[Python-Dev] Python Core Mentorship program

[Zak Stone]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to this list, but I have been an informal mentor for computer
science students at Harvard for several years, and I'd like to share
some observations that may be relevant. In my experience, students are
willing to ask many technical questions in person that they simply
won't ask privately over email, and very few students seem willing to
ask questions on public mailing lists at all.

My impression from these personal observations is that many students
benefit greatly from informal, ephemeral communication with technical
mentors. It may not be easy to analyze _why_ things work this way, but
I believe part of the answer is that the student-mentor relationship
is not primarily about the information exchanged; it is about trust.
The student knows that in a moment of deep frustration, he or she can
privately turn to someone with the patience and experience to help
without being humiliated, which is tremendously reassuring.

At Harvard, we are currently witnessing a huge increase in student
interest in computer science in general and Python in particular,
which I hope is representative of a broader trend. Excellent
mentorship is rare, and I believe strong mentors from the Python
community could be a potent draw for new contributors in this
atmosphere of enthusiasm. One way or another, I hope you can
facilitate informal, ephemeral communication between these newcomers
and their mentors to maximize the newcomers' chances of success.

Many thanks,
Zak