If I had to start learning Python again, I would do it differently.

Back when I was a Psychology undergraduate student, I started studying Python with Coursera’s courses. I watched and rewatched videos until I gained some familiarity, fluency, and understanding of the concepts.

“I learned Python, yay!” I thought.

Well, not really. When I took my first programming test, I realized I didn’t know how to code. I stared at the computer trying to figure out how to start writing the first few lines.

This is the modern illusion of learning.

So please, don’t learn like I did. Do this instead.

How To Learn Coding Effectively?

Let’s start with what I mean by learning effectively.

Learning is about linking information from your short-term memory to your long-term memory. Rereading and rewatching, for example, gives you some fluency in the concepts you are studying, but they “save” that information in your short-term, working memory.

This is why you think you learned something when you didn’t.