al (2023), for instances stated that “some challenges, including the lack of 3D printers, technical support, ability to print 3D objects, time to learn how to print 3D objects, and the difficulty in connecting 3D printing to curriculum standards and creating lessons.” (p.196).
Ultimately Open Ed Resources could benefit not only teachers but also parents, students and the broader community to seek learning and meet their needs on their own time and be able to reach out and connect with others to help as needed.
For the post 3 of my Edci 569/572 class, I wanted to consider the above question and wanted to discuss what educators need in regards to digital literacy. First of all, my belief is that not all educators are well equipped to teach digital literacy. Ultimately there are many factors and experiences of educators and some may be very well prepared and others less so. This comes down to many aspects including previous experiences, education, districts, funding, access etc. Notably when I think of this question, I think about my last 3 years of teaching and how that only in my second year of my master was I introduced to BC’s Digital Literacy Framework. This framework may have been mentioned or linked in previous courses but was never discussed, nor were we as learners able to critically think about it. With technology constantly developing, I believe that this framework and curriculum such as ADST, should of been explored in my undergrad when becoming a teacher. Should it only be ADST curriculum that uses technology… no but for many educators that is the case as they do not feel equipped to teach technology.
Another key example, is this year all our district desktops got replaced with a little page explaining how to connect the new monitors to the projector, dual screen etc. This is just one example of how technology changes and how educators are thrown new things to learn daily.
So what do educators need:
Pro D Days that focus on technology within our schools or open source apps we can use as educators.
A shared platform of resources and lesson plans for educators that are accessible and easy to teach and available in French Immersion (lack of French resources is often a problem).
University courses that look at Digital Literacy Frameworks, technology etc in all program (I was lucky enough to do the Professional Certificate in Informational Communication and Technology and get some of this experience earlier).
Have the Digital Scholarship Commons at UVic or other similar groups promote workshops and tools that use key digital skills in various education classes.
Mandate a technology competency in practicums and for yearly professional development or even September training (In 2024, I believe to do our job as educators effectively we must be able to first use some technology, so that we can teach required skills and knowledge to our students).
The plan with mine and Krystal‘s final project is to meet some of these needs so educators feel ready to teach digital literacy skills in line with 3D printing (which is our focus). All in all you can’t use a printer until you know the safety procedures and design software in order to not break or burn yourself (Clayton outlines the 3D printer well in his project . In the coming weeks, Krystal and I will look into our project and decide on our specific topic, problem, purpose, question in relation to 3D printing and Elementary and hopefully we can create some useful resources for teachers worldwide.
From my final practicum report the only mention of technology is under the below standard (6) which says that technology is used to thoughtfully deliver curriculum and does not obscure the content. Rather than the educators has provided safety measures and outlined key skills students can use with technology or something along those lines.
Valerie Irvine (Sept 2024) Modality in Education Powerpoint
In a world with lots of diversity and evolving technology and tools, I see modality in education becoming more and more towards multi-access as it focuses on needs and inclusivity. This week I really liked the connection to Shelley Moores inclusive circle images seen in this video.
When reviewing Shelley Moore’s video, it makes me think of the amount of times technology is integrated instead of purposefully used in the classroom. Similarly shouldn’t we include technology as an option for modality instead of integrate it for everyone. That is what Shelley Moore explains regarding these terms. Yet, many articles discuss the importance of integrating technology. Are we sure, we want to integrate technology instead of including.
On that same thought, I believe that based on the diverse needs students have regarding mental health, diverse abilities, family dynamics, trauma etc, access to flexible learning is needed and therefore I think and hope that the future of modality for education will shift to having more options for students and families to be able to do Face to Face when they need and shift to online when they need. Therefore the modality of Multi-Access seems like the one that will best meet all needs.
As teachers, when we were asked the following focus question, “can you think about a case where a learner was unable to access education due to modality or inflexibility in learning design?” We could all think of a specific situation, although I won’t go into depth on my blog post. Do note that access to education and learning design are very important considerations. Anxiety is very predominant in people and students today and as educators we want to be able to meet that need and all needs, but modality and systems can sometimes be in the way of doing that. With schools like PSII in Victoria BC (I know there are other schools, but my brother had a very great experience with the different structure for learning that PSII provides).
The various structures and terms that we have in the history of education is constantly being looked at and I believe as people become more aware of modalities and options; and as they become more normalized through the public system, then the preferred option may move to multi-access as it meets NEEDS at all times.
I am looking forward to this term and looking ahead at the upcoming assignments, I am excited to get a start on my final masters project. During the summer, my Masters project partner and I have dove into some research and we are keen to get started.
Furthermore, upon reading this weeks articles, The Landscape of Merging Modalities and Twenty Years of Tech. Here are some of my reflections. I really appreciated the timeline of tech that the Twenty Years of Tech walked us through. I found it very interesting especially in terms of my digital badging research background and interest and where that timeline fit within other developments. This made me further reflect on my future research of 3D printing and how 3D printing is not even mentioned in this timeline. Yet, I believe this is very important in our technology timeline. There are many sites that look specifically at the 3D printing timeline, notably this infographic provides a great summary and as we dive into our research more, I am sure we will be able to see cross connections of other technologies that are growing at similar times.
Another key aspect and consideration that was brought forward in The Landscape of Merging Modalities was that:
“We must focus on the meaning of our words in order to create a shared understanding for the future of our academic discourse, our professional practice, and our learners.”
As teachers I and Master of Educational Technology students, I believe this is a vital consideration, as meaningful design and practice is so important for our learners. In an ever changing technology world, there are many opportunities but we must carefully consider what already exist to help us all grow.
Finally as an end note, I was never aware that there was a digital literacy framework and I believe that this framework should be widely shared and looked at by all educators. As all students should get this experience and this document serves as a great guide. It is great that they say the suggested grades is just a guidance, as for with 3D printing and most technologies, I see the benefits of starting learners young to learn to use technology to their learning benefit. I wanted to share the link to the Digital Literacy Framework as it should be shared.
Hayashi Studio film is a powerful film that looks at the past of Japanese Canadians in Cumberland. As someone who grew up on Vancouver Island and had no knowledge of this studio, I found this very interesting, and it reinforced the idea that they stated in the film of “we are a community and nothing is there now” because “it is not the dominant narrative”. When reading through the Thom’s article and reflecting on the Hayashi Studio video, the importance of photos and documenting while also sharing and hearing from knowledge keepers and elders. Within my practice as a teacher, this has also been true in terms of reporting and teaching diversity (such as First Peoples Knowledge).
Something that stood out in Thom’s reading is the reference to a compass that is spinning continuously in terms of the question “Where am I?”. When first reflecting on this question you can have a specific answer but really there is lots to uncover as Aoki referred to in our previous reading. I really value the image of a circle and compass as it connects my previous knowledges together, whether that is the Bronfenbrenner theory, the medicine wheel, dance, Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK) Model and even certain aspects of BC curriculum. I value these models as it demonstrates that elements are working together and that it is a continuous process. This emphasizes that there is the ability to return “home” as pointed out by Thom who shared Aoki’s articles. Thus, in terms of this course I believe a circular model is important as we are able to return to various learnings and experiences and connect to present learnings in order to create future ideas and build on others. As such we are able to come “from a completely different perspective” (Thom, 2024, p.6).
All in all, in a world where we lack present engagement. It is my belief that we have a huge advantage in terms of being able to understand our past through pictures as there is easily accessible ways to photograph and share information online. This online global expansion, in my opinion, helps us become more aware of worldwide problems as knowledge is at our fingertips if we carefully research it and are curious about the diverse perspectives. Getting to read, different perspectives and hear of various experiences through various blogs, documents, research is thus empowering to our future and how we can be on a quest and understand our personal growth and journeys.
Thom, J. S. (2024). Understanding Curriculum Amidst Doing Curriculum Research. In P. P. Trifonas & S. Jagger (Eds.), Handbook of Curriculum Theory and Research (pp. 1–25). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-82976-6_46-2
“Music is one of the first places where racism breaks down. Music is so easy to get at: You can just sit there, relax and listen. The colour of the person doesn’t matter.” (Morrow, 2013, para 14)
I wanted to start my post with a quote that Mr. Aoki shared to CBC Globe and Mail. As someone who values the Arts, I believe that this statement is true and in my experience music and specifically dance have been great coping mechanisms that have shaped my practice. Much like Mr. Aoki I use music daily in my life. As teachers it is important to understand and dive deep into our pasts to help us understand our roots and better the future. Thus as Aoki shares it is important to uncover and understand ourselves first.
A quote that stood out to me was “I should learn to see life within the fullness of a double or even a multiple vision” (Pinar & Irwin, 2004, p.347). This in teaching is so crucial as many of our learners have diverse backgrounds and we must teach to all their needs and experiences. I believe that my experience of having a disability has shaped some of my experiences and when reading about Aoki’s story, there were similarities. I think reading and learning about past histories allows us as people and educators to understand and be more empathetic. As such doing the best you can to promote change and better the future is important and even more meaningful when you understand and can make connections to your past experiences.
In regards to the key questions where am I currently and where could I be in the future. I feel as though I am a passionate and dedicated lifelong learner who is committed to collaborate and grow. This year, I participated in not only professional practice but also more personal self-care, which has only made me stronger as an educator and person. It was a challenging year for me teaching in my classroom with numerous events. These experiences have only made me grow. In the future, I strive to be a mentor as I have had so many individuals that have contributed positively to my journey.
References
Pinar, W. F., & Irwin, R. L. (2004). Reflections of a Japanese Canadian Teacher Experiencing Ethnicity 1 (1979). In Curriculum in a New Key (1st ed., pp. 333–348). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410611390-26
Ady, K. Kinsella, K., & Paynter, A. (2015). Digital distinction: Badges add a new dimension to adult learning. Journal of Staff Development, 36(4), 24-27.
This article defines digital badges and discusses their purpose for adult learners. This journal article focuses on the implementation of a system that focuses on mastery and using digital badges. At Cherry Creek School District in Colorado, educators developed and implemented professional learning through digital badges. This study evaluated this new approach to professional learning and followed a qualitative data analysis that shared anecdotal comments of the use of digital badges. Therefore, this emphasized a personalized approach to learning and allows for professional learning to be recognized through informal credentials such as digital badges.
Alt, D. (2023). Who benefits from digital badges? Motivational precursors of digital badge usages in higher education. Current Psychology, 42(8), 6629–6640. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-02002-0
This study investigated the digital badge platform Credly. It further looks at learning theories (achievement goal and deep and surface approaches to learning) related to motivation. This research took place with Education students at a college in Israel. This study recognizes that badging does not work in all learning settings and that it is more effective to use badges alongside other assessment strategies. Additionally, it puts forward the idea of learning orientation and competitive orientation, and how these factor into badging systems. Some of the findings noticed some connections of factors including competitive orientation often associated to performance goals. This study’s results concluded that mastery and self-regulation were attained with the help of digital badges; however, this may not be the only reason for this drive. Ultimately, this study focuses on theories and learning outcomes.
Başal, A., & Kaynak, N. E. (2020). Perceptions of pre-service English teachers towards the use of digital badges. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 57(2), 148–162.
This mixed-methods study uses quantitative data to elaborate on the benefits of digital badges and qualitative data (collected through a questionnaire) to elaborate on the common themes and perspectives of teacher candidates. This study focuses on pre-service teachers located at a state university in Turkey. Additionally, the research provides examples of digital badges with descriptions of their uses and how it affects motivation of students. It also outlines some key limitations and benefits of digital badging in correlation to English Language Teachers. Ultimately, this study focuses on using badges as a form of assessment rather than based on outcome or skill development.
Cucchiara, S., Giglio, A., Persico, D., & Raffaghelli, J. E. (2014). Supporting Self-regulated Learning Through Digital Badges: A Case Study. In Y. Cao, T. Väljataga, J. K. T. Tang, H. Leung, & M. Laanpere (Eds.), New Horizons in Web Based Learning (pp. 133–142). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-13296-9_15
This paper uses a case study to address the effectiveness of digital badging on self-regulated learning in an online course. The case study evaluates competencies and connects learning experiences to lifelong learning. Ultimately concluding that badges allow students in post-secondaries to evaluate their goals, and connect their personal learning experiences and learning process. All in all, this paper shares some key ideas related to the role of digital badges with self-regulated learning and adult learners
Cruaud, C. (2018). The playful frame: Gamification in a French-as-a-foreign-language class. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 12(4), 330–343. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2016.1213268
This article follows a user centered approach to evaluate the effectiveness of gamification in foreign language classes. This study took place over an entire school year where they tested an application that was designed for the purpose of this study, with playfulness and gamification in mind. This research took place in a Norwegian upper secondary class and followed up with interviews based on the students experiences with the application. Thus emphasizing the relationship of engagement, further learning and autonomy related to gamification. In order to analyze the effects of gamification this article also discusses the four dimensions of play, Henriot and Silva theories which is an analytical framework. The design of this application was quest based and rewarded users with badges. Various badges exist in this system including secondary badges that support progression and feedback as well as more competitive nature badges which evidence in the study shared that this supported the motivation of learning that was being analyzed.
Homer, R., Hew, K. F., & Tan, C. Y. (2023). Comparing Digital Badges-and-Points with Classroom Token Systems.
This study uses experimental groups to look at ClassDojo and digital badges points systems in classrooms and control groups (class points system that was not digitalized). The research evaluates multiple grade groups from Grade 1 to 4. The main focus of this article was on badges and point systems related to behaviour and language motivation in English Second Language classrooms. The analysis connected motivation to learning and practicing an additional language, and includes survey results of both experimental and control classes. Further comparisons of the two groups also investigated the teachers perspective of using this system. Ultimately, this study uses a common resource to test its effectiveness and concludes that learners felts more responsibility and autonomy in their learning. As a result, this study promotes badges and motivation by encouraging language learning as well as positive behaviours with extrinsic motivators of earning badges.
McCollum, R. M., & Reed, E. T. (2020). Developing a Badge System for a Community ESL Class Based on the Canadian Language Benchmarks. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 23(2), 228–236. https://doi.org/10.37213/cjal.2020.30438
This article follows an exploratory study that analyzes the development of a badge system (an adaptation of Canadian Language Benchmarks into a CLB-badging system) in an English Second Language course. The author suggests that there is still further research to be conducted based on badges and language learning benefits. This article recognizes some of the challenges of language classrooms and the varying levels of proficiency. These problems and diversity of classrooms are known to be common amongst many language learning and regular classrooms. As such, it further investigates a learner centered approach that uses badges as a means to uplift motivation and assess curriculum purposefully.
Perry, B. (2015). Gamifying French Language Learning: A Case Study Examining a Quest-based, Augmented Reality Mobile Learning-tool. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 174, 2308–2315. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.01.892
A case study was used to evaluate the effectiveness of a virtual reality immersive French environment in a minority context. This study was implemented in a French course at the University of Victoria. The goal of the research was to launch and assess the first French virtual experience game using the University of Victoria campus and the French language. As such GPS, game based elements and augmented reality were used to create this learning context in order to promote French language learning. This was a prototype tool that aimed to motivate, engage and promote the learning process in an authentic immersive experience in French. Throughout the study, qualitative and quantitative data were used. Survey questionnaires, prior and post experience, were conducted. Focus groups shared their involvements indicating their positive experiences with the tool and described it as “fun, motivating, useful, relevant”. This was the beginning stages of the authors research.
Reid, A. J., Paster, D., & Abramovich, S. (2015). Digital badges in undergraduate composition courses: Effects on intrinsic motivation. Journal of Computers in Education, 2(4), 377–398. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40692-015-0042-1
This study was conducted at Coastal Carolina University in a first year English class. The goal of this study was to look at this English composition course and determine the effects of a digital badging system. The use of the badges in this study represents important course outcomes and were primarily used for assessments. Intrinsic motivation, benefits to learning and the feeling of digital badging were some of the key factors evaluated. Furthermore, this study discusses the implementation of digital badging methods as the group of professors created a system in order to promote progress and unity amongst programs. This design provides learners with specific feedback and the opportunity to resubmit. This paper also shares examples of digital badges and learning objectives, and includes various tables. Finally, the survey results of this study were clear to express the students’ feelings towards digital badges and the appendix items showcase the opinion survey questions.
Yang, J. C., Quadir, B., & Chen, N.-S. (2016). Effects of the Badge Mechanism on Self-Efficacy and Learning Performance in a Game-Based English Learning Environment. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 54(3), 371–394. https://doi.org/10.1177/0735633115620433
A quasi-experimental study was conducted to address the use of digital badges in relation to self-efficacy and English language learning performance. Ultimately, the study findings reflect positive benefits of game-based learning for English language learners. The study was implemented with Grade 3 students in Taiwan, in which it not only looks at Digital Game-Based Learning (DGBL), but it also specifically outlines badges within the game, leaderboards, stars, etc. Practicing language is therefore interesting and enjoyable as the participants feel motivated to continue their progress with the DGBL design. Accordingly, this study stresses that these designs affect the learning performance, interest and self-efficacy positively. This paper finishes by discussing further research possibilities to investigate factors that contribute to what makes learners want to collect badges.
Ady, K. Kinsella, K., & Paynter, A. (2015). Digital distinction: Badges add a new dimension to adult learning. Journal of Staff Development, 36(4), 24-27.
Quotes
Link to teaching practice/ research and tags
“Badges aren’t exactly new. Perhaps best known from organizations like the Scouts, badges can be physical representations of things accomplished or they can be digital icons associated with particular skills or tasks.” (Ady et al., 2015, p. 24) “In other words, badges tap into intrinsic motivation as they can reflect autonomy, mastery, and purpose.” (Ady et al., 2015, p. 25). “using digital badges adds a new dimension to adult learning.” (Ady et al., 2015, p. 25). “use digital badges to mark milestones for people with personal goals.” (Ady et al., 2015, p. 24).
Tags: motivation, autonomy, belonging, mastery, lifelong learning, professional learning This article is useful to my research as it looks at the benefits of badging in terms of adult learning. This article although it doesn’t specifically talk about French language learning, it will be useful as it looks at learning as a lifelong journey which is a similar process to language learning. This article will be useful for my research and practice as it emphasizes the personalization and intrinsic motivation.
Alt, D. (2023). Who benefits from digital badges? Motivational precursors of digital badge usages in higher education. Current Psychology, 42(8), 6629–6640. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-021-02002-0
Quotes
Link to teaching practice/ research and tags
“Next, an assignment was developed that included four micro-assignments, each relating to a specific skill, such as information literacy and creativity.” (Alt, 2023, p. 6632) “To create a badge-based intervention plan, course learning outcomes were mapped” (Alt, 2023, p. 6632) “Evaluation with badges enabled us a lot to plan, organize, and arrange our studies more than assignments in other courses that did not involve badges.” (Alt et al., 2023, p. 6635). “This study suggests that DBs in the context of higher education can be useful for deep learners to self-regulate their learning, however, they might be used for extrinsically driven purposes for others.” (Alt et al., 2023, p. 6639). “DBs should be perceived as a form of formative feedback that illuminates steps in the pathways for achieving learning goals, by providing milestones that can help learners regulate their learning and create their own personalized timetables and pathways for learning. Providing clear mastery goals over peer competition and status should be highly considered by badge-based intervention designers.” (Alt et al., 2023, p. 6639).
Tags: digital badges, higher education. Personalized, self-regulation, masteryThis article looks at badges in terms of higher education. It is useful for my research as it further explores badging in terms of assessment and course learning. It thus stresses the idea that learners are extrinsically motivated and seeking mastery by implementing feedback.
Başal, A., & Kaynak, N. E. (2020). Perceptions of pre-service English teachers towards the use of digital badges. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 57(2), 148–162.
Quotes
Link to teaching practice/ research and tags
“Participants found that digital badges encouraged them to work harder and be more active in class.” (Başal and Kaynak, 2020, p.154). “Collecting more badges as a record of their accomplishments and an alternative assessment method could be a reason for some students to continue working and succeeding.” (Başal and Kaynak, 2020, p. 155). “Working for badges, therefore, might help students become more enthusiastic about putting their in best efforts, participating in class, and interacting with others.” (Başal and Kaynak, 2020, p. 155). “ Besides providing external rewards, badges were also credited for increasing internal satisfaction and therefore greater interest in learning.” (Başal and Kaynak, 2020, p. 155). “The participants considered badges as an alternative means of feedback that was more fast and positive than traditional forms of feedback.” (Başal and Kaynak, 2020, p. 155).
Tags: assessment, digital badges, gamification, language, ESL, feedback This article is useful to my research as it further explores language learning and digital badging, specifically related to English teachers. This study follows a similar model to the research I want to do as it uses pre-service language teachers in a mixed study to determine the benefits of badging in language learning contexts.
Cucchiara, S., Giglio, A., Persico, D., & Raffaghelli, J. E. (2014). Supporting Self-regulated Learning Through Digital Badges: A Case Study. In Y. Cao, T. Väljataga, J. K. T. Tang, H. Leung, & M. Laanpere (Eds.), New Horizons in Web Based Learning (pp. 133–142). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-13296-9_15
Quotes
Link to teaching practice/ research and tags
“Digital Badges move one step forward in the implementation of such a social vision of assessment in lifelong learning. They consist in sets of icons, implemented in technological learning environments, which can be issued by institutions promoting educational initiatives and displayed by users to show their learning achievements” (Cucchiara et al., 2014, p. 134) “Studying the connections between open Digital Badges and self-regulation could increase our possibilities to implement strategies for assessment promoting skills for lifelong learning.” (Cucchiara et al., 2014, p. 135) “Specifically, badges allow participants to monitor their own learning process, comparing and evaluating their goals and achievements with those of other participants.” (Cucchiara et al., 2014, p. 141). “The badge ecosystem is aligned to course contents, participants activities, assessment tools, and also to the competence levels acquired by participants.” (Cucchiara et al., 2014, p. 141). “The badges should be portable, linked to open pathways of learning, and hence transparent to both the organization that releases them, and to those willing to know about the learners’ achievements.” (Cucchiara et al., 2014, p. 135).
Tags: lifelong learning, digital badges, self-regulated learning, learning design, assessment Although this study focuses on Self-regulated learning and digital badges, it has a connection to language learning as in language learning there tends to be a large amount of levels and individual plans. Due to the fact that everyone’s language experiences are different, self-regulated learning is very important . It also stresses the importance of lifelong learning, skills and competencies which aligns with language learning.
Cruaud, C. (2018). The playful frame: Gamification in a French-as-a-foreign-language class. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 12(4), 330–343. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2016.1213268
Quotes
Link to teaching practice/ research and tags
“Gamification tools are designed to help teachers engage their students in everyday class activities by making the tasks more playful while giving the students more choice and control over their learning.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 330). “They can earn badges by doing so: automatic badges for completing a certain number of tasks and teacher badges awarding good-quality work and participation. The students can also write messages to the whole class on a notification board in the application, thus creating a social space to practise the foreign language.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 334). “For example, the categories in the application carry expressions of playfulness, such as quests and badges, which refer to role-playing games and video games.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 335). “In addition, completing the easy first level of Quest 1 will immediately unlock two new quests and will reward the team with a badge.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 336). “The students can earn badges as recognition of their progress in the tasks and as an acknowledgement of quality work. Once the team has received a specific badge, it is highlighted on the Badge page of the application, while the other badges remain grey” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 336). “ […] earn a second badge and ‘be better’.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 338). “At the end of this sequence, the students are willing to create more language quizzes to earn a second badge. They are voluntarily planning on doing more tasks, especially additional tasks that are not offered by the gamified system but that they create on their own. This is an example of learner autonomy: they are taking control over the tasks and over their learning.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 339). “Another aspect of competition is found in the badges. All the students said in the interviews that they enjoyed earning badges.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 339). “ I found that this playfulness and control led to engagement in the learning activity and to completing additional tasks. These findings were consistent with the interview data, where the students expressed that they felt motivated by the gamified activities.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 341). “The findings of this study are encouraging, but there is a need for more research on the gamification of education, especially when it comes to foreign language learning.” (Cruaud, 2018, p. 341).
Tags: gamification, play-based, autonomy, quest-based, French immersion This article aligns with my research and practice as it uses gamification in French immersion classrooms. It looks at the benefits and need for more research to be done in terms of language learning and badging. This further drives my motivation to continue to do this sort of a study in terms of higher education and badges.
Homer, R., Hew, K. F., & Tan, C. Y. (2023). Comparing Digital Badges-and-Points with Classroom Token Systems.
Quotes
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“The use of digital badges-and-points might help improve ESL student classroom engagement and learning of English.” (Homer, 2023, p. 137). “The results suggest that students not only enjoyed using the digital badges and points in the classrooms, but also perceived the digital badges and point enhanced their motivation and participation towards learning and practicing speaking.” (Homer, 2023, p. 148). “The curriculum probably was easy enough to follow without the need for additional motivational tools (e.g., digital badges), hence progression in both groups being similar and relatively good.” (Homer, 2023, p. 149). “First, the use of different badges (see Figure 3) gives students a sense of progression.” (Homer, 2023, p. 150). “[badges] helps promote a feeling of well-being, and thus motivates learners to do try harder.” (Homer, 2023, p. 150). “It is possible that the use of individual-based achievement gave each learner a more personal responsibility for managing their own learning and behavior.” (Homer, 2023, p. 150). “We acknowledge that digital badges-and-points are not a universal solution to all motivational shortcomings; however this study suggests that they had a positive impact on students and teacher, considerably improving learning in some of the classes involved in the research, and positively stimulating many of the behaviors expected of student’s during lessons in all of the classes involved in the research.” (Homer, 2023, p. 150).
Tags: ESL, language, motivation, lifelong learning, gamification, engagement, This article focuses on English Second Language students and classroom badges in grades 1-4. Although for this research, I do not want to look at younger grades, I do believe that these findings are important for higher education students as well. In my opinion and experience, this is because if students are exposed to badges early they will be more willing to be engaged in language learning. It makes me think of students who are recognized for speaking French in class using tokens and points for instance.
McCollum, R. M., & Reed, E. T. (2020). Developing a Badge System for a Community ESL Class Based on the Canadian Language Benchmarks. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 23(2), 228–236. https://doi.org/10.37213/cjal.2020.30438
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“Badges are evidence, physical or digital, of an accomplished outcome.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p.231) “In a similar way, language learners can earn badges by identifying a set of desired competencies, practicing and acquiring those competencies, and then demonstrating proficiency to earn the badges.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p. 231) “Boyer also points out that a badge system can motivate students because it gives them the choice to set individualized educational goals that are relevant to their personal aims.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p. 231). “In addition to motivating students and helping them develop self-regulation, a badge system can help with self-assessment.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p. 231). “Although there are clearly benefits to encouraging such behaviours in language learners, stakeholders should never confuse a behaviour-based badge with a competency-based outcome. For badges to be meaningful as a measure of language proficiency, stakeholders need to clarify the outcome of a badge and ensure that the system includes proficiency-based badges.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p. 232). “This feedback from both more proficient and lower-level learners suggests that the language in the badge system is currently worded at a level that is accessible by more proficient learners but not by lower-level students. If the vocabulary in the checklists is not accessible, it negates the main purposes of the badge system for lower-level students.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p.233). “A CLB-based badge system can provide them with greater direction and empowerment through their language learning journey.” (McCollum and Reed, 2020, p.235).
Tags: ESL, motivation, personalized, self-regulation, language, feedback, lifelong learning, assessment This article looks at competencies and badges to address language learning in an ESL classroom. It connects increased personalization, self-regulation and motivation to badge earners. This study focuses on competency and accessibility to increase the engagement towards language learning experience. In my research, I hope to also focus on the language learning experience by encouraging participants to participate in initiatives to foster a French community where they feel self-motivated to learn the language, which is much like the findings of this article related to lifelong learning.
Perry, B. (2015). Gamifying French Language Learning: A Case Study Examining a Quest-based, Augmented Reality Mobile Learning-tool. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 174, 2308–2315. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.01.892
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“To experience autonomy, individuals need to feel they are in control, and making meaningful choices. Explorez allows learners to decide which quests and challenges to pursue, thereby accommodating a greater spectrum of learners than traditional pedagogical methods.” (Perry, 2015, p. 2311) “The extrinsic motivators of points and badges of accomplishment will appeal to certain players, while others will be drawn to intrinsic learning motivators.” (Perry, 2015, p. 2311) “Game-based feedback tools like experience points, progress bars, badges, and achievements are motivating and meaningful to students.” (Perry, 2015, p. 2309)
Tags: French, extrinsic motivation, quest-based, gamification, motivation, digital badging This article evaluates the use of a digital application that uses virtual reality to create a virtual representation of the users current environment. In this case UVIC. Students were motivated to complete quests as they received achievements through badges. This study aligns with my research.
Reid, A. J., Paster, D., & Abramovich, S. (2015). Digital badges in undergraduate composition courses: Effects on intrinsic motivation. Journal of Computers in Education, 2(4), 377–398. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40692-015-0042-1
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“In educational settings, badges often embrace a hybrid of the two assessment models in an attempt to recognize learning (both formally and informally) and motivate the learner through game-like encouragement.” (Reid et al, 2015, p. 379) “All badges followed a consistent instructional design; introduce the skill (e.g., synthesizing), provide multiple examples of the skill in use, and prompt the learner with a writing assignment requiring demonstration of competency.” (Reid et al, 2015, p. 382) “In most cases, learners were allowed two submissions per badge so that if the professor found the first submission to be inadequate, the submission would be marked ‘denied,’ and the learner could submit a revised attempt according to specific feedback.” (Reid et al, 2015, p. 382)
Tags: motivation, higher education, intrinsic motivation, learning design, competency, feedback, lifelong learning This article promotes badges as lifelong learning examples and looks at intrinsic motivation of learners. Therefore, feedback and competency is taken into consideration to see the effects of feedback and badges. With my research, much like the first quote, I want to recognize informal learning experiences to motivate learners.
Yang, J. C., Quadir, B., & Chen, N.-S. (2016). Effects of the Badge Mechanism on Self-Efficacy and Learning Performance in a Game-Based English Learning Environment. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 54(3), 371–394. https://doi.org/10.1177/0735633115620433
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“Learning practice with star icons was found to significantly affect English learning performance in the current study, which means that the more practice a student did, the more their learning outcome was increased.” (Yang et al, 2016, p. 388). “A leaderboard, which is another feature of the badge mechanism, is used for a set of challenges in order to encourage friendly competition between learners and to motivate them.” (Yang et al, 2016, p. 373). “Learning practice questions is a part of the game that learners enjoy, and by collecting more star icons, they feel that they are making progress; this also affects their learning performance and interest.” (Yang et al, 2016, p. 388). “This study also found that the students’ self-efficacy could enhance their English learning performance.” (Yang et al, 2016, p. 389).
Tags: ESL, language, digital badging, gamification, motivation, self-efficacy, personalized This article is relevant to my research as it provides examples and quotes from ESL learners related to digital badges and it comments on what they felt was engaging. This ranged from the gam mechanics of a leaderboard, to gaining stars and badges. This article closely looks at engagement, personalization, interest and self-efficacy in relation to language performance. This is likely similar to my research as I want to look at badges as increased engagement in French language learning. My study will have less focus on the gamification, however still many examples apply.
To answer this prompt, I am going to start with a story outlining a timeline of some of my learning environments.
Comparing my online and face-to-face learning experiences is interesting to consider. To put it into perspective, I have had many online learning experiences. I have experienced online experiences due to a pandemic where everything went online suddenly and I have also registered in various courses designed to be online.
First off I think it is important to differentiated synchronous and asynchronous learning as I think this plays into my experiences with online learning. I couldn’t decide which one to share so I included both.
Starting in Grade 11, I participated in Photography online which was asynchronous and personalized learning and provided many opportunities to use the skills taught and go out in nature to complete the assignments. Throughout this course I had little interaction with the instructor but still enjoyed being able to explore and follow a more personalized and self-paced learning design.
In Grade 12, I then took another asynchronous class but this time it was more academic (Biology 12 through SIDES). This course is designed online and I had more opportunities to connect with course instructor if I chose to (I think there was office hours and open sessions at SIDES for those who wished). However at the time, I was doing IB classes and just did the Bio class on my own time through Moodle I believe.
Both these experiences I enjoyed and appreciated the asynchronous aspect. I have always had motivation to learn so little to no contact with my instructors did not impact my learning. Although, I know for some they did not enjoy that there was no collaboration and limited real time-communication. It was very much an independent experience where you had to reach out for help if you needed it and you had to be motivated to complete the assignments.
Next University, I started my university experience with only in person classes and started to create a community as I transitioned to post-secondary. Then COVID hit in 2020 and I all my courses switched to online. This I would say was probably the hardest transition for everyone as classes were not designed for online. We would try to do pair shares which in zoom is not easy and has to follow more of a breakout session instead of a quick talk with your partner. The classes primary went to a very lectured format. Where we as a cohort would connect before or after as a group to just chat like in a room. Although this informal chatting was lost in Zoom, we made it work and professors transitioned to this experience we were all living.
Something that was a transition for me was at the time, I was co-president of our Education Student Association and we were planning our Career Fair which invites school districts to come showcase their teaching opportunities in a table fair format. However, during this time it was not possible and designing a whole new structure had to be made. Many considerations had to be made. First off a sign up for districts participating and also in an online format sign up for participants. If in person, we didn’t need a sign up as it was an open event people came and attended as they can. This was tricky as we had to pre-determine peoples districts of interest all while insuring no breakout room was left empty and had it more presentation style because there was no informal questions that promoted discussion and no free merch to entice students to view. I thought sharing this experience was helpful as it was challenging and I learned lots about planning an entire online event for over 200 people.
Finally, after all of this I decided I should enroll in the Information Communication Technology Professional Specialization Certificate, which I then took numerous online courses for as well as some Art Education courses. Art Education courses followed a similar experience to my Photography course in high school. These course had both synchronous and asynchronous aspects. Whereas the Certificate courses opened doors to various resources and ways to still promote communication (outside just discussion posts). Most used similar structures to our current Masters course. Using tools such as Jamboard, Padlet, Twitter, Hypothes.is, blog, breakout rooms to name a few. Most of these classes were asynchronous but it did not feel like it as you were constantly collaborating and that communication piece was prevalent and felt almost like face-to-face classes . This made me like online courses again and really value them when they are designed to be online. Ultimately, I have always valued the flexibility of online environments and the ability to return to lessons as you need to or go quickly through lessons you already understand. It really follows a personalized approach in my opinion but lacks the interactive aspects.
All in all, I believe that all learning environments have benefits and it truly depends on the learner and instructor. My experience was shaped by many factors and if you would of asked me in the pandemic if I wanted to complete another online course I would have said no. That is no longer the case and because I am motivated and use various tools to promote that collaboration, I have enjoyed all my online courses within this Masters program. Again, this is because it was designed to be online and not thrown online. The design itself is important and last term, we saw that first hand as Michael created a learning community by incorporating thoughtful tools, assignments and resources to promote connections and learning from each other.
I created this poster of some of the differences that come to mind between Face to face and online learning. I found this article interesting regarding some of the challenges for online learning .
What is only possible when face-to-face and what is only possible when online? What are the shared elements from both a face-to- face and online learning experience that create meaningful learning? Discuss with examples
To address this question, I think it depends on the design of online learning. I do believe that with today’s tools and technologies there are lots of opportunities to foster collaboration and community, which I think previously could of lacked if not well thought out. This could also be true in a classroom though as well, if design is not thoughtful. Something that comes to mind is that with online learning, I believe (although I have never taught in an online environment), that you would have to be even more organized with the platforms you are using as well as the technology you are working with. There seems to be more preparation and thoughtfulness involved. Whereas in face to face settings, it is more easy to adapt and adjust according to behaviours and needs in real time. As an example, you see that the children in your class are very wiggly, you could call a movement break. Another example, would be to do an impromptu turn and talk as the class seems to need more time to discuss or are perhaps more chatty and want to share examples. These two examples are harder to do in online settings. It is not impossible, it is just more challenging. Those are just some main examples as well as some in my poster .
I think that this article does a good job at summarizing the importance of online learning and with its title (Why Not to Quit after First Attempts into Online or Hybrid Learning) really circles back to the idea and importance of learning
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