As a 19 year old kid thats trying to learn web programming right now (After becoming reasonably proficient in java first), I can tell you first hand that there is a pretty big barrier to entry. It's frankly just hard to know what all the moving parts that you are supposed to include as padding actually do.
And it goes without saying that the "black boxes" or function calls that make OO programming or functional programming so efficient to do in groups are hell on someone learning to code.
In order to get people involved, its much better to make it easier instead of telling people to try harder.
The best way to learn web programming is to start with the fundamentals. I would recommend to pick a technology stack, like RoR or whatever, and start reading the basic tutorials, but as soon as you get to a part which references HTML DOM, HTTP, CSS, or Javascript, diverge into those subjects, learning all you can about them, until you are either satisfied or bewildered, then come back to the original tutorial. The key is to not let all the time-saving effort that has gone into the frameworks prevent you from learning the fundamentals, otherwise they'll always seem like black boxes.
And it goes without saying that the "black boxes" or function calls that make OO programming or functional programming so efficient to do in groups are hell on someone learning to code.
In order to get people involved, its much better to make it easier instead of telling people to try harder.