HackED
Why HackEd?
‘Hackathons’ have proven a very successful approach to innovation in solving
business problems. Local examples include GovHack and RIIT Unearthed.
A number of existing education programs are ‘discovering’ local talent in
entrepreneurship and innovation with an interest in Location.
HackED is a new outreach program for students across public, independent and
private schools. It will be a creative, high intensity and fun event that will bring
together students with big ideas, problems to solve, technical skills and an
entrepreneurial spirit.
With the aim to promote interest in the STEM subjects (science, technology,
engineering and maths), HackED will be bringing these subjects to life using
location information. HackED will inspire and excite students with innovative
learning solutions.
How does it work?
4
School
Volunteers
1
5
CoderDojo
Winners eligible for other
awards e.g. INCITE
Follow-up with
2015 teams and
prep for
HackED2016
JustStartIT
3
HackED Day – Pitches to
judges and prizes.
HackEd Mentoring
Get started by forming a team.
HackED will provide experts, tools
and data to get you started.
HackEd 2015
2
The HackED team helps you
refine your idea and shape-up
an entry for the competition.
Step 1. Accreditation
The program works with students aged 11 – 15. HackED
mentors are managed through the School Volunteers
Program, which organsises Working with Children Permit
and Police Clearances.
The School Volunteers Program also provides an induction
to the program – covering everything mentors need to know
about working with the students and schools.
The HackED team match mentors to school teams and
introduce mentors to the teams and teachers.
Step 2. Meeting your team and starting your project (March)
In many cases teams are already established and are working on a project
through the JustStartIT program. In other cases mentors have an opportunity to
help the team choose or refine an idea to work on.
Here are some project ideas:
Where could I build a new theme park for Perth?
How can I get water to remote towns?
What can we do to make it easier to get around Perth?
Remember: HackED will be offering prizes in a number
of categories – anywhere from great concepts and
ideas that have been well thought-out as a project –
through to finished maps and apps
Step 3. Refining your idea and project
Mentors don’t need to be a geospatial experts!
We are looking for people from a variety of backgrounds. We ask mentors to
share their interests with us so we can match them to school teams.
We also have user-friendly services such as www.locate.wa.gov.au that provide
access to a wide range of government data, and
If you have questions, you can always find support via the HacKED team and
fellow mentors.
The focus for HackED Mentors is to ensure that teams stay inspired and focussed
on their ideas. Remember, it’s important to have fun.
Step 4. Getting ready to pitch!
Time to think about how your team will share what you’ve
discovered and achieved together. Click here to get an idea of how
people have pitched their ideas for Govhack.
The focus is on problem-solving and thinking through an idea,
not about developing software and apps.
You can simply pitch a great idea – well thought out in terms of:
What is the problem you seek to solve?
Has anyone tried to solve this before, and what happened?
Do you have a new solution for an old problem, or maybe an old
solution for a new problem?
The HackED team would love to help you with a dry-run practice.
Step 5. HackED Day 20 August 2015
Here’s how it comes together on HackED Day:
9.30am
Arrival and Icebreaker Games
10am – Noon
Cluster Pitches and Dry Runs
Lunchtime
Visit from Guest Speakers
Announcement of Finalists
1pm – 2pm
Finalist Pitches and Award of Prizes
Remember, HackED projects
don’t need to be rocket
science.
How are we tracking?
30
11 schools have signed up
27 teams
14 mentors - we still need more!
More than 110 students participating!
20
10
0
Schools
Teams
Mentors
FAQs
What skills are required to be a HackED Mentor?
We are interested in mentors who can bring a range of skills – we are looking for
a diverse range of people, not just coders and IT specialists.
How much time will this involve?
We anticipate you’ll be spending an hour per week with your group of students.
How many students will I mentor?
The teams will be made of three to four students.
Who do I contact if I have more questions or need support?
The HackED team can be contacted via walis@walis.wa.gov.au or 9273 9391.
We will also ensure all of the mentors can contact each other.