I was in San Diego this week and a friend invited me to attend a San Diego Tech Immersion Group (SDTIG) meeting. It’s experienced computer programmers who want to learn new technical skills.  I was struck by the unique group learning to code environment being fostered by the group.

The group consists of 3 developer leaders/mentors and approximately 100 developer participants, who follow a new learning track every six months. The Fall 2012 track is focused on web development (HTML/HTML5, CSS, Javascript, JSON, and JQuery). Monthly, each member completes the same reading assignment from a book for the current technology and the topics are discussed in a more detail during monthly meetings.

Here are few amazing features of this group learning:

Learners Helping Learners

Members help each other overcome stumbling blocks while learning new technology. In addition to the monthly meetings, there is a forum for group discussion. Because each person is going through the same track, there’s great opportunity for collaborative learning, members jump in to help when they understand the material.

Expert Mentors as Guides

These mentors serve as an expert resource for the group. More than just subject-matter expertise, these mentors also plan the learning schedules, select the materials, and determine an appropriate learning pace.

Learning isn’t easy and creating a plan to learn a foreign subject is a challenge. These experts greatly reduce that burden.

Social Pressure = Accountability

This aspect was never directly mentioned during the meeting, but I couldn’t help notice it. There’s no financial cost to join the group, but by actively choosing to participate in a group environment, there is a social force at play. You don’t want to fall behind so you complete the reading and come prepared to discuss.

Conclusion

I’m always on the lookout for new and interesting resources for learning to code. The SDTIG was a new experience and not like anything I’ve come across locally (if you know of something similar in LA, let me know).

There are characteristics of a traditional classroom setting, but there is much more collaboration amongst the members. Also, members complete individual learning, but it is in a structured, expert-guided fashion. This mix and match of learning styles, guidance, and support are great for beginners learning to code.

featured image courtesy of UBC Library