Help turn the open web into a rich learning environment: the Jetpack for Learning Design Challenge
Frank Hecker
and explore new possibilities for using Firefox add-ons to support
learning online, by participating in the Jetpack for Learning Design
Challenge sponsored by the Mozilla Foundation with support from the John
D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation as part of its digital media
and learning initiative.
We are looking for designers, educators and software developers who want
to turn their innovative ideas about learning online into working
prototypes in the form of Firefox add-ons. We'll help you refine your
designs and teach you how to create Firefox add-ons using Jetpack and
other Mozilla technologies. Participants creating the best prototpes
will be invited to the Jetpack for Learning Design Camp and the SXSW
Interactive conference in March 2010.
How does it work?
Come up with an innovative idea for a Firefox add-on that brings
personal learning features to the open Web. Create a mock-up and submit
it on the Jetpack for Learning Design Challenge web-site before midnight
(US Pacific Time) on 27 November 2009. Based on the quality of
submissions, up to 60 participants will be invited into a 6-week online
course that covers design/UX and technical aspects of add-on development
and will help you turn your mock-up into a working prototype. We'll
select the most promising prototypes and invite up to ten of their
creators to further refine their add-ons at a face-to-face Jetpack for
Learning Design Camp in March 2010 and to attend SXSW Interactive
immediately following the Design Camp.
What kind of ideas are we looking for?
We are looking for your ideas on how Firefox add-ons, preferably add-ons
created with Mozilla's Jetpack technology, can turn the web browser into
a platform for rich personal learning on the open web. You are not
restricted to work on any particular type of application. Here are a few
examples to get you started ...
* Turn social bookmarking and page annotation into effective learning
tools (for example by including peer-assessment features)
* Allow users to easily compile personal e-portfolios (for example, by
combining their own works � photos, comments, articles�with testimonials
others have written about them)
* Let the browser suggest relevant materials for learning (for example,
by automatically identifying additional articles based on
what sites a person visits or which topics they search for)
* Support social learning communities (for example, by making it easy to
find and connect with others who share similar learning interests)
Who should apply?
Participation is open to individuals and teams, but we especially
encourage submissions from inter-disciplinary groups (designers,
educators, and software developers). You don't need to be a computer
geek, but participants are expected to implement their ideas as Firefox
add-ons, which will require writing some software code.
You must be at least 18 years old in order to participate in the Jetpack
for Learning Design Challenge. You must also make your submission and
your add-ons available for public use under open licenses. See the
Jetpack for Learning web site for complete rules.
Contact
You can find more information about the Jetpack for Learning Design
Challenge, including how to apply, on our web site:
http://design-challenge.mozilla.org/jetpack-for-learning
Mozilla Foundation
The Mozilla Foundation is a non-profit organization that sponsors the
Mozilla project and devotes its resources to promoting openness,
innovation and opportunity on the Internet. We do this by supporting the
community of Mozilla contributors and by assisting others who are
building technologies that benefit users around the world.
Through the Mozilla Education initiative we work with computer science,
design and business schools around the world to create learning
opportunities for a new generation of Mozilla community members and help
to drive a new wave of participatory, student-led learning. By doing
this we hope to move closer to Mozilla's broader goal of making
openness, participation and distributed decision-making more common
experiences in Internet life. More information is available at
education.mozilla.org.
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
The MacArthur Foundation supports creative people and effective
institutions committed to building a more just, verdant, and peaceful
world. In addition to selecting the MacArthur Fellows, the Foundation
works to defend human rights, advance global conservation and security,
make cities better places, and understand how technology is affecting
children and society.
In 2006 MacArthur launched its digital media and learning initiative to
explore how young people are changing as a result of digital media use
and what the implications are for libraries, museums and schools. More
information is available at www.macfound.org/education.
--
Frank Hecker
hec...@mozillafoundation.org