Introduction
Digital badges can be a fantastic way to acknowledge and reward the accomplishments of online learners who have successfully completed their courses. They serve as a means of recognition and a powerful way to promote your brand and enhance the visibility of your online courses.
Litmos LMS is a user-friendly, cloud-based platform that allows you to effortlessly create, manage, deliver, and track a wide range of training programs, whether self-paced, instructor-led, or a mix of both. With features encouraging active learner participation, collaboration, content creation, and seamless integrations with various applications, it's a versatile tool for educational organizations.
Certopus is a digital credentials platform that lets you design, generate, store, and send verifiable digital badges and certificates from your fingertips. Certopus is fully compliant with the Open Badges standard v2.0, which means that the badges you issue are not just images but contain important metadata that makes them globally verifiable. Certopus also provides integrations with popular learning management systems, including Litmos LMS. This article will explain the limitations of issuing badges with LITMOS and integrating Litmos and Certopus.
Issuance Process of LITMOS Badges
Issuance Process of LITMOS Badges
- To begin, the owner of the Litmos account must enable the gamification feature by navigating to Account > Litmos Features and clicking on the Badges/Gamification tile.
- Next, the account owner must create a gamification item, which can be a badge and/or points, by clicking on Add Badge/Points and filling in the required fields. Various events, such as course or learning path completion, module completion, or posts in the discussion group, can trigger the gamification item.
- Optionally, the account owner can also create a gamification level, a group of gamification items that denote progress for a learner. The gamification level can be created by clicking on Add Level and selecting the gamification items that must be completed to attain the level.
- Once the gamification items and levels are set up, the learners can earn them by completing the relevant courses, learning paths, modules, or posts. The learners can see their achievements in their Achievements tab, and the administrators can see them in the learner’s profile and the quick reports area.
- The account owner can also enable the badge for social sharing, allowing learners to share their badges on social media platforms. To do this, the account owner must navigate to Account Settings > Litmos Features > Badges/Gamification and check the box for Assign a badge for this achievement.
Limitations of Issuing Badges with LITMOS
Some of the limitations of issuing badges with Litmos are:
- Lack of Tagging Feature: One notable drawback in Litmos is the absence of a tagging option. This means learners cannot easily search for or categorize the badges they've earned using categories. As a result, assessing progress and delivering feedback can become more cumbersome and time-consuming than what learners might expect.
- Absence of External Recognition: One of the most significant downsides is that Litmos badges remain confined to the Litmos platform. They lack the functionality to be shared or showcased on other platforms or social media networks like LinkedIn, Facebook, or Mozilla Backpack. This can severely curtail the value and impact of the badges for both learners and potential employers, as the recognition and validation don't extend beyond the Litmos environment.
- Limited Customization: Another limitation of Litmos is its restricted customization options. While users can upload their own badge images and define badge names, descriptions, and point values, they are not granted the flexibility to customize badge criteria, set expiration dates, specify alignment, or provide evidence for the badges. This limitation can frustrate those who seek to tailor their badges to specific requirements.
- Inability to Share Badges: One notable limitation of the Litmos platform is the absence of a badge-sharing feature. This means learners cannot easily share their earned badges with fellow learners or instructors within the Litmos ecosystem. This lack of sharing functionality can negatively impact learner motivation and engagement and hinder the visibility and recognition of their accomplishments by their peers and instructors.
- Absence of Badge Verification: Litmos lacks a badge verification mechanism. This means there is no built-in way to confirm the authenticity or validity of the badges issued within the platform. Consequently, anyone can easily create counterfeit badge images and falsely claim to have earned them through Litmos. This loophole can undermine the credibility and value of the badges, eroding trust in the system and the reputation of the badge issuer.
- Irreversible Badges: Another drawback is the inability to revoke them once earned. Once a learner has received a badge, instructors or administrators cannot remove it, even if the learner violates course rules or changes in badge criteria or requirements over time. This inflexibility can pose challenges in situations where adjustments are necessary to maintain the integrity of the badge system.