Twotor

Inspiration

In the current Covid-19 pandemic situation, it has become apparent that students around the continent are experiencing deficiencies in their studies and are lacking the proper interaction with their peers. Thus, we propose to launch the site Twotor, which seeks to identify and match a pair of college students that can assist each other with schoolwork. As we continue to move ahead in these uncertain times, Twotor can provide opportunities for diligent undergraduates to supplement their coursework. Moreover, as it has been commonly observed that students tend to bond over a shared difficult course, Twotor is also invaluable in promoting friendship and communication through collaboration.

What it does

The premise of the site is simple. To fully utilize the benefits of Twotor, users must create an account and fill in some basic information, such as age, gender pronoun, and their preferred email address. More importantly, users are prompted to list out the courses they would like to tutor, as well as upload their latest transcript from their institution. Users are also encouraged to list courses they would like to be tutored in. This information will then be reviewed by a group of moderators as a means of quality control. After the review process is complete, users will be free to use the matching tool. When a suitable match is found and both parties have accepted, a meeting will automatically start in Zoom. At the end, users are free to leave a review of their peers, which we will take into account in future matching sessions. This procedure and matching algorithm together create a heavy emphasis on our core principle: helping each other.

How we built it

We used HTML and CSS to code all visible elements of the website, and the backend was implemented in java and javascript. More specifically, we employ a maximal matching algorithm most prominent in graph theory in order to most efficiently find the best matches for each person and generate a list of potential suitors. Each student will be paired with another student, where they can assist each other in the subjects that they are strong in and need help in. Our algorithm traverses through all available students and creates a full list of correct matches.

Challenges we ran into

We faced a number of difficulties in integrating all of the components of the website successfully. This was our first time creating a project of this magnitude and it became difficult to keep track of all the files we added over time. We ended up making a separate document to list out all the major parts of the website and which files they were associated with to mitigate this factor.

Another difficulty we faced was keeping track of each group member’s progress, due to working remotely. As such, we would regularly commit and pull to avoid the issue of having more than one person working on the same problem at a time.

What we learned

We learned how to code the front end of a website from scratch using HTML and CSS for style purposes, as well as learning how to optimize website layout.

What's next for Twotor

Even though campuses will eventually be opened again as widespread vaccination begins, the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that institutions can consider remote learning as a viable means of instruction.

We can also consider expanding Twotor’s reach beyond school courses. Eventually, we could add matching for diverse topics such as baking or athletics. It could even become a platform for free consulting services.

Overall, Twotor will only continue to grow in an age where students continue to migrate towards the internet in search of assistance. Here at Twotor, we are committed to developing a product that can leave everyone feeling more well-learned and connected at a moment’s notice.