[Credentials/Badges] Pathways - need to allow set up a blueprint course or a master course with pathways

[lynne_whitley]

This idea has been developed and deployed to Canvas Credentials

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Problem statement:

Canvas Credentials does not allow teachers/admin to set up a blueprint course or a master course with pathways, assignments and requirements that will copy to associated courses. Each section must be handled individually. Without the ability to add badges/pathways and copy, there is no way to scale digital credentials. We have been using Badgr in our courses for some time now, prior to it being acquired by Canvas and becoming Credentials. While we are excited to offer badging in our courses, but the current process for incorporating the badges is quite prohibitive.

Proposed solution:

Allow users to fully set up Canvas Credential pathways and link to assignments and incorporate requirements and enable those to be copied when blueprints are associated to new courses or simply copy from a master course to a new blank course. The first step - Enabling Badging in the course - requires several clicks and the addition of security keys in each active section of the course. Although it takes at most 2 minutes per course, it is still required with our current setup. We could avoid this by enabling badging across the org, we would prefer not to do so at this time. Once badging is turned on, the teacher or staff member must add the pathway (existing in Badgr) and attach the assignment and requirements to each. We have adjusted our course creation process to limit the number of badges as this can take over 20 minutes per course to set up. With over 130 courses and 510 sections this spring term, following this process would be impossible if we hoped to incorporate badging in all courses. What we are hoping for is the ability to set this all up in the blueprint course and have it copy to each associated course. When a blueprint course is associated now, all module prerequisites and requirements copy over along with course content, including new quizzes. If we enable badging at the org level and have the pathways and criteria set up in that blueprint course, why can’t it copy into each associated course? Adding this feature would allow us to fully utilize Canvas Credentials across all courses and streamline the process of adding them to active courses. We believe that this feature would benefit not only our organization, but other Canvas users as well. Without the ability to add badges/pathways to a master course and then copy, there is no way to scale digital credentials.

User role(s):

admin,instructor

[DoraJekkel]

Thank you for sharing your idea! We reviewed your contribution and the Product Team feels that it aligns well with our existing theme 'Canvas Credentials integration with course copy and blueprint functionalities'. Please subscribe to that theme to receive updates.

[KristinL]

Comments from Instructure

For more information, please read through the Canvas Badges/Credentials Release Notes (2023-12-04)