This webinar was co-organized by IFLA Continuing Professional Development and Workforce Learning (CPDWL) Section and Information Technology (IT) Section.

Doug Belshaw kicked off the webinar by sharing what open badges are, and why they’re awesome. He reiterated that open badges are evidence-based, and have been issued over 74 million times last year. The value of a badge is not always completely under the control of the issuer. Open badges are used in libraries, where they can be used for recognition, diplomas, and social media sharing. They are a three-dimensional way of doing CVs and can be used in various settings, such as the U.S. and U.K.

Perrine de Coëtlogon spoke on how the idea of open badges was first introduced by two people in charge at the University of Lille, and their open badges uses the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure (EBSI). Sirje Virkus discussed how open digital badges can be used in education to bridge the gap between formal and informal learning, and can be used for learning and skill development, community engagement, and professional development. Libraries can also use badges as part of their gamification strategies. The open badge system is a tool for evaluating students and promoting information literacy. It involves teaching a large group of students and using Openbadges.me to create templates.

Emily Rimland and Wendy Pothier (incoming and past convener of ACRL Digital Badges Interest Group) introduced their work on badges in their respective institutions. Employers are willing to look at four badges on a resume, and badges help students develop and articulate workforce skills. The campus badge program was launched in 2019, and the digital badge interest group is a mission for anyone to join. Libraries should avoid silos and assume people know about open badges. Examples of non-institutional credentialing in the U.S. and cross-institution credentialing across the U.S. are also discussed.

Recording: https://youtu.be/9cUL_cAtY6U

Virtual event materials: