[Tutor] Tungsten teaching method

[Leam Hall]

On 7/26/23 00:04, dn via Tutor wrote:
> This is a quarky/quirky conversation.
> (hah!)
> 
> On 15/07/2023 06.09, ThreeBlindQuarks via Tutor wrote:
>> I have been wondering about some of the newer python learners in terms of how they approach learning. This is not really about just python but all kinds of languages.

[edited to conserve innocent electrons]

Some of my favorite topics are rapid skill acquisition (https://www.amazon.com/The-First-20-Hours-Josh-Kaufman-audiobook/dp/B00D24BEQU) and deeper learning (https://www.amazon.com/Real-World-Gunfight-Training-Cutting-Edge/dp/B09M74KWF1). I disagree with dn about learner types being pop-psych, I find videos to be nearly useless. I read somewhere that the first time you are exposed to a topic, you gain about 17% of it. The next time, you get 44%. The "nearly" uselessness of videos is useful here, I'll sometimes watch a video for the 17%, and then when my brain is primed for the topic, read a book and maximize the 44%. Most of my career has been built that way.

There's a reason some of us don't deeply care about sets, or enums, or <fill in the blank>; we don't need them. Why keep trivia in you brain if you're trying to get work done? You can do a lot with the basics. Of course, if your work set requires sets, enums, etc, then they are not trivia.  :)  I was reading a PEP about a new pip option yesterday, and "meh". Maybe it's needed by some, but pip works for me. I have limited time and no real need to try all of the options. My focus is getting stuff done, not exploring the nooks and crannies of the work tools. Artful craftsmanship often comes from using a few tools very well.

The "language to brain" fit is a great point! I've done a small number (set!) of languages, and Python is one of the closest to the way I think. Ruby was closer, but not really a great career choice. Smalltalk left me confused, and most of my spaghetti code was in PHP. I wrote about the best programming language (https://www.reuel.net/blog/20180814_best_programming_language.html), and how to get the language into your brain faster (https://github.com/LeamHall/conversationalCoding).

Are new Python learners less capable? Doubtful, you should have seen me when I first tried to learn it. I'm glad you didn't, it would be embarrassing. Do we need better teaching methods? Always! Learning should move forward, and learning about learning is still learning.

Leam


-- 
Software Engineer          (reuel.net/resume)
Scribe: The Domici War     (domiciwar.net)
General Ne'er-do-well      (github.com/LeamHall)