I mention Codecademy & Khan Academy in this post on the 'Learn it Yourself movement' http://bit.ly/sReK6m http://bit.ly/sReK6m It seems to me that making educa

I mention Codecademy & Khan Academy in this post on the 'Learn it Yourself movement' http://bit.ly/sReK6m http://bit.ly/sReK6m It seems to me that making educational material free & widely available is the first step. That's the equivalent of putting textbooks in anyone's hands. The next (massively exciting!) step will be when online learning becomes measurable and demonstrable. See the Khan Academy tools video [http://bit.ly/rVFlsE http://bit.ly/rVFlsE] for a peek at how much is possible on that front. In the case of teaching people to program, I'd like to see lessons, videos, and exercises become the onramp to a system where students can connect/collaborate (think GitHub + StackOverflow for beginner/intermediate coders). I know from my own experience that there's nothing like a little positive peer pressure to keep you on track and that sharing your progress with peers is fun and keeps you motivated.