Exploring the Partnership of Mastery Paths and Canvas Credentials

[ryan_corris]

Some Background

Using Mastery Paths in Canvas is a powerful way to deliver targeted instruction to students having diverse needs within the same course. By leveraging the results of an initial source assessment, you can tailor the learning experience by releasing specific, differentiated content based on student performance. A common and effective setup for Mastery Paths is the “low, middle, high” model:

• Low scores: Students receive content focused on remediation and reteaching.
• Middle-range scores: Students engage with a mix of reteaching and new learning.
• High scores: Students explore advanced content and enrichment activities.

But what happens when you want to incorporate Canvas Credentials to award badges for module completion within a Mastery Path? With students accessing different conditional content, can they still earn the same badge? This question led me on a deep dive into the integration of Canvas Credentials with Mastery Paths, and here’s what I uncovered.

By aligning Canvas Credentials with Mastery Paths, you can create a system where students complete unique learning experiences and still earn a shared badge for completing the module’s requirements. However, there are a few essential considerations to keep in mind before setting up this integration. I’ll walk you through those key points in this post.

If terms like Module Requirements, Mastery Paths, or Canvas Credentials are new to you, I recommend reviewing the following Community guides linked below. This post assumes some familiarity with these tools to focus on how they work together to enhance student learning and motivation.

Module Requirements

How do I add requirements to a module? 

Mastery Paths

How do I use Mastery Paths in course modules? 

How do I add conditional content to a Mastery Path source item? 

Canvas Credentials

How do I access the Canvas Credentials LTI in Canvas? 

How do I create a badge in Canvas Badges? 

Setting Up Requirements and Assigning Conditional Content

When using Mastery Paths in a Canvas module, the student experience looks very different from a module that only has requirements. Let’s break down how this setup works and why careful configuration is important.

Without Mastery Paths:

If a module is set up with just requirements but no Mastery Paths, students see every piece of content in the module, even if it’s intended for different learners. This can cause confusion and inefficiency.

• In the example below, requirements are set to be completed in order.
• A student intended for Path 3 would need to work through all the content for Paths 1 and 2 before accessing their intended materials.

With Mastery Paths:

Once the Assign To section of each conditional content item is set to Mastery Paths 

and the module items are added to the three specific paths, 

the experience changes:

• Instructors will still see the module showing all content, but students will only see content assigned to their specific path after completing the initial assessment.
• Initially, students only see the following in my sample module:
  • Path Placement Quiz (Source Assessment)
  • Common Assignment for All Paths (This is a final assessment where all students submit their work after working through their specific conditional content.)

Students will not see conditional content immediately since it hasn't been assigned yet. Only after completing the source assessment will Mastery Paths release and assign the appropriate content based on their scores.

Example Student Views:

• High Score on Initial Assessment (Group 3 Content): Students will see advanced or enrichment activities relevant to their high-level path.

• Low Score on Initial Assessment (Group 1 Content): Students will see remediation and reteaching content specific to their needs.

 

Here are some key points to keep in mind for Requirements:

• Build the module with all necessary content first.
• Define the requirements within the module, specifying the tasks students must complete.
• Attach the badge only after the requirements are fully set.

By carefully setting requirements and strategically adding content to paths, you can ensure students experience a seamless, personalized learning journey while maintaining accurate badge awarding through Canvas Credentials.

Why Assign the Common Assignment to Everyone?

There are two reasons to assign the Common Assessment for All Paths in my example to Everyone.  One reason is for ease of work for the instructor.  The other reason is to make sure the badge is awarded correctly.

1) Helping the Instructor

At first, it might seem like each Mastery Path would require its own unique assignment for students to submit their work. However, it was a relief to discover that a single assignment can be added to all three paths—or simply included as a standalone item in the module, as in my example.

Why does this make life easier for instructors?

• Streamlined Grading: Instead of managing three separate assignments, you only need to open one assignment in SpeedGrader, making it much easier to grade submissions and track who has or hasn't turned in their work.
• Simplified Module Structure: A single assignment reduces clutter in the module, keeping it clean and organized.
• Better Tracking: Having one assignment ensures you can view and manage submissions in one place, saving time and minimizing errors.

If you choose the single-assignment approach, be sure to provide clear directions that guide students to the instructions specific to their path. In my example, each path includes a page titled with the words "Assignment Directions", where students find the instructions for their path-specific task. Placing these directions directly within the path content helps avoid confusion and keeps the assignment instructions focused and relevant, rather than overwhelming students by listing directions for all paths in a single assignment description.  The directions in the common assignment might state, "Please refer to the Assignment Directions page in your path for specific instructions on what to submit for this assignment."

2) Correctly Awarding the Badge

You might wonder why the common final assignment is assigned to Everyone instead of being conditionally released through Mastery Paths. Here’s the reasoning:

• If this assessment were assigned through Mastery Paths, it would initially not be assigned to anyone which would make the module empty and appear complete to Credentials. This would trigger the badge to be awarded prematurely.
• By assigning the assessment to Everyone and making it a requirement, the assignment shows up in the module prior to students taking the initial source assessment.  Therefore, the module remains incomplete until the assignment is manually graded after students complete the source assessment, work through their path's conditional content, and submit their final work.

 

Adding the Badge

Before attaching a badge to the module, ensure that you've completed these steps:

1. All content has been added to the module.
2. Module requirements have been set.
3. All conditional content has been assigned to Mastery Paths.
4. Conditional content has been added to each path in the Mastery Paths tab of the initial source assessment.

If everything is ready, it’s time to attach the badge. Here's a step-by-step guide assuming the badge has already been created by the issuer associated with your course:

Step 1: Access Canvas Credentials Setup

1. Navigate to Credentials from the Course Navigation Menu.
2. Select Setup from the dropdown menu.
3. Click the Add Badge button.

Step 2: Configure Badge Settings

After selecting the appropriate badge to be awarded, set up the rest of the page as follows:

• Canvas Integration: Enable this option to connect the badge to a Canvas module.
• Module Selection: Choose the correct module to attach the badge. (In this example, it's titled Mastery Path Module—look for the actual title of your module.)
• Trigger Type: Set this to Complete Item to award the badge when the module requirements are fulfilled.
• Badge Award Timing: Decide whether the badge should be awarded immediately upon completion or at a specified future date.

Wrapping Up

Combining Mastery Paths with Canvas Credentials opens up exciting opportunities for personalized learning and meaningful recognition through badges. There are even ways to award multiple badges within the same Mastery Path, and even have students earn more than one badge through the Mastery Path.  (Sounds like some future blog posts. 😉) However, there are some important considerations to keep in mind to ensure a smooth setup when awarding a badge by module completion while using Mastery Paths.

• Mastery Paths is a feature in Canvas that needs to be turned on: If Mastery Paths is not available in your course check with your Canvas Admin to see if it is available.
• Canvas Credentials is an additional paid for feature that needs to be purchased by your institution:  If Credentials is not in your course Navigation Menu, check with your Canvas Admin to see if Credentials is available to you. 
• Set module requirements and add conditional content to paths before adding the badge: This ensures the badge is awarded only after students complete the necessary tasks.
• Include at least one module item with a requirement assigned to Everyone: This prevents badges from being awarded prematurely due to a falsely completed module and keeps the module structure intact.

By following these steps, you can ensure badges are awarded accurately, reinforcing student engagement and recognizing their successful navigation through the Mastery Path.  Since there are various ways to integrate badging with Mastery Paths, I’d love to hear about your experiences. Have you tried combining these two tools? What worked well, and what challenges did you encounter? Please share your thoughts by replying to this post—your insights could help others navigate this powerful combination.