If you are in the cloud industry, chances are, you might have already tried different kinds of tutorials, classes, and resources to learn a new technology or language. Even experienced engineers and programmers need to go through this process because of the wide variety of languages available now. For businesses, time is of essence. So the faster a developer can learn a new language and technology, the more valuable he/she is for the business.
However, learning has many levels. It starts with learning the specifics of a product or a programming language, and goes all the way through learning how the product works in a real-life application.
What Is the Best Way to Learn?
Every person has a different learning style. This leads to the requirement of different teaching processes. As a result, everything becomes very complicated. Whether it is watching, reading, listening, or feeling, how do you determine which method is best for you? How do you find the learning resources most suitable for different learning needs?
The simplest methods for learning something new involve elements that make you enjoy while learning. Such methods simplify understanding and remembering the new material. There isn’t any single formula for learning. You can employ a number of primary learning methods based on your experience, with slight changes as per the requirement. Understanding what methods are suitable for you to use as your primary study method will help you choose the right kind of programming tutorial.
In the following section, we will look at the six common approaches to learning. We will also look at some of the initiatives taken by Alibaba Cloud to encourage users to learn about the various technologies behind our products.
Six Primary Learning Methods
1.Reading
This type of learning includes reading and writing. Most programming courses and resources focus on this type of learning because reading documentation is a key skill in becoming a good programmer.
One such example is the FreeCodeCamp project. At FreeCodeCamp you use fragments of documentation to quickly learn to program and how to put what you have learned into practical applications. Join Facebook's FreeCodeCamp community where you can discuss issues and solutions and share your progress with others. After registration, you can see new information and blog content. Resources like W3Schools and the Mozilla Developer Network are also quite helpful.
2.Visual/Spatial
The type of learning method includes the use of colors and graphics, pictures, and visual media. Visual learners like to use text editors when programming because most editors use specific colors to tag keywords in the code. You can simulate this process by taking notes in different colors or using different color highlighters. Especially in the face of new vocabularies, multiple colors for notes help a lot of people with learning and remembering what they have learned. A lot of source code editors are also color coded to aid this process.
Wireframe models are a great way to visualize your project. You can choose to use programming resources that are heavy on the use of charts and other types of images. My favorite visual resource is the Ultimate Flexbox Cheat Sheet. In this cheat sheet, the location of the image and the color subdivision simplifies learning Flexbox.
A lot of the tutorials on the Alibaba Cloud Getting Started channel also includes images and screenshots to aid visual users in learning about Alibaba Cloud products. There are also video tutorials for users who prefer animations over static images.
3.Listening/Music
This type of learning method includes listening to audiobooks, listening to broadcasts, podcasts, and speeches, associating sounds with meanings, and adding tempo and rhythm to your study. Good speakers convey information by using tones, inflection, and changes in their speaking speed. This is very important for programmers because they need to learn a lot of new and different words and concepts. Listening to new words in context can make it easier to learn them.
Webinars is also one of the most effective ways to learn by listening. The Alibaba Cloud Webinar is a great platform for users to learn about the technologies behind Alibaba Cloud's products and services.
4.Touch/Doing
This type of learning includes exercise, practice, and other hands-on activities. Tactile learners do not mind fragmented code because they enjoy the process of repairing it. They learn by transforming information into concrete products. When learning a programming language, it is important to have a good framework. Foundational skills like HTML and CSS provide you a start to creating something new.
You can take courses that encourage you to build your projects and skip over those courses that copy the code from a single completed project. Alibaba Cloud Free Trial is a perfect way for users to experiment with various services without needing to spend on resources. You can also earn rewards for experimenting Alibaba Cloud services and documenting your experience through the Tech Share program.
5.Logic/Mathematical Thinking
This type of learning method includes systematically solving problems in sequence, understanding cause and effect, and running simulation processes. People who are prone to logical thinking prefer workflow applications. They like to read documents from start to finish. They enjoy using libraries built on hierarchical logic (such as Bootstrap).
Arguably, we can say that learning about a new technology or programming is all about problem-solving. Therefore, you should take every chance you get to solve puzzles, challenges, and competitions such as the ones from Alibaba Cloud Tianchi. Alibaba Cloud Tianchi connects the best software developers and data scientists with businesses and governments globally to solve the toughest problems across multiple industries.
6.Social and Community
In addition to a person’s other individual learning tendencies, most people are either inwardly focused on the self or outwardly focused on society and interpersonal relationships. Interpersonal learners like social methods of learning. They learn well in groups. They should consider taking part in hackathons, attending programming meet-ups, or joining study groups.
Alibaba Cloud hosts a number of events for developers to share, learn, and collaborate in various projects. These events are available globally and are hosted by both professional bodies as well as community experts (Alibaba Cloud MVP). To learn more about the events hosted near you, visit the Alibaba Cloud Events Center.
Conclusion
One last point to cover, for optimal learning, you should take advantage of all the study resources you can. Build your learning system based on resources that fit your primary learning style, and then try different ways of learning. Also, be patient. Learning to program is neither fast nor easy. You need to allow yourself to make mistakes.
We hope that this article has helped you in identifying the learning methods that you have used throughout your career. If you want to make a more professional analysis of your learning methods, please make use of this inventory of learning methods.
