I agree that my programming skills have definitely improved one way or another since the previous essay assignment. As I feel that I can now, on my own, more comfortably set up code and identify issues instead of immediately getting to a brick wall whenever I run into any trouble. I also feel more comfortable with utilizing various resources like google and CHATGPT for questions I encounter. I definitely need to work more on just the overall technical skills of coding, knowing what specific things do and exactly how to apply them in the right place and just learning to be more independent when it comes to working on my code.
To be honest, I really miss the screencasts that are provided for the WODs, I feel like without them I have no sense of direction and if I am doing everything correctly. I don’t usually copy the screencast anyways, it is just a way to double check and feel assured that I am doing everything correctly. However, I have learned to do WODs on my own to a certain extent, just taking much longer struggling and redoing them at least once to get a comfortable run through. The labs do help me learn a lot, with Professor Port explaining the concepts and its applications in a very detailed manner. It helps me understand what is going on and how to exactly apply specific skills (methods/functions/etc).
Assignment 1 was a big uphill battle I had to overcome. In all honesty, I struggled the entire time. However, struggling is the best way to learn and I definitely learned a lot, from technical application to just overall ways of approaching the assignment. I am not fully ready to work on Assignment 2 but it’s not like I have a choice, so it’s just another uphill struggle but I will get through it!
I think the class can further improve my overall learning by just speeding up a bit more. Sometimes I feel like we don’t get everything planned for the class and I have to figure it out on my own and I honestly don’t fully grasp what I am doing and what I am doing on my own, I am just doing them.
I do think the increase of comments in our code is very helpful and has significantly improved my understanding of what is going on during class and helped me retain it afgyer class as well. Additionally, working with Prof Port one on one during open office hours or appointments is extremely helpful, especially when I can ask what is going on and get a very detailed explanation and guide through.