Teachin em Real Good

I have always had an interest in teaching in some capacity, whether it is helping out with a lab, leading a seminar, or being an adjunct professor. I realize I am still fairly "green" and could use a few years under my belt. But just for shits and giggles I have been wondering what would I teach... hmmm.

I'd be most comfortable teaching flash development or some sort of interactive design course with a focus on Action Script. I'd obviously cover the basics and give as much personal insight as possible, but there are a few things that I would definitely focus on which I think were missing in my education.

The main one is building a portfolio. It should start from day one. Every project and every assignment should go towards that portfolio. During my senior year I started looked for jobs and the first thing I was asked was "Show me your web portfolio." Booooooy sir, I ummm have a few videos on cd I could mail you and then I have this one project I made for so and so but I think its offline now... Thanks but no thanks. Everything needs to be easily accessed at all times. As soon as it is complete it should be placed in the portfolio. None of this scrounging around at the last minute trying to find a working copy of a site you made three semesters ago.

Soooo, my thought here is that the first assignment is to make a blog. Fill out the about me section of the blog and make your first post to be your goals. Goals for this particular class as well as future career goals. Every future written assignment will be posted on your blog. Classmates are encouraged or possibly even required to critique each other's work via comments.

Every project that involves anything visual should be described in the blog and then linked to flickr. Whether its an art piece, storyboard layout, or just screen shots of a working assignment. And again, classmates should post comments and critique.

Every video project should be written about on the blog and then linked to a youtube account.

Every website/flash piece should be written about on the blog and then linked to a portfolio page.

Getting the theme here? Everything should be posted online. Every piece of work is a reflection of the student and should be portfolio worthy.

There are a few other ideas up my sleeve and maybe I will post about them soon. But that is the biggie. Getting the work out online for everyone to see should be a requirement.