Achievements in Blackboard Ultra

Achievements Description and Purpose 

Extrinsic motivators can be a powerful tool for encouraging students to work hard in your courses. Recognizing a student's accomplishments is one of the best rewards for a job well done. You can use achievements to keep students motivated and congratulate them for how they've participated in your course.

Achievements include the following features: 

  • Create course badges and set criteria for students to earn the badges 
  • View which students have earned a course badge 
  • Students can see the requirements to earn a course badge 

The Achievements tool supports learning in multiple ways. The feature allows: 

  • Support self-directed learning pathways. You can give learners tasks, goals, or quests with clearly defined criteria. Learners can have more flexibility in how they approach their activities. They might choose to focus on a particular area of development before moving on to another. This can replace a set sequence, personalizing the learning. 
  • Engage and motivate learners. Some learners respond to extrinsic motivations. They feel accomplished when they complete tasks. Some teaching methods add game mechanics to a course this way. 
  • Adds transparency to learning.  Course badges that define skills and competencies in a course can help students in several ways 
    • Students can better view how they're developing competencies 
    • Students can better understand and articulate to others what they're learning 

How to Access

Who is eligible?

This feature is available for both students and instructors in Blackboard Ultra. The achievement tab for students and instructors can be found next to the "Groups" tab at the top of the course. Once an instructor creates an achievement, students will be able to see the requirements needed to earn a badge. 

Where and how do I access it?

Students and faculty can access the achievements feature by going into their course through the MySHU Portal and logging in with their full Sacred Heart email address and password. Once logged in, click on the Courses tab on the left side of the page and enter into any current course. The achievements tab will appear at the tab of the course next to "Groups"

 

 

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