Open Badges
Member Resources | Public Documents | Background |
Summary
Public Documents and Resources
- Becoming an Open Badge Issuer (3-minute video)
- Orientation to Open Badges 2.0 and 2.1 (28-minute video)
- Open Badges Specification Repository
- Open Badges Validator
- Current IMS-certified Open Badges platforms and tools
- Open Badges Community Forum
- Student Learning Data Model
Specification Documents
- Open Badges 3.0 [Preview]
- Open Badges 2.1 (Badge Connect API) - Candidate Final status
- Open Badges 2.0
Member Resources (login required)
- OB 2.0 Certification Suite
- OB 2.1 Badge Connect Reference Implementations
- OB 2.1 Badge Connect Certification Suite
- Open Badges Technical Project Group
Student Learning Data Model
- The IMS Student Learning Data Model visualizes a digital ecosystem interconnected with real-time data. Log in with your IMS member credentials to access specification-level Mapping and Discovery in the tool.
Background
Verifiable digital credentials such as Open Badges are an increasingly important means for educational institutions, employers, and other learning organizations to recognize a learner's skills, competencies, and achievements.
Designed based on learner-agency principles, Open Badges put learners in control of their credentials by enabling them to claim and display the badge on any platform. Open Badges are also portable rather than tied to one specific system (e.g., badging platform, learning management system, social media site). Open Badges contain rich metadata that provides information about the issuing organization, the recipient, and evidence that substantiates the earning of the badge.
Optional extensions to the standard allow Open Badges to include detailed information about assessments and additional information about an issuer’s accreditations relating to the credential. These elements help validate the rigor of the badge to audiences who review the credential, which may include fellow students, instructors, academic advisors, career center staff, and others within the institution, as well as potential employers and peer networks. In these ways, badge owners can own, display, store, and share their Open Badges across an open digital credentialing ecosystem.
Get Involved
In January 2017, IMS Global assumed responsibility to lead the evolution of the Open Badges specification and to ensure the sustainability of the future Open Badges ecosystem. IMS is committed to furthering the adoption, integration, and transferability of learners' digital credentials within and across institutions, non-traditional learning opportunities, and employment centers.
Contact us to learn more about how you can get involved in the Open Badges Project Group or for more information about the IMS Global Digital Credentials Initiative.