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Chicago E-Learning Scheme Embraces Virtual Badges For Public Schoolers

Posted by timothy on from the credit-for-hooky dept.

theodp (442580) writes "Over at the Chicago City of Learning, children are asked to join the CPS Connects initiative and instructed to provide their Chicago Public School (CPS) student ID to "connect your learning experiences in your school and around the city". Doing so, explains the website, will allow kids to "earn digital badges that unlock new, related opportunities and can give access to live learning experiences throughout Chicago from program partners," which will serve as "an indicator of achievement to colleges and employers." The initiative aims to "get 80% of all 3rd-12th grade students to claim their accounts by January 30th." Before you scoff at the idea that a child's future could depend on his or her Digital Badge collection, consider that the supporters helping government make it happen include the MacArthur Foundation, Gates Foundation, and Mozilla, and a number of business and education partners have made public pledges committing to help accelerate the spread and scale of digital badges for learning. Digital badge-based employment has also earned a thumbs-up from the White House. It's unclear, but might make sense that Chicago kids' digital badges will be collected and shared in the citywide data warehouse being built by the 'cradle-to-career' Thrive Chicago initiative, which is working with the Mayor's Office and CPS to develop a "data system that integrates data from multiple partner agencies, links program participation data to other youth data, and provides a web interface where partner agencies can access youth data targeted on improving youth outcomes at the individual and aggregate levels." After all, the data collected will include "student demographics, school attendance, grades, student behavior, out of school time program participation, and progress to graduation." Not only that, Thrive Chicago's Leadership Council includes the interim President of the MacArthur Foundation (as well as Microsoft and IBM employees)." Update: 01/12 15:52 GMT by T : An earlier version of this story misstated the name of the MacArthur Foundation, which has now been corrected.

28 of 46 comments (clear)

  1. dissent will be recorded by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    on your permanent record.

    1. Re:dissent will be recorded by internerdj · · Score: 1

      And apparently your social media profile...

    2. Re:dissent will be recorded by Areyoukiddingme · · Score: 1

      dissent will be recorded on your permanent record.

      I'm going to hire the kid that has 100% of all available badges, including those that were only available for a limited time before s/he was born and those that are mutually exclusive because it's physically impossible to be in 3 places at once.

      That kid understands computers and the system.

  2. Never heard of it... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Polling some CPS parents and employees, none I contacted have yet to hear of this initiative.

    It's great when senior management - erm, politicians - tout something to the press without any attempt at buy-in from the stakeholders. That usually means that something won't be very good for people who have to do the work but allows "leadership" to present metrics that they are succeeding.

  3. my two cents by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Thank goodness billionaires never have any alternative motive.

  4. You get what you measure by JeffOwl · · Score: 1

    But you need to be sure that you are measuring the right things. Teaching to the test is not necessarily the best approach. Hopefully this will work out better than some of our professional certs for predicting job performance, but I doubt it. What is the problem that they are trying to solve, other than employers are lazy and don't want to look at resumes and transcripts?

    1. Re:You get what you measure by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I got "scared" reading this, look at these lines:
      "where partner agencies can access youth data"
      and
      "links program participation data to other youth data"
      and
      "student demographics, school attendance, grades, student behavior, out of school time program participation, and progress to graduation"

      Those three lines right there should have people freaking out, kids need to be kids and have time to grow up, learn, make mistakes, learn, figure out how to socialize and interact without having everything they do go on a record to permanently control, disable, or limit them. This is worse then the worst nightmare I have ever had, I got three kids and can't believe anyone would even consider this, let alone implement it.

      It's bad enough now that mistakes kids make can be on the net forever, the above will be like a death sentence to anyone who makes even a small error, or gets a medical condition for a short period of time, or has a bad experience that would be reflect in their school record. Basically, the only reason I see this existing is to "trim" the resumes for large businesses; from what I can tell, the data necessary to "help" kids is already collected, and not acted on, so why would this extra data be used any better?

      Could you imagine going to an interview and the interviewer asking you why you missed 9 months of school in Grade 12 and were delayed graduating? Can you think of any good excuse that would make the employer NOT "file" your resume with the trash? What I see happening is academics will be ignored, it will be about what "participation" you did with a business and then "hoping" they will give you a job after high school (early training and if you mess up, it's all over), here's what I expect will be the outcome:

      http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2015/01/09/federal_government_has_used_nearly_1000_unpaid_interns.html

       

    2. Re:You get what you measure by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

      As seeing that we are near a point where lot's jobs may be gone soon maybe we should have basic income / forced OT pay starting at 35-40 hours a week.

      As lot's of people may end up being job blacked list and when Mc'd goes mostly automated they will not even work there. But I think you still just need HS to join the army.

  5. Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Before you scoff at the idea that a child's future could depend on his or her Digital Badge collection, consider that the supporters helping government make it happen include the McCormick Foundation, Gates Foundation, and Mozilla, and a number of business and education partners have made public pledges committing to help accelerate the spread and scale of digital badges for learning. Digital badge-based employment has also earned a thumbs-up from the White House.

    Except that you listed exactly those reasons why one should not only scoff at this idea, but maybe also be worried about it.
    Firstly, it's a huge privacy breach. Secondly, it sounds like a privatisation of the school system. School is supposed to shape good humans and grow a decent generation. It's not a corporate-driven training ground.

    1. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 2

      I'm not terribly impressed (as is typical with this '21st century skills!' Digital! STEM!' flailing); but one thing that's worth pointing out is that, even with boring old traditional education, there is a substantial 'privatized' component. Most notably, textbooks. The fight between Texas and California(the two largest markets, as well as the two most likely to loath whatever the other one likes) hash out the outline; but Pearson and friends end up actually making the sausage and selling it to the schools. Increasingly (for reasons that totally have to do with improved student achievement and the wonderful educational capabilities of computers, and similar bullshit, not for reasons of lock-in, data gathering, or anything similarly slimy, these publishers have increasingly been rolling their own(terrible) online/electronic portions. I've had the most personal experience with 'Pearson SuccessNet'(run screaming, though I doubt that the others are any better).

      In this context, If the Mozilla Foundation wants to write some CS curriculum for some part of the K-12 system, I suspect that it'll be a breath of fresh air by comparison, as well as being cheaper than the alternative. The idea of merrily chopping up "High School Diploma-certifies that the bearer is a moderately competent human being with a general grounding in reading, writing, mathematics, history, and not being a total fuckup" into 'digital badges' sounds like something that only hard drugs and an MMORPG addiction would make seem like a good idea; but if we can get people who aren't bloodsucking and largely incompetent textbook-slingers to do some of what they have traditionally done, I'd say that it's a win.

    2. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by CanHasDIY · · Score: 1

      I found the phrase "cradle-to-career" particularly onerous.

      --
      An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
    3. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by ranton · · Score: 1

      School is supposed to shape good humans and grow a decent generation. It's not a corporate-driven training ground.

      Honestly, a corporate-driven training ground is exactly what school is. An argument could be made that post-secondary education is meant for expanding your horizons, but the goal of elementary and secondary education is to train a workforce. There is a reason why our schools are designed to create good factory workers and office drones. While I also would like school to change its primary goal, lets not be dishonest about what the main goal of public schooling has always been.

      --
      -- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
    4. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by internerdj · · Score: 1

      I'm with GP. Through my exposure to my coworkers' children, I'm seeing career specialization being encouraged during early high school. At that point in my education, I had zero formal introduction to what my career would become. To me and I think to GP, the phrase "cradle-to-career" doesn't mean that my daughter will pursue a career, but based on some "tests" my daughter might come out of the cradle with a specific career path to pursue.

    5. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by ranton · · Score: 1

      Through my exposure to my coworkers' children, I'm seeing career specialization being encouraged during early high school.

      Considering my secondary education was 20 years ago, and I don't have close friends or coworkers with kids in high school, I am curious as to what career specialization you see in high school today. My experience from 20 years ago is that high schools were moving away from vocational classes such as shop or automotive and spending more energy into college prep-like classes. I would be very surprised to hear that high schools are starting to teach plumbing, electrical wiring, carpentry, etc. with greater zeal than they did in the past.

      To me and I think to GP, the phrase "cradle-to-career" doesn't mean that my daughter will pursue a career, but based on some "tests" my daughter might come out of the cradle with a specific career path to pursue.

      Nothing about "cradle-to-career" initiatives are centered on an over-emphasis on student tracking like they do in Germany. It is about the community taking responsibility for making sure all citizens in their early 20s have been properly prepared for a fulfilling career. I found this explanation from a publication about a local Crade-To-Grave initiative:

      The goal of this work is that by the age of 23, all Evanston young adults will be leading productive lives, building on the resources, education, and support that they and their families have had to help them grow into resilient, educated, healthy, self-sufficient, and socially responsible adults.

      --
      -- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
    6. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by internerdj · · Score: 1

      Some of my coworkers have kids who are have specialties like programming, robotics, cybersecurity, or pre-engineering. When I was in high school, I would have jumped at the opportunity for that but looking back I think it would have been too young to start down a path. I knew several people who long before that made it to senior year of college or beyond and said I don't really love this thing I've been specializing in. I can't imagine where I would be if I'd made that decision at 14.

    7. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by gstoddart · · Score: 2

      You should be most especially concerned that a cartel of corporations will be able to track every detail of your child from "cradle to career". Your daughter will be tracked, collated, monetized, cross referenced, and have her information sold to whoever is willing to pay for it.

      I don't even have children, and that concerns me.

      If you see no problem with a bunch of shady players, doing stuff for which they have no evidence, and from which they will enrich their own agenda, knowing all of this information about your children ... then maybe it's you who has failed to think of the children.

      Having all this information about every damned thing they do be tracked so that it is detailed and complete before she's an adult who can make her own choices ... well, I think it's a terrible idea.

      If you think this won't be abused, or won't have affects nobody can think of right now ... you should think harder.

      Basically we're doing a huge social experiment on what happens when you raise a generation of children who have no privacy, have no say in it, aren't legally old enough to consent to it or understand it, and who will have to live with the consequences.

      I see more potential for abuse and bad outcomes than I see room for benefit.

      Unless, of course, the goal is to have your child accept a surveillance society as a normal part of life.

      Land of the free and home of the brave has become a bad joke.

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    8. Re:Of course I scoff. And I'm worried too. by ranton · · Score: 1

      Some of my coworkers have kids who are have specialties like programming, robotics, cybersecurity, or pre-engineering.

      While I see where you are coming from, classes like these are not about staring kids along a career path. They are intended to get children excited about learning.

      • I can easily see why a student would be more interested in learning physics and algebra when it is used to get a robotic arm to lift a ball for a robotics competition than it is having them solve equations.
      • The basic level of cyber-security you would teach a high school student is likely to be useful to any citizen, and is probably not intended to train them as a cyber-security specialist.
      • Basic programming that would allow students to write basic scripts, Excel macros, SQL queries, etc. are starting to become more useful to a wide range of jobs (basically anyone who would ever look at an Excel spreadsheet). My wife is a demand planning analyst with no programming training and is finding knowing SQL and VBA is very useful.
      • I'm not sure how Pre-Engineering would be any different than any other set of Calculus / Physics / etc. classes that an advanced student would take in high school, since even college Freshmen / Sophomores are usually just taking Calculus / Physics / etc. in their first two years of an engineering program.

      These classes are more job-related than just taking Algebra / History / English, but are not any more career track focused than wood shop class. IMHO

      --
      -- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
  6. Chicago, land of ethical guidelines by nbauman · · Score: 1

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
    Better Learning Through Expensive Software
    Michael Beyer
    12/29/2014

    Recently, a kerfuffle erupted over the Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel's appointed school board member, Deborah Quazzo. First the Sun Times detailed how several companies she invests in profit from business with CPS. Then, in a separate piece the Sun Times editorial board suggested she should step down because she invested in companies that do millions of dollars of business with the Board and with individual schools. Quazzo insists she has done nothing wrong and followed all ethical guidelines, and the Sun Times editorial board agrees, but nonetheless suggests she should step down.

    For me, the real story is with the types of companies Quazzo invests in, along with the types of companies attracted to the educational investment conference she hosts in Arizona every year. Nearly every company presenting at the conference sells software or digital platforms. "Edtech" has been the rage for years now, and it's only getting hotter.

    On a surface level this makes sense. We live in a digital age, and most people in education have heard the claims of our students being "digital natives", having grown up submerged and surrounded in technology. The claim is that because today's children have access to technology they learn differently. I have yet to find any scientific evidence proving this, and I've read enough to throw cold water on the claim.

    teachers have "so much to do" and "not enough time to teach", which is why they should put our students on their digital platform, where they can get assistance from a live teacher online.

    I was perplexed: What's wrong with the flesh-and-blood teacher in front of them? And who is this person that will communicate directly with our children? What are their credentials? Are they working in a call-center in a "right-to-work" state?

    The real problem with all of these companies is that they claim they are revolutionizing education. They're not. Many sell nothing more than test-prep software. Their products show "gains" on the ACT and NWEA MAP because their product mimics the test format. The learning gains don't necessarily transfer to the real world, or last much longer than the end of the school year. Parents might wonder why teachers agree to use the test-prep software, but the fact so much is riding on high-stakes tests, even the most ethical and dedicated educator will make compromises.

  7. Correction: MacArthur Foundation, not McCormick by theodp · · Score: 1

    The MacArthur Foundation, not McCormick, is the nonprofit listed on the Chicago City of Learning page, and is the foundation that teamed up with Gates and on The Badges for Lifelong Learning and Mozilla on The Badge Alliance. The Presidents of both the MacArthur and McCormick Foundations are on the Thrive Chicago Leadership Council (the McCormick Foundation is the one listed as a "contributor"). Sorry for the confusion!

  8. We don't need to stinkin' badges ... by gstoddart · · Score: 1

    The one thing I hate about social networking, especially when used in a corporate setting, is the ridiculous use of badges.

    There is nothing more annoying than a tool which is touted as something which will make it easier to do our jobs which wants to give us badges for participating.

    In the end the platform becomes utterly useless, but somehow it's trying to reward you/motivate you to keep using it to get some stupid fscking badge.

    I predict this will lead to privacy issues for the kids, and provide zero net benefit in education, because there is no evidence or research that this improves anything.

    I will be very glad when this overly-hyped "social media" starts to wind down. It doesn't add anything of value in a lot of contexts, but somehow the marketing wankers have all latched onto it as the wave of the future.

    Get get off my damned lawn.

    --
    Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    1. Re:We don't need to stinkin' badges ... by NotDrWho · · Score: 1

      Yes, but by taking an integrated approach to building social media awareness, they will build synergy and change the paradigm. Through best practices, they'll build core competencies that empower students to think outside the box of their existing ecosystem.

      And I guarantee you that the preceding paragraph is the exactly the kind of bullshit that was used to sell this turd to the politicians who approved it (along with a few generous campaign contributions, of course).

      --
      SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
    2. Re:We don't need to stinkin' badges ... by fermion · · Score: 1

      "gamerfication" is something that some educators want to try. I see no problem with this as some students will respond to this kind of motivation. I see it as worthy as grades. Long term, however, the value will be no more than grades or a high school diploma. There will be issues with validity and value. Did the kid earn the badge or was given the badge. Were the requirements for the badge the same everywhere, or were some people give lower requirements.

      --
      "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
  9. Job interview of the future? by theodp · · Score: 2

    EMPLOYER: "If you're qualified, then where are your digital badges?" KID: "Digital Badges? We ain't got no digital badges. We don't need no digital badges. I don't have to show you any stinkin' digital badges!" EMPLOYER: "Next!"

  10. hmm by argStyopa · · Score: 1

    Well, I guess if it works in one context....

    http://armorgames.com/play/289...

    --
    -Styopa
  11. Everything old is new again by rgbscan · · Score: 1

    Millenials and their "new" inventions. Back in my day we wore our merit badges on a SASH!

  12. Not without precedents by IRGlover · · Score: 1

    It is partially based on the Scout badges concept. Like those, I think that the biggest impact will be in providing a way to showcase skills rather than academic achievements. This means that they are likely to have more value for those who aren't the academic high-flyers, but who have a great set of skills, interests and achievements that they want to make people aware of.

    In some ways, the badges are an alternative to paper certificates (or sew-on patches) but, being digital, have some significant advantages such as being easily shareable, verifiable and have links to evidence for earning them. Raising awareness of the potential among the general public and employers will be key to whether they take off or die on the vine.

    Full disclosure: I've done a bit of research into the use of digital badges in universities. For anyone interested in reading a bit more, freely accessible versions of my papers should be available from https://scholar.google.co.uk/c...

  13. Fuck that noise. by jcr · · Score: 1, Interesting

    "Hey, let's put tags on all the kids and make them think it's normal for government officials to know where they are at all times! What could possibly go wrong?"

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  14. No one ever got a education from technology. by johncandale · · Score: 1

    No one ever got a education from technology. In 10 years millions of dollars will have been spent, it will never have worked right and will be dropped.
    stop putting computers in class rooms, stop having digital pads. Stop using websites to teach.