School of WEbcraft Update May 24th 2011
Every two weeks we bring you updates on School of Webcraft, Mozilla's free web-development training community organised in partnership with Peer 2 Peer University (P2PU). We also use this update to let you know about the great new features that have been released in P2PU's new site. 

New P2PU Feature - "Branch" from an existing course or study group.
P2PU is  almost ready to transition completely to its custom-developed Lernanta platform.  The P2PU Dev community has been updating content and adding features to make this transition easier for all learners.

Of course, you can also sign-up to participate in existing projects!

Groups currently open for sign-up
 (New!)   Paws on Web APIs       
http://new.p2pu.org/en/groups/paws-on-web-apis/
Analyse, Design and Develop Web APIs
  





Together with P2PU, Mozilla is working on Open Badges, a framework that tracks your learning achievements.  Our first focus for this new technology is providing badges for Web Developers.


Jamie Curle's running a great course about HTML and CSS from the Beginning http://p2pu.org/webcraft/html-css-beginning. He's writing HTML in his greenhouse and making ordered lists of meat. 
http://jamiecurle.com/posts/applying-html-tags-world-around-us/

We like 
Create a study group for School of Webcraft
It's easy, just create a P2PU account and follow the prompts. http://new.p2pu.org/en/groups/create/?school=school-of-webcraft

Got a question about School of Webcraft? 
Check out our Frequently Asked Questions. http://p2pu.org/webcraft/school-webcraft-frequently-asked-questions

Join the Webcraft Discussion List
To participate in ongoing discussions about the project, sign-up here.
http://lists.p2pu.org/mailman/listinfo/p2pu-webcraft

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TRANSITION EMAIL 
Hi!

you're being emailed because over the last year you created a School of Webcraft course at Peer 2 Peer University (P2PU). We're sending you this email to let you know about a couple of things:
New site transition - Start planning how your course will live on!
Webcraft mailing lists - Discussion and Announcements


We wanted to let you know that soon P2PU will be transitioning to a new technical platform. You can start using the platform now at http://new.p2pu.org, but within the next weeks old content will be transitioned to the new system, it will be hosted at http://p2pu.org and the current P2PU site will be archived. You won't be able to create new content on the archive, but all of your group's content will continue to be available. 

With the move to the new site


Dear -----,

We are piloting an assessment  and badge pilot in the School of Webcraft, a set of peer-driven courses  on open web development delivered via Peer 2 Peer University in  partnership with Mozilla. The pilot goals are to provide an  alternative pathway to certification and credentialing for our learners. Course participants can take a series of peer-reviewed assessments to demonstrate learning and earn  badges they can share with stakeholders like potential  employers. 

We feel these efforts will not only further the  impact of informal and peer learning channels, but also give us the  opportunity to be further innovate with assessments. We are working hard to  create assessments that are authentic and relevant to learners, to allow  them to capitalize on existing work where possible and to inspire  continued learning and growth during the assessment process. Assessments we have piloted so far have avoided standard  multiple choice, but instead are based around challenges or exercises  and narratives, with an aligned rubric to assess against. Here are two  examples of two different levels of assessments we are currently  running: 
Javascript basic: http://badges.p2pu.org/questions/1/javascript-basic-badge-challenge
Javascript expert: http://badges.p2pu.org/questions/2/javascript-expert-badge-challenge

We are writing you to enlist your help on  creating/identifying some additional assessments, namely for ---------.  You are recognised as being influential  at ------ By helping us out on this pilot you'll be helping to develop tangible and meaningful ways for for employers and web developers to measure and identify their skills. In recognition of any help you provide you will be  listed as advisors for the relevant badges. 

We would benefit greatly from  your insight into what the key elements of a rubric should be, as well  as ideas around potential challenges or exercises. 

The model we have been using is:
Assessment challenge/instructions
Rubric to assess against (aka, "A Javascript Expert is someone who...."


Again, please see the links above as examples of the  model we have been currently using. We are not adverse to other ideas or  models, but we do want to continue to strive for authentic and highly  relevant assessments if possible.  

We are moving very quickly with this so please let  us know if you have some ideas you can pass along. Thanks in advance for  your help with this important effort. 

If you'd like to become further involved with the School of Webcraft please join our Discussion list http://lists.p2pu.org/mailman/listinfo/p2pu-webcraft or create or participate in a study group or course http://new.p2pu.org/en-US/schools/school-of-webcraft/


School of Webcraft Update - May 10th 2011
Want to learn about open standards-based web development?
Interested in becoming a web developer, want to update existing skills or want to create webpages as a hobby?
You can learn what you need to know at School of Webcraft a project developed in partnership by Mozilla Foundation and P2PU!
Check out our home page http://new.p2pu.org/en/schools/school-of-webcraft/ to find out about the project and to see the study groups and courses on offer.

Can't find a group that suits your needs?
If you can't find a group you'd like to join, it's easy -  create your own http://new.p2pu.org/en/groups/create/?school=school-of-webcraft
Don't feel worried, the School of Webcraft community and the P2PU team are here to help! We'll give you advice on finding learning materials, creating course  plans and show you how to facilitate and promote your group. We'll also put you in contact with people who can help you build your group.

New groups created - can you help develop them?
There are some great new topics under development on the new site. These groups are at the draft stage and still need tasks, resources and learning plans outlined before they can be opened for sign-up.  If you'd like to help get these groups get ready, please contact the group's organiser.


Groups Currently Open For Sign-Up
You can still sign-up to participate in these groups. You can also offer your assistance to organise and improve a group.


Latest P2PU Platform Release - Lernanta r0.5
The fortnightly release of features for the new P2PU platform has just come out.


Create a study group
It's easy, just create a P2PU account and follow the prompts. http://new.p2pu.org/en/groups/create/?school=school-of-webcraft

Got a question about School of Webcraft? 
Check out our Frequently Asked Questions. http://p2pu.org/webcraft/school-webcraft-frequently-asked-questions

Join the Webcraft Discussion List
To participate in ongoing discussions about the project, sign-up here.
http://lists.p2pu.org/mailman/listinfo/p2pu-webcraft
































School of Webcraft Update - April 18, 2011
School of Webcraft and P2PU are in an exciting phase as we introduce study groups, develop a new technical platform and host courses and study groups across two platforms.  

Hello Study Groups!
To coincide with the new platform P2PU is introducing new terminology - we'll refer less to courses and increasingly focus on study groups as a more flexible way of letting people learn together. 

Join Study Groups at new.p2pu.org

The new.P2PU.org platform is available
Zuzel,   P2PU's Tech Lead and the lovely volunteer contributors have been   working away at getting the new platform (codenamed "Lernanta") ready  for a major changeover in July.  


Courses open for registration on P2PU
Several courses are open for sign-up at the original P2PU.org site. 





Got a question about School of Webcraft? 
Check out our Frequently Asked Questions. http://p2pu.org/webcraft/school-webcraft-frequently-asked-questions

Join the Webcraft Discussion List
To participate in ongoing discussions about the project sign-up here.
http://lists.p2pu.org/mailman/listinfo/p2pu-webcraft