Introduction

In our recently-published whitepaper Why Mozilla cares about Web Literacy we talk about the importance of sharing on the web:

Mozilla believes that the use of the Webmaker tools and teaching kits within an online training environment helps facilitate participatory cultures where there are “relatively low barriers to artistic expression and civic engagement, strong support for creating and sharing creations, and some type of informal mentorship” (Jenkins, et al., 2009, p. xi).

One way in which we’re encouraging and recognising sharing is through the use of Open Badges. We recently launched three new Webmaker contribution badges to serve as entry points for people wanting to begin their web literacy journey and to get involved with Webmaker.

The Web Literacy Skill Sharer badge

One of the three new badges we’ve introduced is the Web Literacy Skill Sharer badge.

Earning this badge is an ideal way for community members to demonstrate their commitment to web literacy. It’s relatively easy to earn as it has a single criterion: “Teach someone else a web literacy skill and share your experience on the web.”
Here’s what to do:

1. Explore the competencies listed in the Web Literacy Map
2. Choose one of the 15 competencies that you feel especially passionate about
3. Look at the list of skills underpinning that competency, and then share one of those with someone else – either using one of the suggested resources or by inventing your own way of teaching it
4. Share a blog post, video or image online illustrating how you taught the web literacy skill
5. Apply for the badge by clicking the ‘Apply’ button below

Earning this badge could take anywhere from around 10 minutes to one hour, depending on the complexity of what you share – and your current knowledge/skill level.
Note: you don’t have to use Webmaker tools and resources to provide evidence for this badge!

Going further: the WebLitMapper

Earlier this year we launched a prototype known as the Web Literacy Mapper – or WebLitMapper for short. This site allows community members to collate resources from around the web that correspond to particular parts of the Web Literacy Map. It works in a similar way that users of Delicious, Diigo and Pinterest would save links to those services. You may be interested to discover that using the WebLitMapper is mentioned in the criteria for the Webmaker Super Mentor badge.
It’s worth having the bookmarklet installed in your bookmarks bar in case you come across something of interest as you browse the web. If you discover a resource that you think is good enough to be featured on one of the competency pages (e.g. Privacy) you’ll find a method of doing that on the page itself (“Suggest your own links and resources to add”).

Maker Party

We’re currently in the second half of our yearly Maker Party campaign. Over the past few weeks our amazing community members have organised over 1,800 events in over 70 countries, teaching web literacy to their friends, families and communities. We’re delighted by this global effort and want to recognise the work that goes into teaching others through hands-on making and exploration.
Now is a perfect time to organise your Maker Party event. Using Maker Party resources, you can build on the success of previous events, remixing teaching kits and share your web literacy knowledge and skills. As an organiser of an event  you can request gear – which may include t-shirts! In addition, once you’ve run and documented your event, you can apply for the Web Literacy Skill Sharer badge (see above) as well as the Event Host and Teaching Kit Remixer badges:
  
If you need guidance on how to apply for these badges, check out this post: HOWTO: apply for Webmaker badges.

Conclusion

Sharing is a fundamental part of web literacy; it’s how the web works. Show that sharing is caring by earning your Web Literacy Skill Sharer badge and hosting a Maker Party event. We’re looking forward to seeing your submissions!

 Main image CC BY-NC-SA DGuarch