{"id":99094,"date":"2019-05-22T10:47:09","date_gmt":"2019-05-22T08:47:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=99094"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:23:20","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:23:20","slug":"at-the-first-campus-hackathon-students-are-required-to-change-education","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/05\/22\/at-the-first-campus-hackathon-students-are-required-to-change-education\/","title":{"rendered":"At the first campus \u2018hackathon\u2019, students are required to change education"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new event for campus Woudestein: the very first hackathon was organised on campus last weekend. Around seventy students supported by coaches, a special IT desk and a man in a bright red suit tried to think up innovations in education.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhere are the cables, where are the nerds?\u201d Professor of Communication and Media Jeroen Jansz wonders when he addresses a room full of \u2013 still \u2013 fresh students. \u201cFor my job, I regularly attend hackathons, and I always trip over the cables,\u201d he laughs. It may be a hackathon, but the students aren\u2019t going to be hacking. They\u2019re changing the education system.<\/p>\n

They\u2019ve been given 36 hours, will mainly use their own experiences and question students on campus. Participants are going to think up an innovation for one of the three themes that have emerged from the university\u2019s new strategy plans: personal learning routes, co-creation in education, and the integration of global problems in education.<\/p>\n

Life hacks<\/h2>

So it\u2019s not a classic hackathon, says organiser Mirjam van de Woerdt from the Community for Learning and Innovation (CLI). \u201cIt\u2019s more about life hacks. We want to impress on students that they can influence the education system. Their voice is important, and we want to demonstrate that here. Winning ideas will actually be implemented.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither time nor money has been spared. EUR\u2019s entire IT desk is present to resolve any technical problems that the students may encounter and answer any questions, all meals are provided, and students are given a fanny pack with a discount pass for all the sustainable restaurants in Rotterdam.<\/p>\n

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Macarena<\/h2>

During the day and a half, the groups of students have to perform \u2018mini challenges\u2019 to win points. \u201cThe challenges are mainly intended to promote team building and to make the brain more flexible,\u201d says Van de Woerdt. So the participants are building towers with spaghetti and bacon pieces and making a K-pop video clip in which teaching staff dance the Macarena<\/em> to Drank & Drugs<\/em> by Ronnie Flex and Li\u2019l Kleine. \u201cThis is going to get me fired,\u201d one of them laughs.<\/p>\n

Are the students having problems with the creative process? To provide support, Vincent Everts \u2013 trend watcher, innovation expert and video blogger \u2013 has been specially hired. Sporting a red suit, he tries to stimulate creativity. \u201cYou\u2019re in a system that I\u2019m sure must sometimes be irritating and frustrating for you. And the nice thing is: you only have to think up a plan. You can leave the implementation to other people!\u201d Everts encourages the students.<\/p>\n

In the sports caf\u00e9, students could even stay the night, although no one actually did. Two students laid out their air beds in the gym. \u201cThey left at 2 a.m. to explore the night life and returned at 6 a.m.,\u201d says Kevin from the sports caf\u00e9. The breakfast on Saturday morning remained untouched.<\/p>\n

Bean seeds<\/h2>

On the last day, the students finalise their plan and embark on the last challenge: planting bean seeds in the wild to a deadline. \u201cIt\u2019s a fun and inspiring day,\u201d says first-year Business Administration student Jelrik Westra (18). Did she continue working into the early hours? \u201cNot really. Everyone came over with an idea, because you already knew the theme. We\u2019d finished at around 7.30 p.m.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jelrik and his team took part in the global problem issue. \u201cOur idea was to get each student to collect points via an app for their sustainability behaviour to make them aware of this theme. They can then cash in their points for a free coffee, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Three winners<\/h2>

On the last day, the students pitch their ideas to a jury that has been specially convened for this event. The jury includes rector Rutger Engels, media professor Jeroen Jansz and a representative from the association of universities. One group won in each category, so the hackathon produces three winners.<\/p>\n

The CLI will actually start work with their innovation. The spiritual parents of the idea may get involved, but it\u2019s not compulsory. \u201cOn Wednesday, all the winning ideas will be discussed, and then the winning students will be invited to a kick-off,\u201d explains organiser Van de Woerdt. \u201cThe winners will also be given a special WakaWaka power bank that works on solar energy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first winning group of students thought up the \u2018EUR Wallet\u2019, in which you can buy optional courses using tokens, for example. The second winning group invented a platform whereby students are involved in developing, implementing and giving feedback about education.<\/p>\n

Global problem<\/h2>

The winning students in the global problem category wanted to get their counterparts more involved in society. \u201cOne of the ways they hope to achieve this is by getting the students to do social work,\u201d says Linda Szabo (21). Fellow team member Florence Schaatsbergen (21) adds: \u201cAnother way is to oblige them to do an \u2018impact course\u2019, which focuses on one global problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

After 36 hours of life hacking, DJ Rinus provides the finale. To the uplifting beats of Jennifer Lopez, the students enjoy themselves in the warm sun. Another Hackathon is planned for next year. Rector Rutger Engels is enthusiastic: \u201cWe have so many events where there are ideas, but here something is actually going to be done with them. And that\u2019s brilliant.\u201d<\/p>\n

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De redactie<\/h2>\n\t\t\n\t\t
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