[OLPC.ch] Project proposal: Competitive Learning Within A Mesh Network

[Johannes Ponader]

Hi,

I'm a software developer from munich and are currently diving into an XO
activity development project with a small team.

I'd be glad to get some tips or hints to polish my project proposal to join
the contributors program.

 We want to submit this proposal in a few days. Perhaps you see something
that we've overseen, or you know people who work on a similar project or
people we should get in contact to.

There is another munich team working currently on an XO project. Perhaps we
could establish a Lending Library here in some time, and could coordinate
our actions with volunteers in Switzerland.

I personally travel to the region of St. Gallen in regular periods, as I
have a friend (and a godchild) there. Perhaps there are volunteers around I
could get in touch with?

I appreciate every hint or help from you.

Thanks a lot!

Johannes Ponader.

P.S. Feedback could also be posted on
http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Talk:Competitive_Learning
 The project proposal is published on
http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Competitive_Learning



--

Project Title & Shipment Detail

*Name of Project:*

Competitive Learning within a Mesh Network
[edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=2>
] Team Participants

*Name(s) & Contact Info: (include all email addresses & phone numbers)*

Johannes Ponader, programmer (development), pedagogue for game/drama/theatre
in education

Mathias Krebs, programmer (testing), pedagogue

Patrick Hupka, programmer (interface design, usability), web programmer

*Employer and/or School:*

Project KUSS („Kinder, Unterricht und Systeme für Schulerfolg“ - Children,
Teaching and Systems for Success at School), provided by the City of Munich

*in partnership w/:*

ETC - Euro Trainings Centre
80331 München

*and*

Hauptschule an der Bernaysstraße
80937 München

*Past Experience/Qualifications:*

In our team, the following qualifications come together:

Application development (C, C++, Python, Java, Perl), server/web development
(PHP, Javascript, Ajax, Flash/Actionscript), database development (MySQL,
Access), web design, interface design, interaction design & animation,
learning research, learning techniques, drama/theatre and games in education

 [edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=3>
] Objectives

*Project Objectives: (WEB-PUBLISHED <http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Projects>)*

The project's aim is to develop an activity framework for competitive
learning/training activities over the mesh network.

Two or more teams within a learning environment compete against each other.
They can see the learning/training effort of their own and of the other
teams, compare their own achievements, gain awards for achieving teacher
defined learning/training goals. They see in real time which team members of
their own or other teams are actively learning at the moment and which
challenges their team and the other teams are actually facing.

By getting immediate feedback over the learning/training effort - as well
over their own, as over their team's and as over the effort of the competing
team(s), pupils can be motivated to learn in a special way.

Into the activity framework for competitive learning/training a model
learning/training activity will be integrated. This highly customizable
question/answer activity can be used to train foreign or first language
vocabulary, maths, or any other knowledge that can be training in a
sophisticated question/answer style.

The learning/training activity uses experience from learning research to
gain a maximum of learning effect within the given time dedicated to
learning by the pupils. As well as the pupils, the teacher(s) can see the
training achievements of the class and can retrieve detailed reports about
the successes and the learning gaps of the class - via the mesh network
he/she can even see from home in the evening which lessons are understood by
the pupils and which have to be deepened the next day.
 [edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=4>
] Plan of Action

   1. Basic development of activity framework for competive
   learning/training over a mesh network.
   2. Internal tests and development within the team.
   3. Integration of a simple model activity into the framework.
   4. Beta release to the public and pledge for public testing/bug reports.
   5. Development and integration of a demo interface design attractive to
   the first target group.
   6. Intensive testing within a class of 15 pupils.
   7. Integration of a sophisticated model training/learning activity.
   8. RC and Pledge for public suggestions for additional interface designs.

   9. Further development

[edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=5>
] Needs

*Why is this project needed?*

Competitive training is a highly motivating technique for pupils to train
their knowledge. In combination with the XO mesh network this technique can
be smartly established together with real time performance monitoring.

*Locally?*

In our class 15 pupils are altogether. They all have some bigger gaps in
their basic knowledge in several subjects. To close these gaps, standard
training techninques (vocabulary cards etc.) are limited in their effect,
because the pupils lack motivation and/or basic selforganization skills to
use these techniques. In addition to that, the parents do not always have
the ressources to help the pupils in their daly home training quota.

On the other side, our pupils are very open to standard score-point-like
and/or competing team motivation techniques. The competitive training
activity shall motivate the pupils to close the gaps and to achieve better
success in school, without the need of an intensive parents' help or the
help of private tutors.

*In the greater OLPC/Sugar community?*

Other pupils around the world have the same need for a highly motivating
learning environment, which can be easily used without the help of parents
or tutors. In some countries there even aren't the ressources to have
vocabulary cards or the personal coaches for every pupil, but there could be
one laptop per child to do this job.

*Outside the community?*

The motivation technique used in this project can be a model even for
learning environments outside the OLPC community.

*Why can't this project be done in
emulation<http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Emulating_the_XO>using non-XO
machines?
*

The project makes use of the XO-specific mesh network and shall be
integrated into the XO philosophy, with one laptop per child in the class.
To see how the motivation increases when the pupils use the activity on
their own XO device, original material should be used.

*Why are you requesting the number of machines you are asking for?*

We need four laptops to establish two competing client teams consisting of
two devices each. One laptop should host the teacher's console.

*Will you consider (1) salvaged/rebuilt XO Laptops:* Yes.

*Will you consider (2) damaged XO Laptops?:* No.

*Which generation of XO Laptops do you need (XO-1.0 or XO 1.5)?* Please
provide at least one or two 1.5 devices to be able to test the activity on
the latest hardware.
[edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=6>
] Sharing Deliverables

*Project URL—where you'll report specific ongoing progress:*

   - Alpha state: Learning Within A Mesh Network
   http://www.johannesponader.de/Competitive_Learning_Within_A_Mesh_Network<http://www.johannesponader.de/Competitive>
   - Beta and RC-State: OLPC Git Repository (http://dev.laptop.org/git)

*How will you convey tentative ideas & results back to the OLPC/Sugar
community, prior to completion*

   - Community mailing list
   - OLPC wiki
   - wiki on Project URL

*How will the final fruits of your labor be distributed to children or
community members worldwide?*

   - Open Source
   - RPM-Package

*Will your work have any possible application or use outside our community?*

Yes. An internet server could to some extent take over the functionality of
the mesh network, if the framework shall be ported onto different platforms.


*How will these people be reached?*

   - Open source
   - Packages

*Have you investigated working with nearby XO Lending
Libraries<http://wiki.laptop.org/go/XO_Laptop_Lending_Libraries>or
Project
Groups <http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Groups>?*

Unfortunately, there are no Lending Libraries in Germany. We are in contact
with the German and Austrian Grassroots Group.
[edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=7>
] Quality/Mentoring

*Would your Project benefit from Support, Documentation and/or Testing
people? *Yes (see above - 4. Plan of Action).

*Teachers' input into Usability? *Yes.

*How will you promote your work?*

We will be embedding the project into a class of 15 pupils, which is part of
the so-called "KUSS"-Project. As the KUSS-Project is a model school project
provided by the City of Munich, reports about the project reach the Munich
City Council in regular periods. When we are successful, we can think about
establishing a XO Lending Library in Munich or to introduce a major OLPC
model project in one or more municipal school(s) in Munich.

*Can we help you with an experienced mentor from the OLPC/Sugar community?
(WEB-PUBLISHED <http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Projects>)*

Yes, that would be cool. We appreciate mentoring from an experienced
pedagoge who is actually working in a school somewhere around the globe, so
that he/she knows the challenges of daily work at schools and can think
himself into the benefits of the targetted project from a practical view.
 [edit<https://mail.google.com/index.php?title=Competitive_Learning&action=edit&section=8>
] Timeline (Start to Finish)

*Please include a Proposed timeline for your Project life-cycle: (this can
be in the form of Month 1, Month 2, etc rather than specific dates)*

   - Month 1: Start of development
   - Month 2: Framework alpha, tested locally
   - Month 3: Framework beta, can be tested for larger networks by the
   community
   - Month 4: Implementation of vocabulary trainer alpha
   - Month 5: Vocabulary activity beta - local testing by pupils and
   teacher(s)
   - Month 6: RC - Bugreports from the community
   - Month 7: V 1.0 - encouraging the community to integrate other
   activities into the framework


-- 
Johannes Ponader
0162/94 64 94 0



-- 
Johannes Ponader
0162/94 64 94 0
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