OK, folks time to start this discussion in earnest as per this post - http://groups.drupal.org/node/76388
So for the last 3+ camps DrupalCampNYC has had a solid intro track. This has consisted of an installfest to assist students in getting set up with a local Wamp, MAMP, etc. environment - followed by 3 to 4 hours of serious hands-on intro to Drupal - usually followed by 2 or 3 intro friendly sessions.
I think it is a hallmark of our camp, but it is pretty tough to do! It pretty much kills Saturday for whoever is presenting it. And for the students, although it provides them with the most valuable introduction to Drupal from an instructional perspective, it also makes it so they can see any of the cool advanced session too!
So what to do? I can think of a few options...
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Provide an Intro to Drupal prior to the camp as a pre training day (prior Saturday)
- Problem: Would need a location to support at least 40
- Problem: If the location had a cost would have to charge attendees
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Provide an Intro to Drupal prior to camp as a pre-training web based (gotomeeting) training
- Problem: Harder to do vie web based sessions, would have to have 3 or 4 sessions minimum.
- On the plus side the Drupal Dojo has a pro gotomeeting account which they would be happy for us to use for this purpose (go drupal dojo)
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Do this at camp
- Problems already described above. Would basically need an experienced Drupaller good at teaching a large group who is also willing to pretty much give up their camp time Saturday to do this - a lot to ask.
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Or none of the above. Most camps don't do this sort of dedicated training for new folks other than a one hour session or two.
Thoughts?
Anyone know a free space for this the prior Saturday?
Anyone want to make a case for one of the above options (or something else)?
I'm willing to volunteer to do a full day session the prior Saturday IF there is a space for up to 40 that can support it. Alternatively, I may be willing to do some web based trainings. A few folks in the NYC community have already said they'd like to help as well.
So let's get this conversation started!
Comments
Drupal for Content Creators
I have been mulling over the idea of running a "Drupal for Content Creators" session which would be a very light introduction to actually using drupal. Something for people who just want to know how drupal works from an editorial perspective. Things like how to create a page and what all the options mean, here is how to moderate comments, what blocks are and how to use them, tagging content, using and understanding the various administration tools, running a blog, running a forum, touch on the lighter aspects of cck and views, dealing with spam, and some other stuff.
This would largely be tailored toward people who had someone build them a site... this would teach them how to actually use it. I typically run a training session like this for clients upon site delivery. This would be useful for both the editorial folks as well as people who are just using drupal for the first time.
It would be a session since I don't think I could be around the entire Saturday but I do see it being a more open session with Q&A and such since even though drupal is pretty easy to use it can be intimidating to new users and there are often questions.
If there is still an opening for something like this, I would be happy to write it up in more detail.
I encourage you to put this session proposal in
I encourage you to put this session proposal in.
Because even if we do come up with something more thorough and hands-on as a "pre-camp" option, not everyone would be able to attend that. And those that don't might very well appreciate this.
And of course if we don't end up doing something more thorough then this session would be very much needed! So win-win to propose it I say.
Let's look at your option 1 in more detail
1.
Provide an Intro to Drupal prior to the camp as a pre training day (prior Saturday)
* Problem: Would need a location to support at least 40
Could be a classroom w/wireless anywhere that's convenient in the NYC area. Anyone out there have thoughts?
* Problem: If the location had a cost would have to charge attendees
I've been operating under an assumption that if this happened, it might cost $50 per person for the day. Is that a reasonable figure?
If we were to do that, my recollection is that you at one time thought that for a day like this at any time you'd want perhaps one lead presenter + 4 people in the room helping people who might otherwise fall behind. If you have developed a syllabus for the day it may be possible to have more than one presenter, although that may mean a lot more work coordinating/rehearsing ahead of time. My hunch is that the people helping the participants will have to stay the full day - it can be difficult to get-up-to-speed enough to provide efficient assistance when hands-on assistants are swapped in/out.
At $50 for a full day of training we have a real bargain - quality is bound to be excellent. Big problems I see are:
a) Fills up too quickly, many people are unhappy that they can't do it. There is demand for more, and,
b) Organizers/presenters/assistants find it takes far more work than they expected, so demand is not fulfilled.
c) While $50/day is a real bargain, it's going to be a real stretch for some people - Any thoughts re what to do here?
My 2cents
Concerning c) just above
Probably too much admin overhead to implement this by mid-July 2010, but we might consider:
Asking businesses that want to send employees for training to "donate" $50 for a seat for someone who can't afford it.
A full day for $100 is still a bargain.
Business has the option of getting a mention on the website.
We might want to limit the number of business slots to some reasonable percentage of the entire room.
NYPL?
I realize this is from last year, but for future reference: New York Public Library has wifi enabled classrooms with projectors, etc. Their site is built on Drupal, so it may be something they'd be interested in for some of their staff, as well.