Globally Sourc-Ed

Inspiration

Last year, I had the opportunity to create a project for an English class that focused on the importance of global education and how to implement it in schools. As someone who is passionate about the world and the many cultures and communities that are a part of it, I thought that it would be an excellent learning experience for me to try to create a source for others to learn about some of what I have learned. Global education is so necessary to our society, yet it is hardly ever taught, and when it is, there is often a lack of media literacy teaching.

What it does

The home page contains an interactive map where users can select a continent they are interested in seeing the news for. They are then transported to a page for that continent where a menu of smaller regions are displayed. They can choose a region from this page, and then are presented with news sources for that region. Each news source is accompanied by a descriptor of bias, so that users are informed about political leanings before they go to that source.

How I built it

I am an amateur, so I used a website creator (Wix.com) that allowed me to place some design elements into the site without coding, but also allowed me to alter those aspects or code other aspects of the site. I used Wix's API manual as well as YouTube videos and several helpful articles about working with JavaScript.

Challenges I ran into

There were a few points where certain tasks would not perform as I wanted them to when I previewed them on the site. I had help from several mentors as well as the online research I did. I did not get as far in developing the site as I wanted to, but I am more aware of how to work efficiently next time now that I have more knowledge.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

I am extremely proud of myself for taking the initiative to learn more about coding and to put in the time and effort to work on a project I am truly passionate about. I am also proud of myself for submitting and demoing, as I know my work is not nearly as complex as so many other hackers here, but it is still something I want to share.

What I learned

I learned more about coding in JavaScript, as well as more about developing a website. I also improved my troubleshooting abilities. I learned that it is okay to ask for help and that it is often helpful to ask other hackers for advice, assistance, and/or inspiration.

What's next for Globally Sourc-Ed

I would really like to continue working on this site at home in order to be able to share it with others for their own use. I think a tool like this could be extremely useful in schools, even if it is not my specific page. I would love to spread the word about this source.

Built With

• javascript
• wix.com