Sometimes, we may want to offer our students recognition for their work. This can be achieved with the Achievements tool.

An achievement is nothing more than a sticker, a badge earned after meeting certain criteria. It is important to remember that these achievements only exist within the course in which they were awarded. To make an achievement exportable, we will need another tool capable of performing this function, such as Blackboard Milestone.

The use of the tool is simple: the instructor creates as many achievements as they want within a course, each requiring the fulfillment of certain criteria. Once the student meets these criteria, the achievement is awarded. Both the student and the instructor can see the achievements earned.

Creating an Achievement

To create an achievement, go to Achievements and click Add Badge to Course. Give your badge a name and add a description.

Then you can choose the badge image or select your own. At this point, you can upload an image from your PC, select one from Unsplash, or even create it with generative AI.

Finally, add the necessary requirements to earn the achievement by selecting the gradable item and the required grade threshold. You can add multiple items if you wish using Add Performance Criteria.

You will always see a summary of what you have created on the right side of your screen. To finish, click Publish.

Reviewing Who Has Earned an Achievement

As mentioned above, when a student completes the requirements to earn an achievement, it is awarded to them and they can view the achievements (earned and to be earned) by clicking on Achievements in the course's top menu.

As instructors, we can review how many students have earned an achievement as well as who they are.

From Achievements, we will see a summary of the badges created:

By clicking the three-dot icon, we can delete or edit the badge, and also view the list of recipients:

Clicking on Recipients will show us the list of users who earned the achievement along with the date it was earned.