Me & My World is an educational tool for digital natives that consists of a software and a physical log-in key that are centered in the current, extended behavior of documenting our lives. It focuses in self reflection by documenting for one-self, instead of doing it for the purpose of broadcasting personal lifestyles. This happens in a curated process, supported by teachers by being part of the educational system, and by parents by encouraging discussions in the home environment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The physical log-in key is divided into two parts: a home dock and a portable token. These two parts have to be connected in order to grant access to the software and the data. The way they fit together is digitally and physically unique for each pair, making each key a one-of-a-kind.

The static dock stays at home, and digital natives use it to download their pictures and see them in the desktop application. The portable token they bring back and forth between home and school. They use it to learn and access their data at school, and to discover connections with their classmates.

 

As soon as the physical log-in key is connected to a computer, it launches a desktop application. I focused on the main flow of exploring the data so digital natives can learn about themselves. There is a process of tagging pictures with people, places and interests when a camera is plugged to the log-in key.

Me & My World can be found in Digital Me: a platform for parents, teachers, and any adult that considers him/herself as an educator or a role model of the digital natives. In it they can find other tools that empower and support when bringing up pre-teens that are about to start, or have already started the process of exploration in the search of self-identity.

These tools are designed around two main principles: they should evolve with the digital natives; and they should tackle different aspects of identity search and technology.

This movie briefly shows a scenario of how the system would work: elementary school teachers learn about Me in My World and order it from the Digital Me platform. After a few set-up steps, they give a personal, nontransferable physical log-in key to each student.

Digital natives use their own cameras to capture and create content about the world around them. When they connect their cameras to the key, and the key to a computer, the images are downloaded into the software. In this way,

the physical log-in key gives them access to the computer application they use at school and at home.

 

 

16 weeks MFA Thesis Project in Interaction Design.

Umeå Institute of Design, Sweden 2013