Overview

During the COVID-19 pandemic, new incoming IB students at my school faced significant challenges in finding and engaging in extracurricular activities, particularly for S&A (Service & Activity) and CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service). Due to the lack of in-person interaction, students had no direct guidance from peers or seniors, making it difficult to discover activities and form collaborations.

Recognizing this gap, I developed Share My Activity (SMA) which is a web app designed to help students and teachers showcase their extracurricular efforts. The platform enables students to explore activities, seek inspiration, and collaborate with others, fostering a more connected and informed community.

The Problem

• Lack of word-of-mouth recommendations: New students had no guidance from seniors about S&A and CAS activities.
• Difficulty in discovering opportunities: Students struggled to find and join activities that aligned with their interests.
• Limited collaboration options: Many students wanted to work on projects together but had no easy way to find partners.

The Solution: Share My Activity

Share My Activity (SMA) was developed as a social platform for extracurricular activities, featuring:

• A timeline of activity posts: Students can browse through shared experiences and projects for inspiration.
• Announcements feature: Users can post open calls for collaborations, inviting peers to join initiatives.
• Teacher and student involvement: Educators can showcase student achievements and provide guidance.

Development & Implementation

To ensure that SMA effectively met the needs of both students and teachers, I collaborated closely with key stakeholders throughout the development process:

• Collaboration with the school’s IT Administrator - I worked hand in hand with the school’s IT administrator to ensure the safety of the platform. Discussions included determining how to handle user names and comments to ensure a safe, respectful online environment. To further secure the platform and maintain its integrity, we created an official SMA admin account under the school’s email domain, which is used to manage moderation and oversee content.
• Engagement with Extracurricular Coordinators - Regular meetings with extracurricular coordinators allowed me to tailor SMA’s features to the specific needs of both students and teachers. Their feedback shaped the user interface, content organization, and the functionality of the announcements feature, ensuring that the platform was intuitive for students seeking activity ideas and useful for teachers aiming to guide and support extracurricular engagement.
• User-Centric Design and Testing - Throughout development, iterative testing sessions were held with a small pool of students. This collaborative approach ensured that the final product was both user-friendly and aligned with the school’s educational and extracurricular goals.

Technologies

• Design: Figma
• Frontend: HTML, CSS, JavaScript
• Backend: Hosted using the Firebase platform
• Database: Firebase Firestore
• Authentication: Firebase Auth

Launch & Adoption

With help from a number of individuals and from the extracurricular coordinators, we were able to promote the app within the school, which gained traction as a go-to platform for extracurricular activities.

Impact & Results

SMA has had a positive impact on the school community, leading to:

• Increased awareness of available S&A and CAS opportunities.
• Enhanced collaboration among students for extracurricular projects.
• Provided a centralized hub for activity discovery and participation.

Conclusion

SMA successfully addressed the challenges IB students faced during the pandemic by bridging the information gap and facilitating collaboration. This project not only helped students fulfill their requirements but also strengthened the school’s extracurricular culture. Moving forward, SMA has the potential to scale and evolve, supporting even more students in their academic and extracurricular journeys.