Badges as Certification: Teaching Certification for Graduate Student Instructors at SIU Carbondale

Graduate student instructors at research universities are often assigned teaching appointments even though they have little or no teaching experience or any real knowledge of classroom best practices. This interactive presentation will describe a pilot program that uses badges to track, share, and reward performance toward certification in teaching for graduate student instructors at Southern Illinois University. Presenters from SIU's Center for Teaching Excellence and ed-tech company Youtopia will share lessons learned at SIU and facilitate discussion of how badges reinforce engagement, motivation, and progress. Participants will use the Youtopia ToolKit to create their own badges.

OUTCOMES: Understand how digital badging can capture and communicate a student's knowledge and competencies * Recognize the need for more thorough professional development for graduate instructors * Learn how to plan and map a badge program