This is the second blog post for my In-Depth project of 2022. So far, I have had one meeting with my mentor and have learned some more about Python. I have learned about classes and dictionaries and how to use them in a program.

Question 1: How did your mentor gain their experience/expertise?

My mentor did some of his own learning in this field and also learned some from school. He is not extremely experienced, but understands it well.

Question 2: What were those experiences like for your mentor?

It was as expected from learning any programming language – frustrating, but not very challenging.

Question 3: What wisdom have you gained from your mentor so far?

I have learned a few things that were not in the textbook I am studying from. He very effectively visualized how a program runs and showed me that programming is less about the actual program and more about the plan.

Question 4: What have you learned so far, in terms of facilitation strategies, that might contribute to your own development as a mentor?

I have learned that it is important to ensure complete understanding of the student while teaching. He often asks questions to ensure I understand the concepts, and sometimes I think I do but I am thinking the wrong thing.

I am currently more than halfway through the textbook. With only 4 chapters left, I should have mastered the basics of Python in the next month, though the last few chapters are long so it might take longer. Currently I am just making sure I understand all the concepts by writing some programs to practice using Python.