Do you ever wonder if you’ve really learned all you need to know about a particular topic? We do. So a several weeks ago we launched a Knowledge Tracker for a portion of our readership, and now we are rolling it out for everyone. We hope you find it innovative and engaging. Here’s what it’s all about.
Obviously, knowledge is important to us here at the Prospect. We research and write about important public policy ideas, the politics behind them, and the power wielded – and crushed – by those in and out of control. The ideas we cover often have a profound effect not just on our own lives but on American democracy.
The Knowledge Tracker is meant to help you build on what you know about the ideas, politics and power we write about. Each article contributes to your knowledge in the topics it covers – the knowledge tracker system calculates how much with a basic score, and as you read through an article, that score is added to your total score for that topic. At the end of each article, the Knowledge Tracker provides a view of your progress, and suggests several articles that you might want to read next.
The technology behind Knowledge Tracker, which is provided by our partner CRUX, is complex, but what it does is pretty intuitive, looking at how much you’ve read and guiding you toward key strands of the conversation you might not have fully explored. So it’s not “more of the same,” but rather “discover something new.”
The Tracker measures coverage on a scale of zero to 1,000 points. Zero means you haven’t yet read any article relevant to that particular topic; 1,000 points means you may have read them all. Recommendations are based on what will best increase your knowledge, based on your individual journey so far. You can choose to follow the path, or branch out to a different topic altogether. The tracker reaches back into Prospect archives as well, to add to your discovery and deeper knowledge.
Sometimes, if you have missed a new article relevant to your interests, the Knowledge Tracker may indicate that your score has dropped. It will then guide you directly to the most informative new articles you haven't yet read. It’s fine to miss a story, because the tracker will help you pick up the trail again.
As you read more of the Prospect’s coverage of ideas, politics and power, the Knowledge Tracker aggregates your scores across all topics on one page. From there you can navigate onward to build your expertise.
To ensure that your knowledge scores and recommendations are aligned across devices, please register your email to create a free Prospect account. You can do that here.
We hope you will find the Knowledge Tracker fun and helpful. We’d love to hear what you think of it. Drop us a line at knowledgetracker@prospect.org.
