5 Helpful Resources for Learning Web Development

Why Should I Learn To Code?

In this article we are going to take a look at several different resources that will help you learn web development. Before we get into it, let’s take a look at two reasons why you might want to consider getting into the web development industry.

It Provides Lucrative and Growing Opportunities

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of web developers is expected to grow 13% from 2018 to 2028, much faster than the average of other occupations. Additionally, salaries for web developers are higher than average.

It Often Does Not Require a Degree

While having a degree in computer science or a related field is valuable and may be required by certain companies, many successful web developers are self-taught and do not have a related degree. This is great news for people who are looking to break into web development or change careers without having to go back to school.

Now that we have taken a look at a couple reasons you might want to become a web developer, let's start talking about all the helpful places where you can learn.

1. Udemy

Udemy offers online courses on a wide variety of topics with a huge selection of videos focusing on coding and web development, and with the constant sales they offer, the courses usually cost around $10 to $12.

With such a large selection, I recommend reading the reviews and double checking the curriculum to ensure you are getting the best bang for your buck. Having taken many of these courses myself, I wanted to share with you some of my favorites.

Here are several great classes to get you started with web development:

• This course will help you increase and refine your knowledge of HTML5 and CSS3
• This web development bootcamp touches on both front-end and back-end with sections from HTML and CSS to Node and MongoDB
• Learn the ins and outs of WordPress by building a completely custom website in this course
• Take your React knowledge to the next level by building and deploying these projects

Completing these courses will not only help you gain tons of knowledge about web development, but it will also help you fill up your portfolio with beautiful, functional real-world projects of which you can be proud.

2. YouTube

YouTube is a valuable resource for developers. Not only can you find solutions to many problems you will face when learning web development, but many generous people have dedicated their entire channels to teaching development.

Below are just a few channels that cover a wide variety of web development topics:

• Net Ninja has complete playlists covering almost every web development technology
• Traversy Media covers a bit of everything from coding languages to advice for freelancing and soft skills
• Drew Ryan is focused on building entire websites. It’s perfect for putting together the individual pieces learned from other resources

3. freeCodeCamp

Most websites that teach you to code online make you write code inside the page’s code editor so it can give you instant feedback. The trouble with this approach, however, is that it becomes very hard to retain that knowledge, and it does not show you how to use it in a real world setting.

To combat these problems, freeCodeCamp encourages you to tackle projects outside its built-in editor after you learn the basics. In my opinion, this is why freeCodeCamp is one of the best resources for learning how to code.

Building real-world projects benefits you multiple ways. You will be able to create a portfolio, gain practical experience solving problems with code, and learn how to develop projects more independently.

In addition, freeCodeCamp connects you to a large, helpful community. There is a forum, YouTube channel, and Twitter communities where you can find help and support from other learners.

They offer a comprehensive curriculum covering front end, back end, accessibility, data visualization and more -- all for free!

4. Frontend Mentor

After getting a handle on the basics, the best way to cement your coding knowledge is by building real-world projects. This is where Frontend Mentor shines.

Download the starter files containing the images of the design and all the assets you will need to complete the project, and then start coding! This helps to get you familiar with a more real-life workflow.

Join the helpful slack community to get help when you’re stuck, to post your finished projects, and to talk about all things code related.

5. JavaScript30

Need more experience with JavaScript? JavaScript30 is perfect for you. The philosophy behind JavaScript30 is “Build things. Lots of things.”

Completing these projects will give you a solid foundation of vanilla JS. You will learn about DOM manipulation, local storage, and even a speech recognition API. You can add these projects to your portfolio, or even better, use the knowledge you learn to create your very own application!

Conclusion

I hope this article was able to help you find some standout resources among the overwhelming amount of information related to web development. If you know of any great resources for aspiring web developers, let me know on social media!