Building a Mentoring Community Through Live Coding

By Jesse R Weigel

Elevator Pitch

Have you ever wanted to be able to work with a team of developers, sharing your knowledge and learning from those with more experience? Learn about creating a diverse, widespread, encouraging, and productive community through Live Coding!

Description

Since I began live coding in May of 2017, an amazing community of developers of all ages, locations, and skill levels has grown around the live streams. We share ideas, teach and support each other while working on real projects together. Through this community our technical and non-technical skills have leveled significantly faster than they did on our own.

Some of the ideas that are shared have had a significant impact on our projects. From using auto-formatting and a standard JavaScript style to prevent endless debates and merge conflicts, to using GraphQL instead of REST APIs, nearly every aspect of development has been influenced by my live coding. I even switched my code editor!

We have managed to create a respectful, open, and encouraging environment. Everyone is free to share their ideas without fear of being ridiculed. A great variety of perspectives is heard and leads to innovation. Sometimes these ideas transform a project. Other times they are the start of great discussions. Even if the ideas are not ultimately used in the project, they are still teaching moments as community members discuss the pros and cons of the idea. I would like to share my experience and offer some advice on how to create a respectful online environment where everyone is encouraged to ask questions and contribute and negativity is nearly non-existent.

Notes

This talk has no technical requirements.

I would like to convey the following to the audience:

  • My personal apprehension about live coding and how it turned out to be unfounded
  • The importance of positivity
  • Giving mentees what they really need to succeed. They need encouragement far more than knowledge.
  • Technical requirements for live streaming ( computer specs, software, hardware )
  • Tips for a successful live coding session. ( how to speak clearly, the importance of showing your face, dealing with negativity )
  • The impact that live coding can have on the lives of those involved. This will include examples from my on life and those of my viewers.

I have lived through this experience and can speak about it with passion. I also was a teacher for nearly four years, so I am used to attempting to convey something meaningful while trying to keep things interesting and fitting it all into a short time slot.

View my freeCodeCamp livestreams!

Check out my other videos!