A Comprehensive Framework for Hackathon-Driven Educational Research

Abstract

Higher education institutions, traditionally known for their structured and rigorous approaches, often face challenges in rapidly adapting to emerging theories, new technologies. Contrarily, hackathons, characterized by their brief and dynamic nature, have been embraced as innovative platforms to counteract such challenges. Given the inherently brief and dynamic essence of hackathons, we propose leveraging them as evaluative tools for rapid assessment of emerging theories and novel educational interventions. By fusing a user-centric approach with educational design research principles, our proposed method bridges the divide between theoretical insights and practical application, fostering greater synergy between educators, researchers, and the broader academic community. As a result of this rapid implementation and iterative testing at a wider scale, we anticipate a heightened awareness of these innovative methodologies within the educational sphere and also more generalizable results.

Keywords: Hackathons, Education Design Research, Evaluation, User-centric approach, Higher Education, Rapid Evaluation, Generalizability