Quest Alliance Basic Hackathon Kit Sutdent Handbook

The Quest Alliance Basic Hackathon Kit is a thoughtfully designed toolkit that empowers educators, facilitators, and youth to organize impactful hackathons focused on 21st-century skills, problem-solving, and innovation. Rooted in the values of self-learning, collaboration, and technology integration, the kit supports a structured yet flexible framework for running ideathons and hackathons at schools, colleges, and youth development centers.

At its core, the Hackathon Kit encourages young learners to become solution creators rather than just consumers of knowledge. It provides a step-by-step guide to facilitate a real-world challenge-solving experience that integrates technology, design thinking, and teamwork. This is especially useful for learners from underserved communities, helping them bridge the gap between education and future-ready skills.

What’s Inside the Kit?

1. Facilitator Guidebook
   A comprehensive manual to guide mentors or facilitators in setting up, managing, and evaluating a hackathon. It includes timelines, daily plans, team-building exercises, and mentoring strategies.

2. Learner Handbook
   A youth-friendly workbook that takes participants through each stage of the hackathon process – from identifying local problems to brainstorming, prototyping, and pitching their solutions. It is aligned with Quest’s 5C framework: Critical Thinking, Creativity, Communication, Collaboration, and Computational Thinking.

3. Challenge Cards
   The kit provides sample challenge cards in domains like education, environment, gender equity, health, and livelihoods to spark ideas. These cards help participants anchor their projects in community-based, real-life issues.

4. Templates and Tools
   Includes ready-to-use templates for ideation (such as Problem Trees, Empathy Maps), project planning, storyboarding, coding basics (Scratch or Web Development), and pitch presentation.

5. Technology Resources
   Recommendations and links to open-source digital tools like Scratch, Tinkercad, Canva, MIT App Inventor, and Python tutorials, encouraging inclusive tech use. Minimal infrastructure is needed—just basic computers and internet access.

6. Assessment Rubrics
   Easy-to-use rubrics for evaluating student outcomes based on creativity, impact, feasibility, teamwork, and communication.

Why Use the Quest Hackathon Kit?

• Inclusivity: Designed for diverse learners, especially those with limited access to high-tech environments.

• Skill Development: Promotes digital literacy, design thinking, communication, and leadership.

• Hands-On Learning: Encourages experiential learning through problem-solving and prototyping.

• Community Impact: Focus on identifying local challenges encourages social consciousness and grassroots innovation.

• Educator Support: Step-by-step facilitation makes it easy for teachers or youth workers to implement.

Ideal For

• Schools under the STEM for Girls or Secondary School Transformation Program by Quest Alliance

• ITI and vocational institutions

• Youth innovation clubs, Atal Tinkering Labs, and community learning centers

In summary, the Quest Alliance Basic Hackathon Kit is more than just a set of materials—it is a catalyst for transformation. By equipping young minds with the tools, mindset, and confidence to innovate, it fosters a generation of learners who are self-driven, socially aware, and future-ready.

Let me know if you'd like this in PDF, poster, or presentation format!

HACK TO THE FUTURE - GUJRAT EDITION 2025 BY Quest Alliance “Hack  to the Future” 

• Organized by Quest Alliance in Bengaluru as a residential, interstate hackathon.

• Participants: 57 school students from five states including Gujarat.

• Focus: designing community-driven prototypes (IoT, AI) with themes such as climate change & gender empowerment

Two notable teams from Gujarat:

• Junibodeli Primary School, Chhota Udepur (Team Gujarat) presented ambitious ideas 

• Zarnavadi Primary School, Narmada explored AI/IoT-driven solutions to local challenges 

🎓 “Hack the Future” – IIT Gandhinagar (Mar 21–23, 2025)

• A 36‑hour national hackathon by IIT Gandhinagar’s IIEC & MoSPI/NSO 

• Themes:

  1. AI/ML predictive model for Monthly Per Capita Expenditure (MPCE)

  2. Semantic search to map text → NIC codes

  3. Legacy data extraction tool 

• Timeline:

  • Applications: Feb 7–28

  • Orientation: Mar 10

  • Hackathon: Mar 21–23

• Prize pool: ₹5.7 lakh (₹2.5 L / ₹1.5 L / ₹1 L + 2 special mentions) 

• Outcomes:

  • 18 finalist teams from top institutes; valedictory ceremony held Mar 23 at IITGN 

  • Winning teams include Plaksha University, IIT Jammu, NMIMS Mumbai, and IIT Vadodara—though no Gujarat institutes won in the national IITGN round 

🔍 Gujarat's Role & Impact

• Quest Alliance event (Bengaluru): strong representation from Gujarat’s rural primary schools; students applied futures thinking, community empathy, and tech prototyping in a residential setting 

• IITGN national hackathon (Gandhinagar): a broader platform on the Gujarati campus driving national-level data science and AI innovation, though top winners were from other states/institutions 

✅ In summary:

QUEST ALLIANCE CHATBOT UES INFORMATION

In collaboration with Amazon Future Engineers, Quest Alliance uses chatbots like Ikki to improve learning, especially for students in classes 7–10. These chatbots, which are based on platforms like as Glific, provide interactive lessons and activities centered around coding and computational thinking, making learning interesting and approachable. With the help of interactive features and rich visuals, the chatbot Ikki is made to make difficult coding ideas easier to understand and encourage hands-on practice. 

Principal Aspects and Objectives of Quest Alliance's Chatbot Initiative:

Target Audience: The main beneficiaries are students in grades 7–10, especially those in Odisha. 

Focus: The program places a strong emphasis on computational thinking and coding abilities. 

Learning Method: To keep students interested and motivated, the software employs a gamified approach with interactive lessons, exercises, and tests. 

Content Delivery: Students are expected to finish the weekly content delivery before moving on to the next set of materials. 

Technology Platform: The chatbot's functionality on WhatsApp is made possible by Glific, which enables interactive content distribution and two-way communication. 

Experiential Learning: By giving users practical coding experience, the chatbot promotes a deeper comprehension of the ideas. 

Career Exploration: By highlighting the opportunities in the area, the program also seeks to pique interest in computer science jobs. 

QUESST ALLIANCE CHATBOT LOGING INFORMATION

HOW TO CREATE IN SCRATCH CODING ? 

If you're asking "How to create in Scratch?", you're probably referring to Scratch, the visual programming language developed by MIT for beginners and kids to learn coding through interactive, block-based programming.

Here's a detailed guide on how to create a project in Scratch:

🧠 What Is Scratch?

Scratch  is a free, beginner-friendly platform where you create games, animations, and stories by dragging and dropping blocks of code — no typing required! It's great for learning coding logic like loops, conditions, variables, and events.

✅ Steps to Create a Project in Scratch

1. Create a Scratch Account

• Go to: scratch

• Click “Join Scratch” to make an account.

• Sign in so you can save and share your projects.

2. Start a New Project

• After logging in, click “Create” on the top menu.

• This opens the Scratch editor with a default cat sprite and blank stage.

3. Understand the Scratch Interface

• Stage: The screen where your animation or game appears.

• Sprite: Characters or objects (like the cat).

• Code Blocks Area: Drag blocks here to make your sprite do things.

• Block Categories: Motion, Looks, Sound, Events, Control, Sensing, Variables, etc.

4. Add or Delete Sprites

• Click the sprite icon to choose from the library or upload your own.

• Delete the default cat if you don’t need it.

5. Use Code Blocks

• Drag blocks from the left into the middle coding area.

• Example to move a sprite:

  when green flag clicked
  move 10 steps

• Combine blocks to make loops, sounds, or actions. Everything fits together like puzzle pieces.

6. Add Backgrounds

• Click the "Choose a Backdrop" icon under the stage.

• Pick a setting for your story or game.

7. Add Sounds (Optional)

• Click the "Sounds" tab to record or choose sounds.

• Use sound blocks like play sound meow in your code.

8. Save and Share Your Project

• Click File > Save Now to save your work.

• Click "Share" to publish it online so others can see it.

• Add a title, description, and instructions.

🧪 Example: Make a Simple Animation

1. Add a new sprite (like a balloon).

2. Add this code:

3. Click the green flag to see it run!

🔁 Keep Practicing!

• Try making a game (like a maze or pong).

• Use "if" blocks to add conditions.

• Use "broadcast" to make sprites interact.

✅ Summary

Creating in Scratch is easy, fun, and powerful:

• Use drag-and-drop coding blocks.

• Control sprites, sounds, and actions.

• Share your creations with the world.

MOBILE VERSION OF SCRATCH Jr 2025

Introduction

SCRATCH LEARNING SESSION BY QUEST ALLIANCE - NEP 2020

Quest Alliance uses the Scratch coding platform to empower young people with 21st-century abilities, notably in STEM subjects. They integrate Scratch into their programs to foster computational thinking, problem-solving, and artistic expression, with a focus on reaching underserved areas. 

Quest Alliance uses Scratch as follows:

1. Scratch Learning Session By QUEST ALLIANCE

Digital Proficiency in Secondary Education:

Quest Alliance and AMD collaborated to create a self-study toolset for government schools that uses Scratch to teach students computer science and game design principles. 

My Code initiative: Developed with AMD's assistance, this initiative focuses on using Scratch to educate coding and career exploration. 

Scratch Day Events: Students from different schools and areas frequently participate in Scratch Day events, which are organized by Quest Alliance to promote coding, creativity, and teamwork. 

Scratch Education Collaborative: Along with other international organizations, they were chosen for the first cohort of the Scratch Education Collaborative, which aims to equip students from underserved communities with creative computing abilities. 

1. Program Orientation of Quest Alliance and SSA and Session of Self-1

3. Gender and Career

STEM Clubs and Hackathons: To promote experiential learning and problem-solving, Quest Alliance uses Scratch in STEM clubs and hackathons. 

Equity Focus: Their initiatives seek to guarantee that all students, particularly those from underrepresented groups, have access to computer science opportunities and to address gender gaps in STEM sectors. 

In general, Quest Alliance uses Scratch as a tool to: Engage students in a fun and interesting way when introducing them to coding.

Develop your ability to think critically and solve problems.

Encourage self-expression and creativity by using digital projects.

Give youth the 21st-century skills they will need for their future employment.

Close the digital divide and advance educational equity. 

This video shows Quest Alliance's participation in the Scratch Conference 2023