Revised Memorandum: Progress Report

To: Dr. Erika Paterson, ENGL, 301 Instructor
From: Emilyn Sim ENGL, 301 Student
Date: February 22, 2023
Subject: Progress Report on Investigating Inclusivity and Participation in Student Hackathons

I am writing to update you on the progress of my investigation into how to effectively implement a hackathon which provides learning and growth to all participants.

As a summary of my proposal, the challenge facing hackathons is that novice participants face barriers enrolling and participating. Participants tend to form teams with peers whom they already know, which lessens the effectiveness of hackathons to act as a teaching tool, impacts the quality of solutions produced by participants, and reduces the number of participants. The proposed solution is to create a hackathon based at UBC that considers the experience level of applicants by pairing inexperienced participants with experienced mentors. Therefore my target audience for my progress report is Giuliana Villegas, the UBC Computer Science undergraduate programs manager. Not only is her role is to support students and student programming, in the past she won the UBC Computer Science Staff Award for Supporting Students and/or Educational Program therefore her values align with the goals of my research. 

To complete my research, I plan to pursue the following research methods:

• A literature review of exclusion and barriers in computer science and hackathons 
• Surveying computer science students and alumni on their hackathon participation experience

Work Completed:

I have created a list of relevant hackathons that are directed towards university students with a focus on those that are geographically relevant in British Columbia and Canada. I have begun exploring their programming strategies. Through this exploration, I have gained valuable insight into current educational and social hackathon strategies.

In addition, I have compiled a range of sources on inclusivity and participation in hackathons through the UBC library databases. This research has helped me to identify key issues such as the lack of experience, confidence as barriers to participation. I have also identified a new barrier to participation in hackathons, that being the communication of participant expectations. 

Based on initial research, I have created a survey directed towards computer science students and alumni who have previously participated in a hackathon. The survey can be found here. which will help me gain further insights into the factors that affect participation.

Works Remaining:

Upon obtaining approval for my survey, I will distribute it among relevant computer science student Facebook groups and group chats. The primary objective of the survey is to identify the main reasons that individuals do not participate in hackathons, particularly those who lack experience. Additionally, I will explore the effectiveness of current strategies for collaboration and forming new connections in hackathons, and investigate the potential benefits of implementing a mentorship program for hackathons, both for mentors and mentees.

Next I will thoroughly complete my literature review by analyzing my collected sources. I will then apply my research findings to the responses I receive in my survey and use this analysis to create a suggested course of action for hosting a hackathon that is more approachable and accessible to beginners. My tentative timeline for completing this work is as follows:

• Mid-March—Release the survey and procure relevant research for the project
• Late-March—Finalize and analyze investigation findings
• March 31—Formalize findings and create outline of report
• April 11—Submit final formal research report

Should you have any questions or concerns about my work, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Attached: Hackathon Participation and Learning Survey