Educators Edge: How Teaching Skills Can Elevate Developer Advocacy

Educators Edge How Teaching Skills Can Elevate Developer Advocacy Andrew MacLean (He/Him) | 🥑 @ DevCycle @andrewdmaclean andrewdmaclean.com @andrewdmaclean

Talk tl;dr Understanding how to apply educational pedagogy* can help you better organize & prioritize your DevRel practice for building strong developer communities. *teaching theory and practice @andrewdmaclean

About Me 👋 2010 Youth Outreach Worker 2015 Engineering Outreach Manager 2019 Classroom Science Teacher 2020 Community Manager 2023 Developer Advocate @andrewdmaclean

In this talk I’ll cover: ● My Journey from Classroom to Code ● Parallels between Teaching and DevRel ● Why Pedagogy matters to DevRel practitioners ● How Educational Hierarchies can be applied to DevRel ● Practical examples of scaffolding for DevRel practitioners @andrewdmaclean

DevRel & Teaching: Two Parallel Worlds? @andrewdmaclean

Daily Responsibilities DevRel Teaching Develop Learning Materials Conduct Live Presentations Collect and Analyze Feedback ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Oversee Programs & Initiatives Address Concerns & Provide Assistance Promote Engagement & Affinity ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Compile Detailed Documentation Organize & Participate in Events Champion Cooperation & Knowledge Sharing Innovate & Implement New Ideas Distribute Incentives ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Responsibilities adapted from the 2022 DevRel Compensation Report, Common Room @andrewdmaclean

DevRel > Marketing Teaching > Instructing DevRel + Teaching = Building & Supporting Growth @andrewdmaclean

? So what? How can I use these similarities to inform my DevRel work? @andrewdmaclean

Well, consider the progression of this Marketing Funnel… Awareness Consideration Conversion Loyalty Advocacy @andrewdmaclean

It is nearly a mirror image to this key educational hierarchy… Create Evaluate Analyse Apply Understand Remember Produce new or original work Justify a stand or decision Draw connections among ideas Use information in a new situation Explain ideas or concepts Recall facts and basic concepts @andrewdmaclean

It’s nearly a mirror image to this key educational hierarchy… Bloom’s (2001) Taxonomy of Educational Objectives @andrewdmaclean

Considering these similarities Perhaps Bloom’s Objectives might apply to our DevRel work? @andrewdmaclean

But wait… Are objectives really what a teacher would focus on first? @andrewdmaclean

STUDENTS MUST MASLOW BEFORE THEY CAN BLOOM @andrewdmaclean

Maslow’s (1943) Hierarchy of Needs Self-Actualization desire to become the most one can be Esteem Belonging Safety Needs Physiological Needs Deficiency Needs = Motivation ⬇ as Needs Met respect, self-esteem, status, recognition, strength, freedom friendship, intimacy, family, sense of connection personal security, employment, resources, health air, water, food, shelter, sleep, clothing Growth Needs = Motivation ⬆ as Needs Met @andrewdmaclean

Students need their basic needs met before they can fully engage in higher-order thinking. @andrewdmaclean

As educators, it is our job to provide the scaffolding required for those needs to be met & growth to occur. @andrewdmaclean

Developers ^ Students need their basic needs met before they can fully engage in higher-order thinking. ^ deeper community involvement @andrewdmaclean

DevRel practitioners ^ As educators, it is our job to provide the scaffolding required for those needs to be met & growth to occur. @andrewdmaclean

So perhaps we can re-imagine Maslow from a DevRel perspective… @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence Understanding Nurture innovation & enable meaningful impact. Celebrate achievements & foster growth. Build spaces promoting connection & belonging. Enable independent problem-solving. Clearly communicate technology utility & usage. ’s (2023) Hierarchy of Developer Needs @andrewdmaclean

But what does the “scaffolding” look like when building a DevRel program within the hierarchy? @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence ● Create an Onboarding Email Series ● Write “Getting Started” Documentation ● Host Welcome Q&A Sessions ● Publish Interactive Tutorials ● Develop Content around Core Features Understanding Clearly communicate technology utility & usage. @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence ● Implement Real-time Support Channels ● Host regular Live-coding Streams ● Publish Gists of common issues/solutions ● Write Guides for Specific Use-cases ● Create GitHub Repos with Sample Code Understanding Enable independent problem-solving. @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence ● Engage in Subreddits or Niche Forums ● Feature Community Initiatives in Newsletters ● Write Guest Posts on Community Blogs ● Foster Local Chapters or User Groups ● Sponsor/Organize/Participate in Events Understanding Build spaces promoting connection & belonging. @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence ● Highlight Open Source Contributors ● Publish Dev “Shoutouts” on Social Media ● Feature Developers in Blogs and Streams ● Facilitate Community Hosted Webinars ● Establish Community Awards Program Understanding Celebrate achievements & foster growth. @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence ● Create a Developer Advisory Group ● Host Workshops on Advanced Topics ● Offer Developer Certification Pathway ● Allocate Incubation Grants for Projects ● Establish Peer Mentorship Programs Understanding Nurture innovation & enable meaningful impact. @andrewdmaclean

Agency Empowerment Connection Confidence Understanding Nurture innovation & enable meaningful impact. Celebrate achievements & foster growth. Build spaces promoting connection & belonging. Enable independent problem-solving. Clearly communicate platform utility & usage. ’s (2023) Hierarchy of Developer Needs @andrewdmaclean

Key Takeaways: ● Developers are people first, coders second ● Meeting needs is a prerequisite for achieving goals ● The fundamentals outweigh the frills ● Strategy should prioritize needs over goals ● Building solid scaffolding will support shared success @andrewdmaclean

ADDRESSING CORE DEVELOPER NEEDS CAN HELP ADVOCATES ACHIEVE OUR GOALS @andrewdmaclean

Contact Me 💬 Find me on Social: @andrewdmaclean Check out my Website: andrewdmaclean.com @andrewdmaclean