{"id":2173,"date":"2025-11-20T12:55:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T17:55:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/?p=2173"},"modified":"2025-11-20T12:55:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T17:55:12","slug":"introducing-achievements-in-blackboard-ultra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/introducing-achievements-in-blackboard-ultra\/","title":{"rendered":"Introducing Achievements in Blackboard Ultra"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0looking for a fun, motivating way to boost student engagement,\u00a0consider using the\u00a0new Achievements feature in Blackboard Ultra<\/a><\/span>.\u00a0From the Achievements tab, faculty can\u00a0create course\u00a0achievement\u00a0badges\u00a0and set criteria for student\u00a0success.\u00a0While\u00a0faculty can review which students have earned a course badge, students can also see the requirements for how to earn a badge and\u00a0monitor\u00a0their\u00a0earned\u00a0and unearned badges.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\"This<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Monitor Progress Toward Achieving Course Outcomes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One powerful use of\u00a0course achievement\u00a0badges\u00a0in college courses is to mark clear progress toward achieving the course outcomes. When students complete\u00a0the specific\u00a0assignments or activities tied to a particular outcome, earning a badge can provide recognition that reinforces the purpose behind the work. This approach helps students see the direct connection between\u00a0what they are doing and what they are expected to learn, making the\u00a0somewhat abstract\u00a0concept of \u201ccourse outcomes\u201d more tangible. It also allows instructors to highlight\u00a0and even prioritize\u00a0particular assignments\u00a0that will directly contribute to students\u2019 achievement of learning goals.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choose Your Own Adventure<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Another\u00a0option\u00a0is a \u201cchoose your own adventure\u201d approach that gives students flexible ways to\u00a0demonstrate\u00a0their learning while still meeting course outcomes. For example,\u00a0by offering a menu of 10 possible badge-earning tasks and allowing students to select any 6 or 7, instructors can\u00a0support learner autonomy and differentiated learning pathways.\u00a0In this approach, students can choose activities that align with their interests and strengths, whether\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0completing a case study, leading a discussion, creating a multimedia explanation, or completing community-engaged learning projects.\u00a0Ideally, every\u00a0pathway\u00a0is intentionally designed to achieve the same learning goals, ensuring that all students reach the required levels of\u00a0proficiency\u00a0while feeling a stronger sense of ownership over how they get there. This model keeps the course both rigorous and engaging, supports the\u00a0Universal Design for Learning Framework\u00a0(UDL)<\/span><\/a>, and adds a layer of personalization that often encourages students to persist in their learning.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Competency-Based Learning<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Badges can also be awarded for earning a particular number of points or reaching a specific performance threshold on key assignments. In this model,\u00a0achievement\u00a0badges\u00a0may be viewed as\u00a0motivational markers that reward effort, improvement, and\u00a0competency.\u00a0Students can track their progress toward earning a badge \u2013 such as scoring above average on quizzes, tests,\u00a0exams\u00a0or projects\u00a0\u2013 which may encourage consistent engagement with course\u00a0materials. Performance-based badges may be especially helpful in courses that use a point system\u00a0by encouraging students to set incremental personal goals\u00a0that\u00a0indicate\u00a0whether they are making good progress\u00a0or whether\u00a0they may need\u00a0some\u00a0additional\u00a0academic support.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Career Readiness <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Another way to use\u00a0achievement\u00a0badges is to recognize the development of career-readiness\u00a0skills\u00a0such as leadership, communication, teamwork, and critical thinking.\u00a0\u00a0These skills often\u00a0emerge\u00a0through\u00a0participating\u00a0in group projects, peer feedback or peer teaching experiences, reflective writing,\u00a0or\u00a0problem-solving activities. Awarding badges for career competencies helps students\u00a0identify the\u00a0transferable skills they are building through coursework.\u00a0This approach highlights the value of course activities beyond content knowledge, reinforcing that the classroom is also a\u00a0place to cultivate\u00a0the skills employers most want to see.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Achievement badges can bring clarity and energy to college courses by making learning outcomes visible, motivating students, and adding a sense of personalization to their progress. If you’re ready to give achievement badges a try, start small. Experiment with achievement badges in a single course or for a single course project and see if it changes the way students engage with the content. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0looking for a fun, motivating way to boost student engagement,\u00a0consider using the\u00a0new Achievements feature in Blackboard Ultra.\u00a0From the Achievements tab, faculty can\u00a0create course\u00a0achievement\u00a0badges\u00a0and set criteria for student\u00a0success.\u00a0While\u00a0faculty can review which students have earned a course badge, students can also see the requirements for how to earn a badge and\u00a0monitor\u00a0their\u00a0earned\u00a0and unearned badges.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2176,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-content\/uploads\/Course-Achievements2-1.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2173"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2173\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2177,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2173\/revisions\/2177"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}