Webmaker/WebLiteracyMap/v2/interviews/themes
< Webmaker | WebLiteracyMap | v2 | interviews
From: https://teach.etherpad.mozilla.org/weblitmap2
A list of themes from interviews with stakeholders, organised as a SWOT analysis
Strengths
- Three strands approach works well
- Broad overview of landscape
Raw material from which to build curricula
Visualisation of the map at webmaker.org/resources
Holistic (other standards - e.g. ISTE - too narrow)
Living document - updated as the web evolves
Having one place to go to for resources around a particular area of web literacy
Community created, feels like something people can have a say in how it develops
More accessible to 'non-techies'
Doesn't feel like there's anything obviously missing
Helps gives words to things not well-named - common, shared vocabulary
Stop endless arguments/discussions about definitions
Something that works that comes from a trusted brand (Mozilla)
Verbs keep it active and focus on making/doing
Not 'too much' in the competency-level view to make it feel daunting
Discover / Make / Teach taxonomy on competency pages makes sense
Reflects interactive learning process (Aggregate-Remix-Repurpose-Feed Forward)
Shows that literacy isn't about grammar, but communication
Helps users create a mental model of what being literate in the online world is all about
Situates events and activities within wider landscape - shows what it means to 'teach the web'
Good conversation-starter
Colour coding makes it attractive
Copy at top of each of the resources page
Allows organisations to 'map' their work onto Mozilla's / Hive Networks'
Sense-check to ensure people haven't missed anything (e.g. schools / after-school clubs / Grow Mozilla)
Useful for parents, teachers and HR
No giant gaping holes.
Visual helps people 'get' web literacy (e.g. during presentations)
Explains that web literacy is not just about learning to code
Sets the stage and broader intellectual context for why this stuff matters
Introduces context to literacy - not like 'dog training'
Defines a big enough tent for everyone to find a place, without losing focus
Includes language anyone can relate to
Useful for getting people to think about the 'totality of interactions with the web'
Avoids tendency to slip back into 'print media' way of thinking when teaching the web
Balance between technical and social elements
Shows at a glance what we're teaching
People trust Mozilla brand
Evolved in the open
Cleanly and clearly laid-out
The copy on the competency pages is good
Colour-coding on Web Literacy Map
More obvious than the front page of webmaker.org
Current terminology fine for mentors - even if they haven't got much experience with the web
Useful for structuring interviews with Mozilla Reps
Weaknesses:
'Connecting' (strand) sounds a bit too surface-level
Change name of third column (MS suggests 'Participating')
Cross-cutting themes/lenses (e.g. Identity, Mobile, Accessibility)
Offline stuff (e.g. connecting to wifi, local servers)
Focus less on localisation and more on local content
Overwhelming when presented to n00bs
'Messiness' of web literacy - competencies seem too clear-cut
Overlapping circles have been suggested
Links to other kinds of new literacies
Additional terms to reference:
Algorithms
Big Data
Cloud
Opportunity to remix for a particular context and share with community - merge back (like GitHub)
Doesn't really look like a 'map' at the moment
Toolkits to really 'sink your teeth' into one of the competencies
'Episodic' rather than 'systemic' (e.g. talks about 'how to decode URLs' but not about the syntax of addressing or the architecture of the internet in general)
Tends to focus on lower elements of Bloom's Taxonomy rather than the higher elements
Competency as 'collection of skills' is too narrow - needs to include something like 'habits of mind'/ 'values' / 'objectives' (i.e. not just doing stuff, but determining what's important and what's not)
Lacking rhetorical components - covers actions, but not intentions (e.g. storytelling)
Not obvious how to put together the resources/activities into a meaningful pathway (e.g. at an event)
Connecting strand should talk more about safe social media practices and 'personal branding'
Doesn't really focus on 'attention'
Could be expanded in terms of participation and collaboration
Lacking audience definition
Not obvious what the 'most important' areas are in a given context
Mentors need to see the Web Literacy map, but end users don't - they should enter through (e.g.) 'how to turn on private browsing' - start from where they are. Entry points can be areas of interest, or current issues/zeitgeist
Push the Web Literacy Map firmly onto the 'Mentor' side
Needs better framing to show these skills aren't purely digital
Feels right to westerners in developed countries, but too academic and westerny to next billion users of the web? What are the skills needed at the bottom of the pyramid?
Doesn't show why these skills are important - e.g. getting a job / better outcomes
Perhaps need more, or a different approach to 'E-Safety'. Could resurrect 'Protecting' strand but focus on keeping yourself / others / the web safe?
Missing 'being creative on the web' and conceptualisation of self, which comes before other stuff. Not included in Remixing or Coding/scripting.
Difficult to curate resources for the 'Exploring' strand as it currently stands.
Some topics/areas (e.g. tagging) clearly cross all three strands
Looks sequential and rigid - perhaps different 'projections' (like Mercator, Peters). Could acknowledge complexity through overlapping circles?
Too much nesting at webmaker.org/resources - easy to lose your place. Breadcrumbing?
A bit geeky/frightening to generalist audiences (incl. teachers)
Lacking stuff around 'curation'
Not enough about accessibility in 'Design/Accessibility'
Grids are an easy way to represent things on-screen, but reality is a lot more complicated and intertwined
Missing discussions of gender and power
Seems a bit arbitrary to separate 'Security' and 'Privacy' - how about 'Network Architecture'?
Makes explicit effort to take the web as the platform for communications and participation through media
Not well-situated within wider discourse
Doesn't include anything about internet governance / policy issues
'Navigation' not a popular competency with people running Maker Parties
Difficulty of finding the original make in Webmaker gallery
'Open Practices' doesn't go deeply enough into licensing
Opportunities:
Incorporate Laura's Web Literacy pathways prototype: http://literaci.es/weblit-learning-pathways
Badges - should be obvious links
Better, more visible forums for discussion
More welcoming to translators/localisers (can feel lost/frustrated)
Badges for translation
Talking points so people can explain the WebLitMap to others easily
Generic document that can be hacked/customised introducing the Web Literacy Map and how it can be used - e.g. Badge Alliance's Campus Policy document
Add a 'Remix' button to the Web Literacy Map (similar to Webmaker Tools)
Case studies with real-world examples of people who have improved skills/competencies
Clicking on a competency reveals a short description. Clicking 'learn more' takes to competency page. Breadcrumbs allow you to get back to overview easily.
Change the representation of the map. Suggestions have included:
Make it look like an actual map
Overlapping circles showing some of the complexity (not clear cut boxes)
Contributing to the development of the Web Literacy Map could be badged.
Can use big events (e.g. iCloud celebrity leak) to focus on particular competencies
Webmaker Tools should link to the Web Literacy Map (show that they're based on research / user needs)
Extend tagging through Webmaker resources to (for example) AppMaker
Could integrate with Firefox (under the hood)
Improve visibility of skills underpinning each competency (easy to miss)
Need to speak to mobile context (next billion web users) - what are the unique challenges?
Re-launch with advocacy agenda - speak to those with mandate/appetite (e.g. governments, NGOs)
Sounds a looks very serious - opportunity to make it more fun and geared towards makers
Situating learners by starting with what they know - questionnaire? Buzzfeed-like quiz?
Case studies with real people who have learned that skill/competency - perhaps like http://personas.webmakerprototypes.org
Could have multiple versions of the map with interest-driven language that speaks to particular contexts
Add Internet of Things-related stuff? Would help demystify 'The Cloud'
Scaffolding learning (learning pathways)
Ways for the community to get involved in the Web Literacy Map (voting things up, etc.)
Add the WebLitMapper to webmaker.org to surface useful resources not on webmaker.org: http://weblitmapper.webmakerprototypes.org
Re-visit fourth column (Protecting)? Fits closer to Mozilla's outward mission
Contextualisation - what's related or pre-supposed by the map? We should link to it.
Examples:
Connecting to wifi securely
Dealing with/embracing/using ambiguity and discomfort
Permanent beta
Growth mindsets
Social/emotional learning (e.g. anti-bullying)
Badges should be on competency pages
Link to other curricula - e.g. MIT Scratch http://scratched.media.mit.edu/sites/default/files/CurriculumGuide-v20110923.pdf
Learner dashboard - c.f. Jess' Webmaker+ http://jessicaklein.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/badges-assessment-and-webmaker.html
Add levels / structure so people can work through it? (e.g. for n00bs: Navigation / Search / Remixing / Sharing)
'Fog of war' that gradually reveals more of the map? Make the link between the WebLitMap and skill attainment more concrete
Link to wider ways to get involved with Mozilla ('Get Involved' page: https://www.mozilla.org/contribute )
Reference the Mozilla mission explicitly
Link to more Open Source community stuff - e.g. Open Hatch's missions: http://openhatch.org/missions/
Tiered engagement to knowledge to scaffold attention?
Include simple exercises based on the what time people have - e.g. 5 mins / 20 mins / 1 hour
Talk specifically about the Commons - net neutrality, extension of copyright laws, spam, privacy and commercial tracking, trolls/harrassment/bullying, misinformation
Help people form cultural/societal norms around technology / the web
Focus on overwhelming people with how amazing the web is. Make it fun.
Build personas to serve across Webmaker
Build cultural empathy - surface the 'long tail' of the web as the differentiator to (e.g.) Facebook
Web Literacy Map as the 'glue' to hold Webmaker together
Link to STEM education iniatives
Make it even more textbook-like so people can dive in and out (and know what comes before/next). 'Resources' is too nebulous - can mean tools or skills. Contrast with WebLitMapper approach.
Suggest places for people to start
Use Super Mentors as curators for each competency page? Localised resources?
Mention libraries as a IRL place to go to improve skills
Surface the research behind each competency (both why important and why resources chosen)
Could choose competencies based on:
Basic digital citizenship - i.e. what everyone should know
Profession-specific skills
Technical specialism
'Map' suggests exploration - could surface this a bit more
Create a 'Facebook literacy map' and be the opposite
Security could actually be a whole category (strand) by itself - could put 'Credibility' and 'Privacy' underneath it?
Clicking on competency should make it fold out like an accordion
Firefox = default browser in French schools, so Mozilla name well known - opportunity for Webmaker + badges?
'Remix' is foundational to Webmaker.org - make foundational to the WebLitMap? Encourage people to remix the map itself?
Link to Doug's 'Essential Elements of Digital Literacies' work
Add a comments board or link to Discourse to discuss the WebLitMap itself
Lots of people looking to make their first web page - how do we address that?
Link badges to things done - 'smooth pathways'
Funnel people off by interest - e.g. OpenNews / OpenScience
Weave potential 'Protection' strand through other competencies - e.g. 'Design/Accessibility' could include stripping EXIF data out of photos
Change description of 'Privacy' competency to 'Exploring the consequences and benefits of sharing online'?
Include 'foundational competencies'? e.g. http://bit.ly/YBdkhN
Tagging (using WebLitMap competencies) and badges could be 'glue' between Mentor and Learner views of webmaker.org
Firefox could be an 'opinionated' web browser that could intervene as an advocate on a user's behalf. There could be a 'guided mode' that help improve web literacy 'out in the wild'.
Threats:
Attempting to cram too much into the Web Literacy Map could lead to scope creep and confusion
Disconnect with formal education systems (see as 'other')
Adding buzzwords or specific technologies would make it out-of-date sooner
Translations of 'competency' and 'literacy' problematic in some languages
North America / Europe -centric at the moment. Does this represent Web Literacy globally?
Move to 'lenses' could be problematic as emphasises that there's some kind of 'reality' for us to look at.
Lacking audience definition, so chance doesn't fully appeal to any particular group
Main way to access the Web Literacy Map is under 'Resources', which is confusing
WebDev skills mixed together with broader skillset - audience definition?
Picking out 'mobile' as a separate competency would kind of go against Mozilla's position that 'the web is the platform'
Don't go too wide or too deep - focus on what everyone basically needs to know
Presupposes that user already sees the value in the technical domain described
Efficacy depends on subject matter - non-linear pathways don't always work well
Scope creep if we try and include offline and 'softer' skills
Representing the landscape in 2D means some things get distorted and squashed
No obvious flow (e.g. map - resourecs - activities - badges)
Lacking quality control r.e. complexity around Discover / Make / Teach across competencies
Security and Privacy often seen as pinnacle of digital skillset - how do we avoid this?
Shoudn't fetishise the technologies - instead, focus on commonalities. For example, not 'mobile' but 'devices that know your location'. Threat modelling.
Would be easy to dilute the map's 'strong understanding of tech'. Important to maintain this.
Needs much better localization strategy
Webmaker.org/literacy is difficult to navigate - add clickable map at the top?
Version 1.1 of the WebLitMap focuses on what's accessible via the web browser - is this still a good enough scope?
Mozilla wiki version of the Web Literacy Map often shows up first via search engines
Version control - people need to know how up to date things are (and which version they're aligning with)
Wenger's framework for building value in online interactions says that we need need self-disclosure to build community maturity - balance with Privacy?
Separate maps would lead people to say that a particular map doesn't well-describe their context
Focus on specific technologies - learners need to find ways to 'abstract away' or genericise
Revealing complexity of web literacy could end up with a 'plate of spaghetti'.
We don't currently include why the web's worth being literate in. We don't 'sell' it.
Can scare people off by talking about the 'darker' side of the web too early
Make the language even simpler - Up Goer Five? http://splasho.com/upgoer5/
People / orgs we should be reaching out to:
Academics (citations)
After-school clubs/groups
AmeriCorps / Peace Corps
Aspen Institute
Code.org
CoderDojo
Code Club
Common Sense Media
Community Centres
CSEdWeek/code.org & their partners
DIY.org
Edutopia
Hive Networks
HR departments in large orgs
IRA (International Reading Association)
Knight Foundation
MDN
National Day of Civic Hacking
NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English)
NWP (National Writing Project) - Connected Learning folks
OER community
School districts - need advice on configuring firewalls properly
State education departments
UK Computing curriculum (schools + CAS)
UNESCO Youth Mobile
Unions
Workforce/industry