The Power of Badges in Shaping the Future of Learning
In today’s world, we need to keep up with the ever-evolving civic life and job market. To respond to this need, Cities of Learning (CoL) is a community of practice that provides a platform for diverse learning opportunities, formal, non-formal and informal and recognises the skills learned through these experiences. At the recent CoL Community of Practice meeting, representatives from various organizations discussed the many possibilities that CoL and OpenBadges offer.
Starting CoL and Stakeholder Engagement
One of the discussions centred around getting started with CoL and engaging stakeholders such as municipalities. The participants shared their own experiences and challenges and discussed ways to overcome them. They highlighted the importance of investigating and discovering the platform and how to engage others. The group also discussed what works to engage target groups and shared good examples and a starter kit.
Skills Recognition and Validation
Another group focused on how to support organizations from various sectors to start using badges and the CoL platform. The participants discussed the importance of knowing organisations’ specific practices and how digital solutions can help. They emphasized the need to reach out to organizations that the participants are personally engaged with and to start issuing badges to learners.
Badge Awareness in the Marketplace
The final discussion was about raising awareness about earned badges in the marketplace. The participants shared their ideas for using badges in various contexts, such as arts awards, home education, and library educational programs. They also discussed ways to motivate teachers and educators to embrace the use of badges and the benefits they bring.
In conclusion, the Cities of Learning Community of Practice meeting was an excellent opportunity for representatives from different organizations to share their experiences and ideas. It highlighted the power of badges in shaping the future of learning and how CoL and OpenBadges can support non-formal learning opportunities and skills recognition. The discussions and ideas shared will be valuable in supporting the growth and development of the CoL network.
Disclaimer: this blog post was created with the help of ChatGPT and then edited by the Cities of Learning communication team
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