Ayobami Ogundiran
Coding is now the coolest thing out there and everybody is joining the bandwagon. Python, JavaScript, Php, Java and all other cool programming stuff are now everywhere across social media.
Yeah! It is time to build the next Facebook and you just learnt it would be advantageous to learn to code just like Mark.
Cool!
And you have heard a lot about Robot taking your job in the future as well as the future of work that may deprive you of a better future if you don’t act now.
Fine!
So you have decided to learn to code but your situation makes it impossible to join a boot camp or any other instituted learning platform. Your search for the best languages, libraries, and frameworks to learn usually brings more confusion.
Boom! You are scrapping the web for useful information to help you learn.
As a "beginner-developer", no one or institution would feel ashamed if you are not relevant in the industry. You own all your failures. You don’t know how to ask the right questions and no one is there to help you out yet. Although you have the right information at your disposal, yet it is hard to use the information because you are new to the industry.
Therefore, I believe the developer ecosystem has to design learning systems that can help beginners learn the best ways to make a great career out of learning to code.
Currently, there are several well-established paradigms that are useful in learning to code but such is rare, if any, for career development in the industry.
I believe there should be well-structured systems like:
Career Driven Development (CDD)
I choose to name the process I’m about to discuss Career Driven Development (CDD) to achieve an obvious analogy with Test Driven Development (TDD). But CDD is not a programming paradigm, it a learning approach in which learning to code is driven by
- Self-promotion
- Curiosity
- Helping others
- Building portfolio
- Collaboration
- And networking
as a process to position beginners for better careers in the industry.
Learning to code is hard, career development in the industry should not be hard after overcoming tough learning challenges.
A career driven framework is needed to help beginners focus on things that matter in becoming world-class developer whether she learns at a boot camp or by teaching herself.
I believe this should be approached like Test Driven Development, that is, a well-structured approach is provided –- learn -> showcase -> your skills -> repeat.
What do you think and why?
Thanks for your time.
