Foundation Reflection

Three things I've learned about myself

1. I learned that in general I have a good sense of who I am, in relation to the core learnings. Many things that were discussed I've often found myself thinking about in the past, so it didn't feel foreign to think about them again in more depth.
2. Despite being aware of myself, I haven't been able to keep my competitive ego in check completely. I read peers blogs out of a genuine desire to get to know them, but also to compare where we are at. This doesn't strike me as out of the ordinary, but I'm trying not to let my view be judging.
3. A lot of my life experience has been gifted to me by those around me. I don't think I realised how important my family were in the shaping of my views and creating a healthy understanding of those core learning concepts.

The role of values, empathy, and self awareness in learning and programming

Programming isn't just about getting handed a project and locking yourself away until it is complete. Neither is learning. Values, empathy and self awareness pay a key role in the process for both. In the workplace, no one is a lone wolf. There are always needs to collaborate, get second opinions or even just being there to offer support. As a student, those needs are no different.

Having strong values help to keep yourself grounded when interacting with others. You aren't as shaken by emotional curveballs or unexpected circumstances if you already know what means the most to you. This helps you be dependable for others. Self awareness plays a similar role, in that in knowing what the feelings inside you are, you can better control them and how they influence your interactions with others.

Empathy for me is perhaps the most important for programming and learning. Regardless of how aware we are or what values we personally hold, taking the time to truly understand the positions and emotions of those around us help to navigate our day-to-day in a way that causes the fewest ripples. If you can anticipate the needs of others before they need to be spoken, new levels of cooperation become possible.

Core learning surprises

I think what surprised me the most, was that I already had thought about many of these things at different times in my life. Part of my motivation for joining EDA was to continue to build core skills, because attending University for my Major, I didn't really work on them at all. However, apart from communication skills, I don't think I'm really that far behind. That's reassuring!

Core learning challenges

Probably the most challenging part is keeping myself honest when it comes to evaluation. I'm genuinely honest in general, but when it comes to my efforts and contributions, I can fall into the fixed-mindset trap of explaining away shortfalls. Really, to achieve the most growth possible, I need to own up to avoiding a problem or situation and consider how I might work at it to repair the gap.

It's tough to keep on top of it myself, but I'm hoping by writing it down here for my peers, I can encourage everyone to give me a hand by calling me out when necessary. Express permission to notify me when I'm waffling!

Why do we do core learning at EDA?

Web development is a team effort. Programmers speak to peers and clients regularly, so not having the skills to connect can be detrimental. From an individual perspective, being mindful of the core learning allows us to cope. If we continue to build mastery over core learning as we go through bootcamp, we'll be ready to face whatever the world throws our way once we finish.

Does studying core learning feel like a waste of time?

Not at all. At times I found it refreshing to take a break from the coding to study core learning. I think being given time to solidify my views and understanding has been necessary set up towards actually practicing the core concepts everyday. I'm nowhere near done learning yet, so I look forward to continuing to make time for core concepts in the rest of the course.