The “Coding Tomorrow” project, which has been realized together by Vodafone Turkey Foundation and Habitat Association with the aim of being pioneers of social upheaval and development, is in its fifth year. Vodafone Turkey Foundation and Habitat Association are preparing the children for the future by teaching them how to code the language of digital world with the notion of “Everbody is connected” and contributing to raise a productive generation rather than a consuming one. According to the report , that is prepared to measure the social impact of the project, 6,6 million TL amount of social value was achieved in the recent year by means of “Coding Tomorrow” trainings. Thereby, each 1 TL amount of investment, that was made for the good of this project, created 4,4 TL social return. Since August 2016, the “Coding Tomorrow” project has reached over 100 thousand children Turkey-wide and it is aimed within the scope of this project to reach 70 thousand more children and teach them coding in the following year.
The 2019-2020 social impact report and the objectives of the new term of the “Coding Tomorrow” project were shared in an online meeting which was hold with the participation of Vodafone Turkey Foundation Chairman Hasan Süel and Habitat Association Board Chairman Sezai Hazır. Vodafone Turkey Foundation Chairman, Hasan Süel reminded how well understood is the significance of being connected during the pandemie and stated:
“By means of the works that we have done under the roof of Vodafone Turkey Foundation so far, we target to be inclusive for everyone. We say that, the children should be connected as well. Therefore, we have been teaching them the language of digital world for 4 years. Our purpose is making a contribution to raise a productive generation rather than a consuming one. So far, we have taught coding to over 100 thousand children in 81 provinces. We target to give coding trainings to 70 thousand more children in the following year. We regularly measure the social impact of our project. We are glad to see the significant and positive changes that our coding trainings create on children. Our project, right along with helping children to improve their competence of coding, also is helping them to increase their awareness, change their perceptions of their own capacities to achieve anything and develop aid-oriented relationships. This year, for the first time we measured the social impact of our project by using the methodology of Social Return on Investment. According to this, in the recent year, we obtained around 6,6 million TL social value within the scope of our project. We have seen that, each 1 TL amount of investment, that was made for the good of “Coding Tomorrow” project, created 4,4 TL social return. This indicates how big is the multiplier effect of our project. Under the roof of Vodafone Turkey Foundation, we will be continuing to prepare our children for the digital future.”
Habitat Association Board Chairman Sezai Hazır said: “As Habitat Association, we make a great effort for Turkey’s digital transformation and raising generations which are not only the users of technology, but also the producers of it. Since 2016, with the “Coding Tomorrow” project, in cooperation with Vodafone Turkey Foundation, we have been continuing to prepare our youth and children for the future, and contribute to become the most active actors of the world’s and Turkey’s digital transformation. Within the scope of our project, we brought over 100 thousand children of ours Turkey-wide together with coding. We target to give coding training to 70 thousand children by deepening and enlarging our goals more and more in the following year. The results of the research, that we did this year to measure with concrete data the social impact and the positive created value of our works within the scope of the Coding Tomorrow project, made us quite happy.
I am of the opinion that, as a result of the trainings, activities and campaigns that we have realized since August 2016, the most valuable impact our project made on our volunteer educators and children, is the noticeable increase in our children’s motivation for the future. According to the research result, when the answers of the parents and the volunteers are used as base, the biggest change seen on children is the increase in their motivations; the motivations for the future of the children who joinned in the trainings have been increased %26. This data is quiet significant because it presents that the impact of the project consists not only the coding trainings, but also how correct we convey the 4 basic value of Do -it-Yourself! culture to our children. The other factor, what makes this research valuable, is the usage of Social Return on Investment Methodology for the first time in this year to measure the social impact that our project created. According to the report, in the recent year, the concrete equivalance of the social value that the project created is around 6,6 million TL. This number shows us how broad the created social value finds its equivalance in the society and how correct the resources are used. In the next term, we will be continuing our works to make this created impact sustainable.
Increase in competence and motivation
2019-2020 Social Impact Report, which was prepared for the Coding Tomorrow project, indicates that, the training given within the scope of the project is the only coding training that most of the children get outside the school and is very fun for all of them. “Coding Tomorrow” trainings, right along with improving children’s competence of coding, also helping them to increase their awareness, change their perceptions of their own capacities to achieve anything and develop aid-oriented relationships. Trainings, that continue online because of the pandemie, while providing the children with the opportunity of socializing when they stay at home during this period , also conducing them to gain additional competences on online education. According to the report, from children’s own point of views, the biggest change on themselves is the increase in their 21. century competences; from the parents’ and volunteers’ views, it is the increase in their motivations. It was seen that, the motivation of the children, who participated in face to face trainings organized within the scope of the Coding Tomorrow project, increased %28,3 and of the ones participated in online trainings %25.
Different training topics were added
Vodafone Turkey Foundation, in the 5th year of the project, while in one hand extending the project Turkey-wide, on the other hand will continue to increase the children’s digital competences with different training topics. In this new period, during which the trainings completely will be done in digital environment, Scratch and Tinkercad trainings to 7-10 age group; Scratch and Microbit trainings to 11-14 age group; and Artificial Intelligence trainings to 14-17 age group will be given. Trainings will be organized as minimum 4 hours maximum 180 hours long under management of volunteer instructors, %90 of whom are university students.
Solutions to social problems will be looked for
In the new period, hackathon and ideathon activities completely will be done online. By these activities, it will be targetted to get stories which will especially create solutions to concrete social problems. Besides, training contents such as mobile application development, game and artificial intelligence will be presented to 14-17 age group. By including vocational high schools to artificial intelligence education, it will be aimed to increase the digital competence of employable youth. Vodafone Turkey Foundation, that collaborated with one of the biggest education platforms, The Clubhouse Network at the beginning of this year, is going to include the youth in these groups, by having a place in online environments within the framework of global collaborations.
Family and volunteer meetings will be held
For the first time this year, within the scope of the project, family meetings will be organized. In family meetings, 21. century competences, the resources that they can find useful in digital world and important topics to be careful will be conveyed to the parents. By means of these meetings, parents will find an opportunity to increase their knowledge, skills to be safe in digital world and about digital literacy. Besides, within the scope of the project, by organizing Volunteer Instructor’s Coordination Meetings, it will be achieved to come together with all volunteer instructors on the field.
Award-winning project
Coding training is given to differing ages from 7 to 14 all across Turkey with the Coding Tomorrow project. In the first year of the project, around 2 thousand children in 6 provinces with 35 instructors; in the second year over 10 thousand children in 30 provinces with 135 instructors; in the third year over 30 thousand children in 60 provinces; and in the fourth year over 63 thousand children in 81 provinces were reached. Over 1.000 children participated in 9 hackathon that was organized within the scope of the project. Around 1.000 Syrian children got coding trainings in Şanlıurfa, Kilis and İstanbul. Coding Tomorrow Training Truck got 6 thousand kilometers and traveled Turkey to give the opportunity of learning to code to the children coming from socioeconomicaly disadvantaged areas and reached over 3 thousand children in 13 provinces.
Over 54 thousand girls and over 52 thousand boys benefited from the project in which 512 volunteer instructors and also 38 teachers from the Ministry of National Education from different fields took part in. The Coding Tomorrow project, this year, received the Silver Stevie award in the category of “European Corporate Social Responsibility Program of the Year” at the17th Stevie International Business Awards.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
