OK, for the sceptics about badges: suppose you saw a set of badges such as the one illustrated at right posted on someone's website. Suppose, further, that you recognized the badges (just as you now recognize the icons you see here, ranging from TED to Twitter to iChomp to WordPress) and you knew that each of them represented roughly one university course's worth of learning. And if you clicked on them, it would take you to a certificate on the credential provider's website attesting that so-and-so did indeed earn the credential. And where the badge colour and lable described a level of achievement (ranging, say, from 'basic' to 'expert'). Would not that simple visual representation be far superior to a single line on a c.v. like "BA (hons) Philosophy"? Of course it would. And a set of recognized credentials would be worth their weight in gold. Some would be conferred by by experts (like Thrun and Norvig). Others would be conferred by community recognition ("published an article in Nature"). Others still by mastering absolute standards ("ran a 2K in less than 5 minutes"). Badges would be dated (of course). You mean you wouldn't recognize a cluster of badges like this as equivalent to a university degree? A PhD? Seriously?
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