Today, most of us use the concepts of digital certificates and digital badges as online education opportunities increase. Digital badges and certificates that have a digital place in our lives actually have a non-digital history in themselves. The certificates used in the early times emerged traditionally, but in the process, they became digital with the digitalized world. Before badges and certificates became digital, they took a place in our lives with an important construction phase effort in education processes. They are concepts that we are familiar with in all areas of our lives, regardless of the sector, as they have a wide variety of and purposeful functions. For example, the badges used in the military were mostly used to indicate rank, while the badges used in scouting were used to indicate job separation or experience. At the same time, we benefit from certification processes, from showing the certificates that are intertwined with our lives, from showing the level of English to showing the accuracy and source of the various course training we receive. With the certification processes that have become digital, most of the effort used in their production has been reduced to a few minutes with clicks and the process has become incredibly easy.
Certification processes that change with technology have brought digital certificates and digital badges to our lives with the changing age. These digital certificates and digital badges that have entered our lives have allowed the history of this certificate to change within itself. While previously the certification processes changed within themselves and their resources were validated by different providers, these processes have now become more digital in the digital age. The aforementioned certificates were not actually just a design as they used to be. There is also the option of adding training proofs and details to the certificates by labeling what was learned from which training with the smart certificates provided. In addition to all these, we can show the skills gained from the course represented by the certificate in smart certificates and present videos, articles, and other materials related to this course as evidence of the learning provided. It also offers the possibility to add the issuing institution, the arranged and due date, the course duration, and other even more specific details.
In today’s age, along with social media, certification processes have also changed within themselves. With these new smart certificates and badges used now, social media sharing can be done easily, and users can add their certificates to all social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter, as well as to their LinkedIn profile. In the history of this whole process, people have started to use badges and certificates as prestige indicators in their digital profiles.
As with any certification process, trust is of great importance. Although the validation of certificates has changed in itself from the past to the present, there is a validation status for smart certificates and badges. Although the control of this situation was more complicated in the past, now the control of the whole process has become much easier with the serial numbers. Verification of smart certificates and badges produced with special serial numbers has also become a much simpler process.
As a result, the history of digital badges and certificates started traditionally, but by making their processes easier, they adapted to the changing world and evolved into a digital one.
