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Octans: Chart your constellation of support

Project by: 
Tianxing Ma
Project Year: 
2019

We all belong to social networks. The embedded resource in this system, social capital, is a key determinant in our academic and career trajectories. Fortunately, these networks are dynamic and we can learn to recognize, nurture, and utilize our social networks. Octans seeks to empower low-income and culturally marginalized youth by raising their awareness of the importance of social capital and guiding them to notice, act upon and expand their surrounding resources. As a web platform, Octans features interactive explorations of how relevant role models have used social capital, how to build social capital in choose-your-own-path narratives and how to reflect and improve upon your own network. Along with other mentoring resources, Octans aspires to prepare learners to pursue interest-driven learning pathways using their social networks.