Programming & Development

Web Development

Build modern, responsive websites using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with a focus on real projects.

Level: Beginner–Advanced Beginner: 4 weeks • Intermediate: 8 weeks • Advanced: 12 weeks Contact for pricing

Prerequisites

No prior experience required — open to beginners.

Certificate

Awarded by Rescue Academy on successful completion of the program's assessments and final project.

Learn Online — Live Classes

Register, receive your schedule, and join live instructor-led Web Development classes on Zoom. Assignments, instructor feedback, and a certificate on completion.

Learn In Person

Attend Web Development classes in person in Juba with hands-on labs, instructor mentorship, and a certificate on completion.

What You'll Learn

  • How the web works, semantic HTML and accessible forms
  • CSS, Flexbox, Grid and mobile-first responsive design
  • JavaScript for web pages, fetch and async/await
  • Git collaboration, React components and client-side routing
  • Node.js/Express APIs, databases and full-stack integration
  • Authentication, web security, performance and technical SEO
  • Deployment, operations and client project delivery

Program Objectives

  • Build accessible, responsive websites with semantic HTML, CSS and JavaScript
  • Develop component-based front ends and JSON APIs backed by a database
  • Secure, optimise and deploy full-stack web applications
  • Collaborate with Git and deliver projects professionally for clients

Who It's For

  • Beginners who want to build and publish websites
  • Aspiring front-end, back-end or full-stack developers
  • Freelancers and staff who build websites for businesses and organisations

Where You'll Use It

  • Websites for businesses, NGOs, schools and government offices
  • Web applications such as booking, registration and catalogue systems
  • Freelance and agency web development

Curriculum

Instructor-led, practical training. Each level is a block of 4, 8 or 12 weeks; every module ends with a practical activity and an assessment, and every level with a project.

Beginner

4 weeks · 52 guided hours · 5 modules Free taster lessons available Level overview

Module 1: HTML for Structured Web Pages 10 h

Understand how the web works and write semantic HTML with links, images and forms that everyone can use. 3 lessons

Module 2: CSS and Responsive Layout 11 h

Style pages with CSS, understand the box model and cascade, and build mobile-first layouts with Flexbox, Grid and media queries. 3 lessons

Module 3: JavaScript for Web Pages 10 h

Learn enough JavaScript to make web pages interactive: variables, functions, the DOM, events and form handling. 3 lessons

Module 4: Modern JavaScript and Fetching Data 11 h

Use modern JavaScript features and load data from APIs with fetch and async/await, handling loading and errors. 3 lessons

Module 5: Publishing a Website 10 h

Track your work with Git, publish the site on a static host with HTTPS and a domain, and check it before launch. 3 lessons

Level project: Website for a Local Organisation

Intermediate

8 weeks · 90 guided hours · 6 modules Level overview

Module 1: Accessible and Maintainable Front Ends 15 h

Meet core accessibility requirements and organise CSS so that sites stay consistent and easy to change. 3 lessons

Module 2: Collaborating with Git and GitHub 13 h

Work on code with others using branches, pull requests, code review and conflict resolution. 3 lessons

Module 3: Component-Based Front Ends with React 18 h

Build interfaces from React components with props, state, events and data fetching, and add client-side routing. 3 lessons

Module 4: Back-End Basics with Node.js and Express 16 h

Understand the client–server model and build a JSON API with Express, including routing, middleware and validation. 3 lessons

Module 5: Connecting Front End and API 13 h

Connect the React front end to the Express API for reading and writing data, handling errors, CORS and configuration for different environments. 3 lessons

Module 6: Multi-Page Website Project 15 h

Plan, build, test and deploy the training centre catalogue and enquiry system as a team project for a realistic client. 3 lessons

Level project: Training Centre Course Catalogue and Enquiry System

Advanced

12 weeks · 140 guided hours · 6 modules Level overview

Module 1: Databases for Web Applications 22 h

Model data relationally, query it from Node.js safely, manage schema changes with migrations and protect data integrity. 4 lessons

Module 2: Authentication and Web Security 24 h

Implement secure login, sessions and role-based access, and defend web applications against the most common attacks. 4 lessons

Module 3: Web Performance and Search Optimisation 20 h

Measure and improve real-world speed, cache effectively and make sites discoverable in search engines through sound technical SEO. 4 lessons

Module 4: Deployment and Operations 22 h

Deploy full-stack applications reliably with environments, CI/CD, logging, monitoring and backups. 4 lessons

Module 5: Client Web Projects and Maintenance 22 h

Scope, price, deliver and maintain websites for real clients, including content management and professional communication. 4 lessons

Module 6: Web Development Capstone 30 h

Design, build, secure, deploy and present the full-stack booking platform for a local business. 5 lessons

Level project: Full-Stack Booking Platform for a Local Business

Final practical project

Full-Stack Booking Platform for a Local Business

A secure, deployed web application where customers book services and staff manage bookings by role, delivered with a proposal, handover guide and maintenance plan.

Deliverables

  • React front end and Express API with a relational database
  • Role-based staff dashboard and customer booking flow
  • CI/CD deployment with monitoring and tested backups
  • Proposal, handover guide and maintenance plan

Assessed on

  • Authentication, authorisation and common-attack defences are in place and tested
  • Double bookings are impossible and every error is handled clearly
  • Mobile performance and accessibility meet the agreed targets
  • The client could operate and maintain the site from the handover pack

Worked Examples

A selection of the visual, practical examples used in this program's lessons — each teaches a different skill.

Free Course: Web Development Starter

A free first look at how websites are built: HTML structure, CSS styling, responsive layouts, JavaScript in the browser, loading data with async/await, and getting a site online. Free, self-study, about 6 hours — no certificate. The full program above is taught live by an instructor, with practical assignments, assessments and a certificate.

  1. 1Free lesson 1Foundations of the Web (HTML5 & CSS3)
  2. 2Free lesson 2Responsive Web Design
  3. 3Free lesson 3JavaScript Essentials for the Web
  4. 4Free lesson 4Modern JavaScript: Fetching Data with async/await
  5. 5Free lesson 5Web Hosting & Offline-First Web Concepts
  6. Final checkQuick Quiz — Foundations
Open the free course

Tools & Technologies

Primary Tools

  • Visual Studio Code — The editor used throughout the program Practice: Editing HTML, CSS, JavaScript and server code
  • Browser DevTools — Inspecting layout, debugging scripts and measuring performance Practice: Elements, Console, Network, Lighthouse
  • Git and GitHub — Version control, collaboration and publishing Practice: Branches, pull requests, code review

Supporting Tools

  • React (with Vite) — Component-based front ends from the Intermediate level Practice: Components, state, effects and routing
  • Node.js and Express — Building JSON APIs Practice: Routing, middleware, validation
  • PostgreSQL or SQLite — Relational data for web applications Practice: Schemas, migrations and parameterised queries

Professional / Industry Tools

  • Static and application hosting with CI/CD (e.g. GitHub Actions) — Automated testing and deployment Practice: Pipelines, environments and rollbacks
  • Lighthouse and Search Console — Measuring performance and search visibility Practice: Auditing, optimising and reporting

Career Opportunities

  • Junior web or software developer
  • Freelance developer for local businesses and NGOs
  • IT/software role in a company or government office

Practical Projects

  • Build and deploy a complete, responsive multi-page website for a real or fictional local business
  • Recreate a simple landing page from a design reference, matching layout and responsiveness
  • Audit an existing webpage for mobile-responsiveness and accessibility issues using DevTools and an accessibility checker, then fix at least five real problems you find

Problem-Solving Focus

Problem: A site looks fine on a laptop but overflows, breaks, or becomes hard to tap on a small phone screen — the majority of real visitors in South Sudan browse on mobile

Approach: Build mobile-first with flexible units (%, rem, flexbox/grid), test at real small-viewport widths in DevTools rather than just resizing a desktop window, and fix touch-target sizing before adding any desktop-only enhancements.

Problem: A page loads slowly on a weak or expensive mobile data connection

Approach: Minimize image file sizes, avoid unnecessary external scripts and fonts, and measure real load time using DevTools' network throttling before calling a page finished.

Problem: A form doesn't tell the user what went wrong when they submit invalid data

Approach: Add clear, accessible inline validation messages tied to the specific field that failed, instead of one generic alert that leaves the user guessing.

Problem: A client wants a professional online presence but has no server and no budget for hosting

Approach: Build a static site and deploy it for free with GitHub Pages or Cloudflare Pages — avoiding backend infrastructure entirely for content that never actually needed a server.