Webmaker/HiveCookbook

The Hive Cookbook

This cookbook is designed to offer you specific recipes that can be used as a guide, or as way to share specific formulas that you can use to cook up the Hive model of networked learning in your community. Each section concludes with a selection of recipes submitted from Hive members, leaders and stakeholders.

What is Hive?

Hive is a city-based community model that brings educators, learners, and community partners together to create transformative digital and web literacy learning opportunities for young people and a community as a whole. Through the establishment of Hive Events, Hive Learning Communities and Hive Learning Networks, cities around the globe are able to mobilize, catalyze, create and grow high quality connected learning opportunities and programming.

Hive actively supports an open source, laboratory-approach to learning by generating and supporting opportunities for exploration, experimentation, iteration and share discovery. Taken together, Hive models and mechanisms provide a recipe for the spread of new ideas, tools, and digital media practices. Through participation in Hive, a community's civic and cultural organizations, business, entrepreneurs, educators and learners of all ages can build, shape, teach and learn together.

Additional Resources:

• Hive one-pager: http://hivelearningnetworks.org/wp-content/themes/hive-learning-networks/resources/Hive_Global_1pager.pdf

Attributes of Hive

Each Hive city around the globe brings a unique local perspective to the entire network but shares the following attributes:

• Professional Learning Community: A community of youth-serving organizations committed to testing new ideas to initiate a Connected Learning framework

• City or Metropolitan Area Presence: A strong and credible voice representing the Hive vision for learning at important events

• Sustainability: A sustainability and financing plan to support Hive administration and innovative programs

• Programming and Shared or Open Assets: The regular development of innovative learning programs and activities that contribute to a pool of shared and open assets for others to use and remix.

• Youth: Young people willing and able to participate in Hive programs and activities, and a commitment to launching a community of youth to help advise on Hive operations and programs

• Research: A Hive will collect information through member communications, informal discussions and standardized data collection to ensure that the contributions of the Hive is working to improve learning to you

• Technology: A commitment to implementing a technology infrastructure that connects young people to one another and to mentors for shared learning and critique, and to collecting real-time data about activities for continued improvement. This may include specific tools like digital badges as a way to value and make visible the learning that takes place in informal spaces.

• Connected Learning Commitment: Active participation in Digital Media Learning networks, discourses and communities.

What is the value of the Hive

Hive recognizes that in the digital age, the fundamental operating and delivery systems are networks. When coordinated to work together, organizations can provide opportunities beyond what they can do on their own. When networked in this manner, learning experiences are connected, extensive, easily accessed and align with local interests. Mentors and educators are learning guides who direct youth on pathways to proficiency and expertise in specific content areas and fields, enabling them to build and curate a diversity of experiences that develop the necessary skills to navigate their world.

Hive is made up of participating organizations with a wide range of missions, youth populations, institutional sizes, media art forms, disciplines, and engagement strategies, but who share a clear set of values and aspirations. Reflective of the intentions of connected learning, Hive members act on and advance core principles and practices in their programs, in their partnerships, and throughout the network itself that are:

• Collaborative & Cooperative: multidisciplinary teams have shared goals, objectives
• Experimental & Catalytic: efforts nurture new ideas, new ways of working, new partnerships
• Relevant & Consequential: experiences address needs and potential of children, youth, and teens
• Equitable & Open: productive exchange of ideas and opportunities for all
• Engaging & Participatory: connects the personal with shared interests of the community to actively produce, create, design and test new knowledge

The value of Hive is best described through two perspectives; its core organizers and its members. The Hive is an opportunity to collaborate and engage different individuals and organizations working to equip more youth with the skills needed to be critical thinkers, creators and citizens of the web. Hives provide space for innovation and solving challenges of being part of the global connected network.

Value is placed on the creation of programming to support youth in the exploration of their interests, development of news skills and to encourage them to follow their passions through the integration and application of digital media and technology in adult-supported environments.

To view the full Memorandum of Understanding from Hive NYC which describes the value of Hive NYC membership: http://bit.ly/hivenycmou

Active members of Hive echo similar values but because of their close work with the community, they are able to experience the value of Hive from a whole new perspective. Steve Ausbury, Deputy Director at Brooklyn College Community Partnership, a member of Hive NYC, discussed his first seven months of being part of a Hive. He focused on four areas of demonstrative value:

• The People: Hive has picked some great organizations. A key feature of their picks is diversity, e.g., of skill-sets, missions, geography, age, cultural background, styles, and sizes. This level of diversity combined with opportunities to share in the multi-platform meetings and other events creates tons of access points for organizations like ours to listen, share, and learn.

• Minimal Agenda: In his words, the Hive encourages members to " want members to remain who they are while they explore, create and share at their own pace and in their own way".

• Programs: Hive itself is not a program for youth, but virtually all of its members. Members are exposed to the great work of other organizations in their cities creating better community building opportunities and relationships. Opportunities are abound which is great news for students from all member organizations.

• Explore, Create, Share: The Hive provides an opportunity for member organizations to explore new programming pathways, ideas and goals and grow the impact of their work. Working in a Hive allows big ideas to come to fruition through the support of your Hive team as well as other member organizations.

Read the perspective of a For-Profit Edtech Start-up and their thoughts on being part of Hive Chicago.

The Three Tiers of Hive

Hive Events:

Hive Learning Events are gatherings that bring network practice and connected learning principles to life for an mixed or focused audience of youth and adults. Community meetups, Hive pop-up events and stakeholder meetings are a few examples of pathways for Hive Learning Communities work to bring together learners in a dedicated space.

Hive Learning Community:

Hive Learning Communities works with diverse networks of community partners, educators and earning institutions to create engaged digital and web literacy programming opportunities for their communities. Community meetups, Hive pop-up events and stakeholder meetings are a few examples of pathways for Hive Learning Communities work to bring together learners in their communities.

Hive Learning Network:

Hive Learning Networks like the Hive Learning Community continues to demonstrate commitment to providing sustainable, connected learning and web literacy opportunities for youth and a community as a whole. As Hive Learning Communities grow in scale and scope, many Hive teams begin to explore opportunities of sustaining a Hive and mechanisms to seed innovative programming which can foster cross-community collaboration and innovative programming.

Where is Hive?

Hive Learning Communities and Networks are located around the world, creating more engaged communities of educators, advocates, builders and youth.

http://hivelearningnetworks.org/locations/

Bringing Hive to your City

Hive Global functions as a “big tent” for educators and organizations with diverse approaches to come together around connected learning and web literacy. A unified Webmaker with the Hive Network project functioning as the city network deployment strategy, will build momentum for and global adoption of the philosophy, tools, and strategies of connected learning.

As steward of the Global Hive network, Mozilla will construct and convene a governance structure, create materials, offer badges, run events, provide web platforms, and collect metrics that support the work of local Hive leaders.

Hive Global and Bringing Hive to your City

The Hive Global team works mainly to support the development of emerging Hive Learning Communities and Networks as well as current communities. Hive Global also focuses on the development of resources and materials, offers badges, runs events, provides web platforms and collects metrics to the support the work of the network overall.

The team also leads the on-boarding process for all new Hive Learning Communities. This includes multiple points of communication, resource sharing and opportunities for cross-Hive connections.

The On-boarding Process

The Hive on-boarding process is based on a 3 tiered model; contact, connect, create. In the Contact phase, new city teams will connect with the Hive Global team to begin the on-boarding process and receive integral information and resources. In the Connect phase, new cities are invited to join the Hive Global Community Call which is held each month throughout the year. The call is a great opportunity to connect with the Hive Global team and other new cities also being on-boarded and hear about successes from the network. The Create phase is when you take all of the information you learned in the first two phases and create your first Hive Learning Community experience in your city!

Contact:

First Contact and Resource Download:

• The first step is connecting with the Hive Learning Networks Project Manager. In this initial conversation, we will discuss Hive and how best it could fit into your community. Our Hive Learning Networks Project Manager will also discuss the Hive Interest Form which each on-boarded community to think about important components to the successful implementation of the Hive model.

The materials that you will receive include:

• Hive Interest Form: This form will help our team ensure you have all necessary community support to ensure that implementing the Hive community model is a success.
• Hive’s Big Audacious Goals: The overall goals of the Hive and it's work in creating positive learning digital and web literacy opportunities on the community level.
• Hive Cookbook: An online resource that provides an in-depth overview of the Hive model and other Hive Learning Communities and Networks.

Connect:

The next step in your on-boarding process is attending the Hive Global community call. These calls are held once a month and are a great opportunity to connect with other cities from around the world who are also in the process of bringing Hive to their hometowns. Each call is comprised of updates from the Hive Global team and an update from a new city on their process of getting community support, working with potential members and other relevant topics. An exciting element of the call is hearing from a member on why they have chosen to be a part of the collaborative Hive community in their city. It is a great opportunity to raise any questions, issues or concerns you or your team may have in your work to bring the Hive to your city.

On our first call held on December 12, 2014 we had 20 participants from locations such as Wellington, New Zealand, Bodun, Nigeria, London, England and Portland, USA to name a few.

Each call is hosted via a dial in number and participants are given access to a live etherpad where notes, questions and answers are added in real time.

• Hive Global Community Call Etherpad

Create:

Creating a learning experience in your city is a great opportunity to take the learning from the initial phases and do something to truly build and launch the Hive Learning Community in your community. Get educators, potential stakeholders, and young people together to start exploring the benefits of a local Hive.

When creating your learning experience or "event", there is no wrong answer. Events are a great way to spread the #hivebuzz. #Hivebuzz is a Twitter hashtag that Hives around the globe use to get communities talking about events in their city. Events and meet-ups are a great way to bring together your biggest supporters in one space to discuss next steps, pathways of on-boarding new members and youth and what type of programming would best benefit the community.

A few things to consider are:

• Who will be attending your event, will it be youth-facing, adult participants or a mixture of both?
• Do you have a space allocated for the event? Many times, libraries, museums or community centers are great examples of venues for premier events?
• Will it be an daytime or evening event?
• How are you reaching your audience and inviting them to your event?

The most important question that must be answered is what type of event will you be hosting. Here are a few types of events that other Hives have found successful:

Hive Pop Up Event
A pop-up event involves the participation of community organizations that are brought together in a science fair setting with groups exhibiting at different stations with hands-on activities. Attendees are encouraged to get making with exciting and new types of technology; web, digital and hands-on.

• Resource: [[ https://webmaker.makes.org/thimble/host-a-hive-popup%7CHow to Host a Hive Pop Up Event]]
• Maker Party Resource Page

Community Meeting:
A community meeting is an opportunity for local stakeholders such as educators, makers, community organizations etc to come together to discuss how the Hive can be implemented to ensure maximum impact in the community. You are encouraged to discuss what are your current assets for successful, what are the major goals and the vision for the Hive and what opportunities can be utilized to ensure these goals are met.

Many Hives have used the community meeting event model to discuss potential funding steams, opportunities to best start seeding collaborations in the communities or meet on a routine basis to discuss what are the current updates in relation to the work of bringing the Hive to your city

• Community Meeting Resource

Resources for Success:

• Host an Event
• Sample Event Brite Invite

Building a Hive Learning Community

Hive Learning Community

Originally designed as a carefully curated network of complementary organizations, the Hive model has evolved into a grassroots movement with Hive Learning Communities forming around the globe. Local facilitators use a variety of tools, practices, frameworks and strategies to ensure that the unique local contexts of their communities are embedded into programming. Utilizing best practices and knowledge sharing opportunities from the ever-growing Hive Learning Network, Hive Learning Communities are able to host impactful events, programming and meet-ups that encourage meaningful community collaboration and innovation.

A few characteristics of a Hive Learning Community:

• Are able to scale programming through leveraging digital tools to reach large audiences
• Encourages an environment of cross-collaboration
• Approaches the needs of their communities through authenticity and integrity
• A major driver in the work of contributing members is a focus on youth
• Actively embodies the experimental, iterative, and open source practices
• Working to create a generation of connected and engaged world citizens

The Hive Learning Communites (HLC) begin to use the connected learning principles and the practices of Hive to operationalize a network of opportunities that address local challenges. They draw heavily from the experience of existing Hive Learning Networks whose leaders function as consultants and mentors sharing information about structure, program design and strategy.

Local facilitators then adapt tools, practices, frameworks to their local contexts. They are free to self-identify themselves as Hive and use the branding assets and developmental resources that are openly networked and provided on the Hive Learning Networks Resource webpage

Specific characteristics might include:

• Educator meet-ups
• Recruitment and curation of affiliated organizations
• Wider participation and implementation of communication networks

Hive Learning Community Recipes for Success

Hive Chattanooga:

Hive Chattanooga History:

Established in 2014, Hive Learning Community in Chattanooga supports connected learning experiences in the Chattanooga, Tennessee metropolitan region. Hive CHA fuels the creation of these learning experiences through the Gigabit Community Fund, a National Science Foundation supported initiative to fund the development of gigabit-enabled workforce development and education applications and associated curricula.

Local Infrastructure:

Hive Chattanooga operates with a team of a full time Community Catalyst and part-time Project Coordinator. The team actively works to support Gigabit-funded pilot projects that are deploy-able in the near future and can be replicated by other communities and organizations that share goals in digital learning and making. To receive funding, projects need to have a measurable impact on constituents in these areas, and must demonstrate how emerging gigabit technologies are relevant in people’s everyday lives.

Member Engagement:

The Hive Chattanooga teams holds monthly Google Hangouts with all members on the first Friday of every month to learn more about the gigabit innovations developing in Chattanooga, and across the country! Each month they also hold a Hack Night where members can come together and work on a project plan to get it into action sooner and an open community coffee. On the third Thursday of the month, Hive CHA invites Chattanooga’s technologists and educators together for a caffeine-fueled discussed about integrating web literacy skills, bridging the digital divide, and connecting to Mozilla’s resources to help teach the web.

Recipe for Success:

A major success for the still quite new Hive Learning Community in Chattanooga is that 8 Giga-bit funded pilot projects have been launched.

• Adagio | Chattanooga Music Resource Center:: An audio-mixing application, piloted at the Chattanooga Public Library and Barger Academy of Art, leveraging cloud storage and remote collaboration to lower barriers to music production and education.

• Building an App from the Ground Up | The Creative Discovery Museum: An application-creation toolbox and digital record that will serve as a design blueprint for other youth-serving organizations in Chattanooga and beyond.

• devLearn | Duncan Ingram, Inc: A mobile coding application for elementary school students which recognizes that, for many across the digital divide, cell phones are a primary means of internet access, and will build critical capacity for Chattanooga’s gigabit future.

• GigBridge | Global Excel Tennessee: A high school student-led project bolstering English language and digital literacy skills (while improving access to health education) in underserved communities, teaching ESL students to construct interactive mobile applications focused on obesity education and prevention.

• The GigLab | Chattanooga Public Library: A venue for access to gigabit connected resources for the purposes of workforce development, application testing and education, the GigLab is the first public-access space of its kind.

• Hyperlocal Hyperaudio | Hyperaudio: A Chattanooga-centric edition of the Hyperaudio platform, creating a multimedia educational tool grounded in community history, as well as improving access to local archival history.

• Viditor | GeonCode: A new, online video editor being piloted in local schools, UTC-student developed Viditor is a multi-platform tool allowing students across the city to work on and edit film collaboratively.

• Wireless Earth Watchdogs | Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences: By building a student-driven, real-time water quality monitoring system using micro-controllers, the Wireless Earth Watchdogs, in collaboration with Hixson High School and the Chattanooga Public Library, are pioneering a multidisciplinary approach to digital and engineering education.

Member Success:

One of the youngest members of the Hive Chattanooga community is a dynamic high school student, Anjali Chandra who started Global Excel Tennessee to empower underprivileged youth with the resources and skillsets they need for a healthy, financially secure future for themselves, and their community. She launched Gig Bridge with the support of Hive Chattanooga and Gigabit Fund, which works with ESL youth to design interactive mobile apps to educate communities about the dangers of obesity and living a healthy lifestyle.

Hive Toronto

Hive Toronto History:

Since its first iteration in 2012, Mozilla Hive Toronto Learning Network has emerged as a dynamic force for learning and engagement. A thriving collaboration with 42 youth-serving member organizations at time across the city, Hive Toronto has engaged more than 3,500 youth and educators in connected learning experiences through funded programs and public events. The core team of Hive Toronto is comprised of a full time Hive Director and Mitacs Elevate Post-doctoral Research Fellow who continuously to support and grow the efforts of Hive Toronto.

Local Infrastructure:

• Hive Toronto is comprised of 46 organizations such as museums, libraries, code clubs, advocacy groups, higher education institutions, after school programs, and tech start-ups. Together, they create equitable and accessible opportunities for young people to explore their interests and gain skills that prepare them for success in the information age.
• Hive Toronto is a Mozilla project that is funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation. Network members have access to funding to support cross-organizational projects through our Collaborative Community Projects.
• Since 2013, Hive Toronto has provided funding to 13 projects with 20 partners, impacting over 3500 youth. Project details and resources can be found here: http://hivetoronto.org/portfolio/
• Funding for additional Hive Toronto projects is provided by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) and the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA).

Hive Success:

The success of Hive Toronto is best seen in the diversity of their membership base. Since 2012, Hive Toronto has continuously grown its membership base over 60 members to better reflect and serve Toronto youth including organizations like Success Beyond Limits, SKETCH Working Arts for Homeless and Street-involved Youth, Toronto Public Library, the Boys and Girls Club of Canada and the Royal Ontario Museum. It speaks volumes to the value of the Hive as various types of educational institutions of all kinds have found a home and value in the network.

Hosting a “Hivestarter” workshop to surface and match the needs and resources available in the network:

1. Hivestarter facilitation guide
2. Record Hivestarter results here and share with network

Member Success:

A great example of a Hive Toronto member success is Regent Park Focus and its Radiozilla project. Inspired by HiveNYC’s Radio Rookies, Regent Park Focus and Facing History collaborated to produce youth-led internet radio series, school curriculum guide, audiovisual slideshows using web-maker tools, and a project documentary. Over the course of six weeks, the youth-led audio documentaries allowed participants to work together to interview, edit, and tell important stories on critical topics such as identity, bystander behaviour, religion, and standing up for others.

Leveling Up: Becoming a Hive Learning Network

Hive Learning Events are gatherings that bring network practice and connected learning principles to life for an inter-generational audience. Examples include Pop-Ups, Hack Jams, media production sessions, Maker Faires and other events. These events are branded in two ways:

Hive Pop-Ups have an intentional program design towards fostering a “Hanging Out, Messaging Around, Geeking Out” (HOMAGO) experience. For more on HOMAGO check out this handbook written by the Yollocalli Arts Center and Hive Chicago. At these events, multiple organizations come together with some of their best programs and deliver activities via learning stations tailored towards three levels of users:

• Those who sample (Hang Out) by searching the room for what interests them most
• Those who lightly experience all the activities offered (Messing Around)
• A smaller but focused group who lock into one activity for the duration of the event (Geeking Out)

Participating educators and mentors get to both contribute to and observe what it’s like to see youth self-direct their learning and design their own experience in a networked space. Often the question, “Why Hive?” is better answered after seeing a Pop-Up in action: adults see youth interacting and learning with peers, remix and re-interpret their programs, become part of the energy in the room, and perhaps most importantly, see youth travel from different activities/interactions guiding their own path through the controlled chaos. We have distilled the Hive Pop-Up into a Webmaker Teaching Kit [ADD LINK]and this video details the Brooklyn Public Library Storymakers Maker Party/Hive Pop-Up. [A]