Monday, October 15, 2012

The Power of We | Virtual Self-Study Groups


Today is Blog Action Day. This year's theme is The Power of We, a celebration of people working together to make a positive difference in the world.

The Power of We in Boston


Here's how we are making a difference in Boston.


The Challenge: Companies are looking for technology workers and they are not finding workers with the skills they need.

The Solution: Form virtual self-study groups to train workers on technology skills.

Narrowing the Skills Gap, One Chapter at a Time


Boston PHP Meetup
, the largest Web technology Meetup in the United States with more than 3,000 members, launched this virtual self-study group initiative in January 2011. 


The format of a virtual self-study group is as follows:

~ Each participant purchases the same textbook.
~ Each participant commits to read one chapter per week, complete the exercises and post a link to their completed work.
~ Each participant obtains assistance by posting questions to a discussion area set up on the Boston PHP Message Board.

One group is currently under way: PHP Percolate! Season 4.

Two groups are about to begin on November 4: jQuery jAM, Season 2 and HTML5 Brunch, Season 2.

More than 80 alumni are enshrined on the Self-Study Group | Wall of Accomplishment.

Training is Virtual


Since training is virtual you do not need to live in Boston to participate.  If you are interested in learning Web technology, then join us and help narrow the skills gap, one chapter at a time.


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