Teach Me the Web

September 08, 2008

The largest question I get after someone commits to speaking to my students is “Can you give me some specifics about my presentation?” and after reading this article you should have a better idea of what a presentation should encompass.

Your audience

Your audience will be a group of around 20 to 30 15 to 18 year olds.

What topics do you cover in the class?

• HTML/XHTML
• CSS
• RSS/XML
• JavaScript
• PHP
• MySQL
• Legal implications
• Advanced Graphic Design with Photoshop & Fireworks

What should I present about?

That is really up to you, keeping in mind that you probably have an area of expertise that would render you an authority on a specific subset of Web Design/Development. My suggestions are the following:

• Review your educational background and make recommendations for students who wish to pursue Web Design/Development in their future.
• Review your portfolio
• Discuss your job duties and work history
• Chat about a new technology
• Propose debated web topics
• Discuss a niche topic (ie: design is broad, typography is specific)
• Make it fun, if you're bored making it, chances are they'll be bored listening to it

I know this is rather open ended but that's what makes it fun! Be creative and think about what you would have wanted to sit and listen to at their age.

What programs do you have in your computer lab?

We have approximately 30 PCs in our lab running Windows XP. Our software suite includes:

Design Software
Adobe Photoshop CS2, Fireworks 8, ImageReady CS2 ,and Flash 8

Code Editors
Dreamweaver 8, Contribute 3, Notepad++, and MS Frontpage

Browsers
IE6, FF3, Opera 9.5, and Safari for Windows

Other
MS Office 2003

Can I bring my own laptop?

Sure can but be sure your laptop has a standard VGA output to plug into our projector

However, if you do bring a laptop you will not have an Internet connection so please plan accordingly.

What format should my presentation be in?

Depends upon if you bring your own machine or use ours. See supported software above, however, safe is better PDFs work on every machine.

If I email myself the presentation can I download it there?

Sure can. Our school system allows us to use email clients that operate on port 80 so that includes Gmail, AOL, Yahoo, and others. If you use squirrel mail (only some installations) or another item that requires a port other than 80 then you cannot check it.

My recommendation is that you email it to yourself and bring it on a Flash drive just to be safe.

Anything else I should know?

Please refrain from strong language or other inappropriate items.

One time...A presenter (not for this school or even this subject area) was introducing himself and said that this was his first presentation to students ever, "So [we] were popping his cherry". That line was crude, uneeded, and set a very negative tone about his presentation within the first few seconds of him talking.

So please keep in mind that these are young people and I expect you to speak as the professional you are.