Jonathan Finkelstein, director of the BadgeOS Project, was recently featured in a video produced by the NYC Department of Education to help introduce educators to the impact of digital badges in K-12 classroom settings. The interview was conducted and video produced by Joy Nolan and Brianna Lawrence of Connected Foundations and the Office of Postsecondary Readiness at the NYCDOE.

Questions addressed during the video interview include:

• What are badges? [00:00]
• Are badges a new platform for learning? [00:30]
• How are badges “game-changing” for schools? [01:58]
• How do badges support academic and personal behaviors? [04:37]
• How do badges motivate their students to do their best? [07:15]
• How can badges be used for career and college readiness? [09:30]
• Could badges replace grades? [12:55]
• What advice do you have for educators getting involved with badges? [15:33]

The video was incorporated into an online professional development workshop series during which educators designed their own badge constellations for blended classroom programs. New badge-empowered learning topics to emerge from the workshop include programs on health, government, algebra, and even the “chemistry of urban life”. We’ll report on some of those programs as they progress.