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djangogirls · 7 years ago

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Django Girls Ho Workshop 2017

This blog post was written by Noah Alorwu. Thank you, Noah :)

Django Girls Ho was the first ever IT workshop that involved ladies from Ho Volta Region and its environs in Ghana. The workshop took place at KKHub from 29th-30th September 2017. The workshop brought together 34 passionate ladies, 9 coaches, 1 meta coach and 4 organizers. The primary goal of the workshop was to introduce ladies who have no knowledge of coding to experience a first-hand practice to equip themselves diligently in this our world of technology and its increasing diversity. The workshop was scheduled for two days and the activities were as followed.

Participants installing software setups for the workshop

#Day 1 Installation Session This started at exactly 3:45pm on Friday 29th of September 2017, where the participants were taken through installing of software setups needed for the workshop. The software setup installed include:

● Python ● Git ● Visual Studio Code ● Sublime Text 3 ● Notepad ++ *The last 3 applications are code editors.

After the installation of the software, the participants then proceeded to set up their Virtual Environment (venv) an isolated Python environment that has its own installation directories and doesn’t share libraries with other virtualenv environments.

C:\djangogirls> python -m venv <name-of-venv-DIR>

Aside that, Django Web Framework has been installed using the PIP command (myvenv)C:\djangogirls>pip install django

We also distributed workshop materials including name-tags and T-shirts for both coaches and participants. The day could not end without some photoshoots to capture the moment and a virtual hug #Fridayhug See pictures below:

#FridayHug distin

From the left Laura, Awittor, Verity, Anastasia, Rosemary, Emmanuel, Makafui, Irene and Stella

#Day 2 During the workshop, we had an insightful talk from Prof Di Margarete Grimus and Paul Spiesberger via Skype call. They talked to the ladies about the benefits of being a programmer, especially as women. Aside from that, they also encouraged the ladies to take their programming lessons seriously.

Some questions that popped up include: 1.What makes a good programmer? 2. What motivated you to learn to code? 3. What will you do with your new skills? And many others

Some Challenges encountered ● Poor Internet Service ● Delay in installation ● Heavy downpour ● Inability of some coaches to show up (4) ● Local sponsors are unwilling to fund a project like this.

How the challenges were handled We pre-made a video tutorial of the manual which can be watched via https://goo.gl/jcz74k to serve as: 1. A take away for the participants, so that they can watch it at their own pace and continue/ practice more after the workshop. 2. A plan B for any disappointment from coaches who may not have turned up during the workshop.

With regards to internet connectivity issues/poor internet service, we had to create a hotspot on the various team tables. A mobile device (Phone) from one person on the table was used as a wireless access point for the rest of the team on that table. This reduced the traffic on the router and helped curb connectivity issues.

Training Outcome and Next Steps More than half of the applicants have successfully hosted their blog and those who couldn’t are yet to finish up in their respective homes. Our hope is to see them succeed in this field. follow-ups were being made to frequently check on the participants on how they were putting their newly acquired skills to use after the workshop.

Recommendations I would suggest that one coach/organiser that’s good can lead the installation of the software setups during the installation session. To ensure that everyone is on the same page, the other coaches have to move from table to table just to ensure that no one was left behind. With more resources and support from Local sponsors, a lot more can be done to empower more ladies into tech.

Key Takeaways 1. You should never stop learning because to be a programmer, you need to be dedicated. 2. Opportunities are endless when you’re good at programming. 3. You should use the knowledge you have acquired here to help other people. 4. You should always work in groups. That’s what make great programmers.

Our coaches

Organizing Team To the organizers who have worked tirelessly to make this dream a reality, I say kudos to you all. Noah Alorwu | Happy Agbetsiafa | Hope Adoli | Caroline Anani

From left Happy, Noah, Caroline, Hope

In conclusion, the turnout was great, the enthusiasm and positive spirit helped make the workshop inventive and fun. Finally, let’s transition girls to creators, makers & doers of tech not consumers of tech.

Group Picture #DjangoGirlsHo

Visit here to view->

Django Girls Ho 2017 Photo Album

#DjangoGirlsHo was Djangolicious!

Thanks for reading.

Django Girls is a non-profit that teaches programming to women all around the world. Want to help us? Support us!

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djangogirls · 6 years ago

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The Impact of Django Girls Workshops in Ghana

This blog post was written by Noah Alorwu. Thank you, Noah :)

Women have been underrepresented in Technology, especially in our part of the world where it is the general conception that “women should only be concerned with domestic activities such as cooking, washing, and other basic house chores”, and even if a girl child is to be educated, she should settle for meagre roles such as teaching, nursing, or general administrative roles in the corporate ecosystem.

Initiatives such as Django Girls workshops are aimed at bridging the gender gap in Information Communication Technology and giving women equal opportunities to succeed in the industry.

Django Girls is a non-profit organization and a community that empowers and helps women to organize free, one-day programming workshops by providing tools, resources and support. During the event, women build their first web application using HTML, CSS, Python and Django.

Women are more powerful when they support each other and as such, Django Girls events is evidence of this wonderful fact. This is because about 50% of the total number of females who have ever coached were once participants who were able to build their blogs and decided to give back to the community.

Coaches: We’ve had different coaches from different parts of the country and even from Kenya and Nigeria who volunteered and made Django Girls events successful. There were times some had to travel long distances, and also even at night to be able to get to the event grounds in order to prepare for the tutorial session.

Gerald Pharin, Mannie Young, Ahmad Bilesammi, Christabel Atutonu, Abigail Mesrenyame Dogbe, Azumah Worlali, Kim, James, Hope Adoli,Carr Rosina Afua Ampomah, Jacky Kimani, Jacob Mensah Zigli, Anthony Mensah Addae, Kafui Alordo, Kwadwo Agyapon-Ntra, Mark Kwagbedzie, Michael Young, Miriam Adwoa Darteh, Rowland Kwame Vorsah, James Muriuki, Samuel Baafi Boakye, Mohammed Dawud, Paa JAKE, Doe Martin, Ezichi Ebere, Attablayo Prudence, Saviour Gidi, Dennis Quashie, Tenu Michael Sedinam Korku, Victoria Amankwa, William Kpabitey Kwabla, Gloria Boakye, Jida Asare, Martha Teiko Teye, Joey Daniel Darko.

Participants: The zeal and enthusiasm from participants to learn something new, improve on their programming skills and to meet distinguished coaches who gave more insights about the Tech ecosystem were impeccable! You should see the joy on their faces when they are able to print “Hello World”. Another remarkable thing that was noticed was how they were ready to help each other learn.

Experiences: Here are a few words from some of the attendees about their experiences.

Django girls workshop opened my eyes to prospects I look into for my career. Django girls taught me that I can solve problems in my own small way. Getting stuck and finding your way out when programming is very fulfilling. I’ve had a lot of A-ha moments with programming which pushes me to want to do a lot more. Django girls exposed me to such an experience and I’d be forever thankful for that ~ Rosina Carr Afua Ampomah

Django girls has instilled in me the will to code as a lady. Actually, I had little idea about what programming was but attending the workshop for two times has really taught me a lot. Sometimes many men feel coding was designed for them but with the help of Django girls, we are breaking all odds and boundaries. ~ Comfort Olantude Adebambi

Yeeeeaaahhh!!!

The Django Girls Workshop has been one of the best workshops I’ve attended so far.

When I first heard about it I applied to just go have fun since I am not an IT student and I know nothing about programming😅.

But during the workshop I got so excited about the whole thing and seeing other ladies enthused about the program really got me interested.

I attended two workshops. The first one I was a bit lost because I had no idea what was going on. So I applied again and after the second workshop I can proudly say I have good skills using the django framework and I have my own blog even though it’s not well developed😃.

The workshop has impacted me greatly.

It’s through these workshops that I developed interest in programming and I’m trying my best to develop in the field.

The Python language and using Github are all skills I acquired because I attended Django Girls Workshop💃🏽

The coaches and organizers are also so kind that they are always ready to share their knowledge even after the workshop.

When I finally make it in the programming field, I will never forget Django Workshop because that was where I got all the motivation and it was my first step into the field.

Much love to the Django Team ~ Irene Adinorkie Okutu

Well, I am very happy I had the chance to attend Django girls workshop. I first saw it on Facebook and it caught my attention. I was surprised to ever for the first time in my life, see a group of people who have taken upon themselves to teach girls about technology and other stuffs relating to the internet like creating a website for oneself. I applied and was so happy when I had a message that I have been selected to be part of the training. I have never regretted being part of Django girls.

One thing that fascinates me most is the willingness of the mentors to teach you at every time whenever I have difficulties. Thanks to Django Girls Foundation and dedicated mentors. ~ Gifty Otoo

Coverage: Since its inception in Ghana, Django Girls Workshops has been successfully held in the following cities/remote areas in Ghana: Accra, Kumasi, Ho, Tarkwa, Legon, Sunyani, Kwamang Ashanti, Sogakope, Winneba, Takoradi, Hohoe, Kwahu and Akosombo. Some cities have had the feel of it twice and so far the journey has been exciting.

More Django Girls events are yet to come and we entreat you to visit djangogirls.org/events to sign up for the next event close to you.

Click to view more detail description of the coverage map here

Sponsors: Getting local sponsorship for a workshop like this is so difficult that without the following organization and their continuous support, Django Girls workshop wouldn’t have reached more underrepresented women in tech in Ghana. We do appreciate your coming onboard to backing this cause: Python Software Foundation, Django Software Foundation, Gitlab, GitHub, Travis-ci, JetBrains, ict4d.at, elastic, pythonanywhere, icode Hub, ICT4D, stickermule, Torchbox, HelloWebApp, Google

Partners: Python Software Community Ghana, Khophi Photography

Conclusion Gradually, the mission and aim of the Django Girls Foundation are being met in Ghana, and we can boldly say that the Django Girls experience in Ghana has so far being super impactful and we are looking forward to more workshops and helping some of the participants gain leadership roles in the Tech Ecosystem.

The Dream is definitely on!

This blog post was put up by Abigail Mesrenyame Dogbe & Noah Alorwu

Django Girls is a non-profit that teaches programming to women all around the world. Want to help us? Support us!

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djangogirls · 6 years ago

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DJANGO GIRLS VISITS THE MOUNTAINOUS CITY OF KWAHU - ABETIFI

This blog post was written by Hope Adoli. Thank you, Hope :)

Django Girls Kwahu was one of the first coding boot camps that took place in the area referred to as the highest habitable point of Ghana; Kwahu - Abetifi.

Kwahu or Kwawu people are hardworking and famous business-oriented Kwa-speaking people that form a subset of the larger Akan ethnic group living in south – central Ghana, on the west shore of Lake Volta. Kwahu people speak a dialect of Akan language called Twi and live specifically in the mountainous Eastern Region of Ghana in the towns such as Abene, Abetifi, Pepease, Atibie, Nkwatia, Obo, Bepong, Tafo, Akwasiho, Obomeng, Twenedurase, Nteso, Mpraeso, Asakraka, Aduamoa, Pitiko, Sadan, Burukuwa, Nkantanane, Ahinasie and Donkorkrom. Read more here

The workshop took place at the Abetifi campus of Presbyterian University College, from the 14th to the 15th of September, 2018. The main aim of this session was to involve these determined young ladies who did not have any prior coding experience to gain insight into what Python programming coding entails and equip themselves with basic coding skills. The activities for the two-day workshop was scheduled as follows:

Day 1

This started at approximately 4:00pm on Friday, 14th of September, 2018. We had introductions to get familiar with the girls and allowed them to network with their new friends they made there. The participants were showed how to correctly install all the software needed for the workshop. The installed setups include:

Git

Python

Sublime Text 3

These were made available for both 32-bit and 64-bit machines.

After installation, the participants then went on to set up their Virtual Environments. Also, the Django Web Framework was installed using the PIP command. After successfully installing the various software needed, we spent the subsequent 1 hour discussing how the internet works and went on to get ourselves introduced to the command prompt. At about 6pm, the workshop ended.

Day 2

Day 2 (workshop day) was full of activities. By 8 am, the majority of the participants were already present and had settled down for the day’s activities to commence. After having our breakfast, the organizing team gave a welcome note and made a few introductions, and the workshop started. Some of the major items on our schedule were Introduction to Python, going for a cupcake break 😊, building our first Django project, learning how to deploy using PythonAnywhere and GitHub, and learning the basics of HTML and CSS, and most importantly, have fun. During our lunch break, the Dean Of Students for the Presbyterian University College visited us and had a 5-minute chat with the participants.

The girls were taken through the tutorial by their respective coaches. The workshop ended at around 4 pm, with the participants being awarded certificates for participating. Here is what one of the participants had to say after the workshop: youtu.be/T_ndC8261r8

Training Outcomes and the Way Forward

More than half of the participants successfully hosted their personal blogs and the few who could not are yet to finish up.

Key Takeaways

Programming requires discipline and consistency.

Teamwork is a great thing because it enlightens understanding.

With the right tools and environment, girls can code too.

Sponsors and Partners

The Django Girls Kwahu team is so grateful and honoured to have been sponsored and partnered by some institutions to make this workshop a success.

Our main Sponsor was the Python Software Foundation. We had sponsorship from the GitHub Community and GitLab Diversity Fund too.

The following organizations also helped us a lot. The 2018/2019 SRC of Presbyterian University College - Abetifi campus, Khophi Photography for our beautiful photos and Loudr Social for our designs and publications.

Their financial and other forms of support really helped us and we are grateful.

Photos from the event can be viewed here.

This blog post was put up by Abigail and Hope.

Django Girls is a non-profit that teaches programming to women all around the world. Want to help us? Support us!

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djangogirls · 7 years ago

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From Django Girls Ho, With Love.

This blog post was written by Hope Adoli. Thank you, Hope Adoli :)

The Django Girls Ho event took place on 29th and 30th September 2017 at KK Hub in Ho. During the workshop, 40 ladies were introduced to Python Programming and website development using the Django Web framework, thanks to the selfless service of our 14 awesome coaches.

The workshop began on 29th September with the installation party. The participants were guided by their coaches to install the various software that would later be used, thus Python and Django and also creating the virtual environment. On Saturday, they began building their websites using Python and Django Web Framework.

Even though most of them were new to programming which initially made things slow, the coaches were able to guide them carefully and by the time workshop was coming to an end, most of them were already considering continuing learning Python.

During the workshop, we had a lightning talk from Prof Di Margarete Grimus via Skype call who talked to the ladies about the benefits of being a programmer, especially as women. She also encouraged the ladies to take their programming lessons seriously, and she also answered questions from the participants.

On the whole, the workshop was very successful and Djangolicious and we the organizers are very honoured to have been part of it, and we could not have done any of these without the priceless support from the Django Foundation, Python Software Foundation and GitHub. Your financial and other forms of support made it possible for us to organize the workshop successfully, which has helped shape the lives of 40 ladies who will also go to teach others. Thank you so much.

Also, we had partnership from KK Hub – Ho, BarCamp Ghana, Travis-CI, Life-Mac Network Foundation, Hello Web App and Jet Brains. It was our pleasure to partner with you. The different roles you played in making this workshop a success is very much appreciated. We hope to work again with you soon.

View more Django Girls Ho pictures here: https://t.co/zntVIG3xYD

Django Girls is a non-profit that teaches programming to women all around the world. Want to help us? Support us!

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