Abstract
The main goal of this research is to enhance the understanding of quality criteria for DB metadata for assessment and recognition as factors increasing their value in higher education (HE). To attain this goal, a case study approach centered in one HE institution was used, aiming (a) at an analysis of the status quo description of metadata of DBs issued by the HE institution to identify the value of DBs in terms of assessment and recognition procedures, and (b) a list of quality criteria for DB description metadata was proposed on the basis of academic research and on expert interview results. The results of the research demonstrate that in the institution under research, these criteria are not present in most cases of DB descriptions as teachers do not provide them. Distinct assessment and recognition criteria make an important quality factor for the DBs to become valid and valued digital credentials in HE.
Highlights
The origin of digital badges can be traced back to their historical cloth predecessors: Scout organizations used to indicate the skills that girl and boy scouts had gained and could wear them attached on their scout uniforms
The analysis has revealed the fact that to make them visible and open outside the internal learning environment of the university, a recipient of a digital badge has to export the badge to another, unrelated platform, and create portfolios of badges that can be seen on various external social network platforms
The results provided above demonstrate directions in answering the research question: which quality criteria of assessment and recognition need to be described in DB metadata to add the value of the digital credential to assessment and recognition
Summary
The origin of digital badges can be traced back to their historical cloth predecessors: Scout organizations used to indicate the skills that girl and boy scouts had gained and could wear them attached on their scout uniforms. DBs were mere graphic image representations, so they could be copied and used without sufficient proof of their authentic achievement. The new DBs (Catalano and Doucet, 2013) offer solutions to the initial learning problems by embedding metadata inside the image that provide information as to how it was earned by the learner and who the issuer was, while the technical standards allow sharing DBs with others. Numerous studies on DBs in HE demonstrate different scenarios of their use (Rimland and Raish, 2019; Roy and Clark, 2019) and new developments, as this technology gains more adaptability. Teachers at universities lack knowledge, procedures, or trust in DB development and face challenges (Kehoe and Goudzwaard, 2015; Waters, 2013), especially in the assessment strategy and recognition of the knowledge or skills that their students achieve. Contemporary DB are no longer single visual picture badges but contain metadata within that provides exhaustive information about the tasks performed, criteria of their assessment, the time needed to perform and the volume of the task, etc., that serves in increasing transparency of assessment by communicating much more information than a single grade or certificate could have
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