Learning Apps

Pearson Launches Third Annual Student Coding Contest

• By Leila Meyer
• 09/17/15

Pearson is holding its third annual student coding contest, which challenges college students to develop new learning applications that integrate with Pearson products.

Interested students should submit an idea proposal before Oct. 9, 2015. Entries should include a narrative proposal and visuals, such as wireframes or workflows. A team of industry peers will judge the proposals and select final contest contenders by Oct. 27, 2015. Those contest contenders can then develop and submit their application for final judging. During the application development process, participants will have access to Pearson API experts, coding resources, webinars and regular podcasts.

Contest prizes include $5,000 for first place, $2,500 for second place and $1,000 for third place. The top three teams will also have the opportunity to present their application at the Pearson office in Denver in February 2016, and 10 semi-finalists will be eligible to apply for a summer internship with Pearson next year.

Contest entries should focus on the goal of producing "a positive, measurable impact on learning," and should use Pearson application programming interfaces (APIs) and technology "to identify, collect and utilize data to demonstrate learning outcomes," according to a news release from the company. Pearson suggests potential application ideas such as "embedded assessments, feedback loops, peer and social interactions, self-assessment tools or adaptive learning that individualizes each learning experience."

For this year's contest, Pearson has partnered with the Hour of Code, an organization that strives to get more students interested in computer programing. Pearson is also collaborating with the National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) and Girls Who Code to try to encourage more female students to participate in the contest.

Further information about the Pearson Student Coding Contest can be found on Pearson's site.