Prerequisites
What You Need to Get Started
Prerequisites: Are You Ready to Make the Switch?
This course is designed specifically for educators who are comfortable with PowerPoint and Word but ready to explore a more flexible way to create course content.
What You Already Know (Your Foundation)
✅ You can format text in Word or PowerPoint
- Making text bold, italic, or underlined - Creating headings and subheadings - Adding bullet points and numbered lists
✅ You can insert images and create basic layouts
- Adding pictures to slides or documents - Creating simple tables - Organizing content with headings
✅ You can save and organize files
- Creating folders on your computer - Saving documents with descriptive names - Finding files you created last week (most of the time!)
Many successful educators using Markdown describe themselves as “not technical people.” If you can format a Word document, you have the foundational skills needed for this course.
What You’ll Need for This Course
📋 Required Materials
- A computer with internet access (laptop or desktop)
- One of your existing PowerPoint presentations or Word documents
- Something you use for teaching (syllabus, lesson plan, handout)
- 3-5 slides or 2-3 pages work perfectly
- We’ll use this for hands-on practice
- CourseFoundry account (free setup - we’ll guide you through this in Step 1)
🕐 Time Commitment
- Total time: 2 hours
- Flexible pacing: Complete at your own speed
- Practice time: Budget extra 30 minutes to experiment with your own content
Setting Realistic Expectations
🎯 What You WILL Learn
- How to recreate your PowerPoint slides using simple text formatting
- Why Markdown makes your course content more accessible to all students
- How to update course materials without version control nightmares
- The basics of CourseFoundry for publishing your content
🚫 What This Course Does NOT Cover
- Advanced web development or coding
- Complex animations (PowerPoint transitions won’t translate)
- Detailed graphic design
- Learning management system integration
⚡ Your Biggest Advantage
As an educator, you already understand what makes content clear and engaging. Markdown simply gives you a cleaner way to express those same ideas.
Common Concerns Addressed
“I’m not a technical person”
Reality: Neither were most educators who now use Markdown successfully. The syntax is simpler than Word’s formatting toolbar.
“Will my content look professional?”
Reality: Markdown creates clean, accessible content that works on any device. No more wondering if your slides will display correctly on different computers.
“What if I get stuck?”
Reality: This course includes troubleshooting for every common issue, plus a supportive community of educators making the same transition.
“I have years of PowerPoint content”
Reality: You don’t have to convert everything at once. Start with one lesson and build from there.
Before starting Step 1, make sure you have: - [ ] A computer with internet access - [ ] One PowerPoint or Word document ready for practice - [ ] 2 hours blocked out (or plan to work in chunks) - [ ] An open mind about trying something new
Ready to discover why thousands of educators are making this switch? Let’s start with Step 1: Understanding the Markdown advantage.