Join Technovation: Inspiring Girls in Science and Technology

Do you have an enduring passion for learning and technology and willing to share your knowledge with the younger generation? Do you want to see a world where more girls and women pursue a technology field? Do you want to help youth transform their societies through technology in KSA? Do you wish to give back to your community and help self-empower girls from disadvantaged backgrounds in KSA?

Join Technovation Challenge !

TechnovationKSA will be launched in January, 2016 and is currently open for school team registration and mentor/coach registration.

The Technovation Challenge is a global program for girls aged 10-18 providing girls with skills and confidence to engage in computer science and entrepreneurship to solve real world problems in their own communities.

The program is seeking female mentors and male/female coaches to mentor girls throughout 3 months (Feb-April) twice a week for 4 hours – a total of 50 hours.

Technovation Challenge is partnered with UN, UNICEF and Google.

How Does it Work?

This program aims to inspire and educate girls and women to solve real-world problems through technology.

Students work in teams to develop mobile app “startups” to solve real problems in their communities. Technovation Coaches (teachers, parents, or community members) and Mentors (women professionals in technology or business) lead the teams as they compete for a part of $20,000 in awards.

To learn more, watch the Technovation Challenge Mini Documentary: Entrepreneurs in the Making:

Be a Student

• Are you a girl aged between 10-18?
• Would you like to learn coding for free?
• Would you like to develop a mobile app for a social cause?
• Are you passionate about technology and social change?

Become a technology entrepreneur and develop a mobile app prototype that solves a real problem in your local community. Teams of up to 5 girls work together to research, design, and build a mobile app prototype, working with a female mentor in technology or engineering. Then they pitch their apps to prospective investors and receive feedback and ideas from technology industry professionals. Most teams use MIT’s App Inventor to build their prototypes.

No prior coding or app development experience is necessary. Register here.

·  Participants

Teams of up to 5 girls in middle school, high school, (up to age 18)

Middle school age : 14 and under

High school age : 18 and under

·  Commitment

40-60 hours: 4 guided hours per week from Feb through Apr 2016

Be a Coach

Coaches might be school teachers, after school program leaders, parents, or community leaders. They recruit teams of young women to participate in the program, provide a safe space with internet access where they can work, coordinate with the teams’ mentors, and supervise their teams throughout the 3-month program. Coaches who are also school teachers often supervise their teams in the classroom after school.

No prior coding or app development experience is necessary. Full training and support available

·  Participants

Teachers in any subject or other adult supervisors, both men and women

·  Commitment

60 hours: supervise students, coordinate mentors and meeting space, ensure internet and computer access, and oversee teams as they complete the curriculum

·  Responsibility

Recruit teams in local schools; 15-25 girls per school recommended in the first year

Be a Mentor

Mentors are professional and postgraduate women/men  who are passionate about helping younger women be successful as they work in teams and learn to become technology entrepreneurs, and who feel comfortable learning new technologies. 

Mentors act as guides and role models during the 12-lesson curriculum which runs from January through April. Participants look to their mentors for guidance on how to overcome obstacles and solve problems. Some mentors choose to work in teams of two and alternate attendance from one week to the next.

Mentors are not expected to know about mobile app development in advance of the program — instead, they learn together with their teams and help their teams to persevere when they encounter difficulties. Mentors might not know the answer to every question their teams will ask, but can guide the teams through the problem-solving process. After young women observe how their mentor works through challenges, they will be more confident overcoming similar challenges by themselves in the future.

No prior coding or app development experience is necessary. Training and support available

·  Participants

Professionals or postgraduates in the technology, engineering, or business fields – women only

·  Eligibility

Comfort and confidence in learning, especially for technology products

·  Commitment

25-50 hours: 2 hours per week for 12 weeks from Feb through Apr 2016; or co-mentor and share the commitment with another mentor.

For more information and registration visit the TechnovationKSA website or Facebook page.