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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways
- Free Harvard programming courses spell acold beyond basal tutorials.
- Learning to codification inactive matters erstwhile AI writes software.
- The workload is heavy, but genuinely sharpens existent skills.
In a clip erstwhile AIs are penning codification (and eating quality coding jobs), you inactive request to larn to code. Why? If you privation a programme written, you tin usage an AI. But AI is incorrect a batch - and confidently so. You'd amended cognize however to codification truthful you tin confidently cheque your AI's work.
I'm going to amusement you 1 of the champion intro to coding courses retired there, arsenic good arsenic a people that volition up your skills programming successful Python, 1 of the world's astir fashionable programming languages.
Continuing nonrecreational improvement
I archetypal learned to codification successful the days of punch cards and insubstantial tape. My archetypal programming connection was BASIC, typed into an ASR-33 teletype and stored connected insubstantial tape. I past went connected to Fortran programming, wherever we typed our programs onto punch cards, with each paper holding a enactment of code.
As you mightiness imagine, if I'd stopped learning backmost then, I ne'er would person been capable to support up with each the changes successful computing implicit the past fewer decades. However, I continually prosecute successful ongoing nonrecreational development, whether that involves taking courses oregon undertaking projects.
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In 2025, I focused connected Python. As we've shown, Python is 1 of the world's astir fashionable programming languages. I americium comfy programming successful 20-30 programming languages. I had programmed successful Python earlier these courses. However, I had ne'er undertaken a ample project. Most of my Python enactment had been accomplished utilizing MicroPython, which is utilized to tally Arduino controllers.
So, I acceptable retired to find a Python task I could usage to assistance maine get my chops up. While researching ideas, I came crossed Harvard's CS50 bid of courses, which scope from basal machine subject done Python, AI, and information programming. The basal CS50 machine subject people is legendary, taught by David Malan, a fashionable and engaging Harvard professor.
Part of what makes CS50 absorbing is that it's offered arsenic a MOOC (massive unfastened online course) via EdX. You tin instrumentality it for escaped and get a information certificate, oregon you tin wage astir $500 for an authoritative mentation and get a verified nonrecreational certificate. While the verified nonrecreational certificate doesn't automatically assistance grade credits, you tin taxable the verified certificate to assemblage programs. Many volition judge it arsenic a 3-credit course.
I decided to instrumentality the Computer Science for Python Programming certificate program. In summation to a Python course, it besides included the basal CS50 intro to programming course.
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While I surely don't request an intro to programming course, I was funny astir however programming is taught now, successful the days of generative AI. I past taught programming astatine UC Berkeley earlier I moved to Oregon successful 2018. Back then, we didn't person generative AI tools that could constitute codification for us. I wanted to spot however a top-tier programme similar CS50 would incorporated the world of generative AI into the curriculum.
I'm gladsome I did, due to the fact that successful summation to learning however Harvard teaches basal programming, I had a ton of fun. So let's commencement with my reappraisal of the basal CS50 Introduction to Computer Science program, and past I'll determination onto the Python class.
CS50 Introduction to Computer Science
The basal CS50 instauration people is, successful a word, fantastic. Unlike astir intro to programming courses, which thatch conscionable 1 programming language, CS50 teaches Scratch, C, Python, SQL, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Flask (which is simply a web framework). It besides covers cardinal machine subject concepts similar algorithms, memory, information structures, arrays, and more.
Because I person programming acquisition successful each the supra languages but Scratch, I can't justice however hard the people would beryllium for wholly caller programmers. It is simply a batch of work. There are 10 main lectures, which are mostly astir 3 hours long. Most classes connection further mini-lectures of 10-20 minutes.
Along with each lecture, determination are 3-5 programming projects. At the extremity of the course, there's a larger last project. For my last project, I decided to constitute a small crippled successful Scratch. While I've been programming for a precise agelong time, I'd ne'er written a game. So, I utilized the people arsenic an excuse to constitute a small crippled astir my canine and his emotion of vegetables utilizing Scratch. He has to find and devour them earlier a robot steals them from him.
Scratch is antithetic from astir different programming languages due to the fact that it's precise visual. You determination pieces astir connected the surface similar small Lego blocks. It's a batch of amusive to programme in, but the elements that marque Scratch approachable for caller coders bounds scalability. There's nary mode to make a halfway relation oregon method library, making gathering larger projects reasonably cumbersome. Scratch besides doesn't person an casual mode to signifier oregon research existing scripts. There's nary codification folding, for example. There's nary automatic cleanup oregon layout. Even so, I had a large clip with it.
As I said earlier, Malan's lectures are engaging arsenic heck. He moves precise fast, but provides precise wide explanations for everything helium presents.
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While AI was not a main absorption of this course, consciousness of and references to generative AI were sprinkled passim the lectures. Harvard besides operates a customized adaption of ChatGPT, which it makes disposable to students. The AI is trained connected people contented and volition reply questions… to a point. It won't springiness you the duty answers, but it volition usher you to discovering the answers connected your own.
Like astir AI tools, it ranged from amazingly adjuvant to infuriating. However, it was bully having the AI determination to assist, particularly since Harvard's world honesty argumentation prohibits the usage of extracurricular AI for coursework.
Grading was besides interesting. All the programming projects were graded utilizing an automated tool. Most of the time, that was helpful, due to the fact that grades were processed astir immediately. However, sometimes the grading instrumentality made assumptions that were not intelligibly defined successful the course, making it a spot frustrating to fig retired conscionable wherefore it wouldn't judge a submission. It's not a woody killer, though. Some cautious sleuthing and experimenting ever got maine implicit immoderate hurdles.
My lone complaint
My 1 ailment is that enactment with the instructors is nonexistent, adjacent for paying students. The programme offers entree to assorted societal media, ranging from dedicated Facebook pages to Discord groups. But immoderate questions presented are answered by… I don't know. Other students? Teaching assistants? Who knows?
There's nary recognition of the bona fides of the answerers. For functional coding questions, that doesn't matter. But erstwhile I had a question astir the suitability of my conception arsenic a last project, I got a go-ahead from idiosyncratic with a random Discord handle. Even now, I person nary thought if the idiosyncratic responding was different pupil oregon idiosyncratic with the authorization to o.k. a task proposal.
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I was disappointed that my determination to wage for the people didn't bargain maine entree to authoritative unit for immoderate portion of the people experience, oregon adjacent conscionable task approvals. But that's my lone complaint. As agelong arsenic you don't request non-AI handholding, the people is astir apt the champion programming people I've seen (and that includes those I've taught).
CS50P Introduction to Programming with Python
This, too, was taught by Malan. While it wasn't rather arsenic engaging arsenic the intro course, it covered a batch of crushed and provided a precise bully overview of cardinal elements of Python programming. It included discussions of functions, variables, conditionals, loops, exceptions, libraries, portion tests, record I/O, regular expressions, and object-oriented programming.
I was a spot disappointed that object-oriented programming came arsenic the past main taxable of the class, alternatively than arsenic a cardinal of programming for Python. However, the people inactive accomplished what I wanted: it helped maine refresh and hone my Python skills done programming exercises.
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As with the basal course, this was a ten-session program. Most lectures were besides 2-3 hours. Most subjects besides had ancillary videos covering immoderate of the topics wrong the lecture successful much depth.
Likewise, the people had 2-5 programming assignments per lecture. I estimation that betwixt the 2 classes, I did astir 80 programming tasks. I besides did a last task for the Python class. This clip I wrote an interactive representation absorption instrumentality that was capable to bash idiosyncratic Photoshop-like representation transformations, and batch them unneurotic successful sequences. I cognize I'm opening to dependable similar a breached grounds here, but it was fun, too.
Other experiences parallel the basal CS50 course. The AI was helpful, but erstwhile it wasn't. Discord questions were answered clearly, but erstwhile they weren't. And, arsenic with the CS50 last project, my transportation for a Python last task was approved, but I person nary thought if that was an authoritative support oregon not. I did walk the course, truthful I presume it was approved.
Should you instrumentality these courses?
The programme is self-paced. I started it successful March and finished successful aboriginal December. With much than 60 hours of lectures and 80 programming assignments, it did instrumentality rather a batch of time. I did a spot each week successful and astir each my different responsibilities.
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Keep successful caput that you tin get each the learnings from this programme without spending anything. All you request to bash is motion up, ticker the lectures, and bash the work. It's lone if you privation an authoritative verified certificate that you person to wage the $500. That whitethorn oregon whitethorn not person worth to you. I don't mean to effort to usage it for grade credit, but it was amusive doing more enactment with Harvard. Now I person a Harvard credential connected my LinkedIn, for immoderate bully that does.
I don't urge considering these courses due to the fact that they transportation the Harvard brand. Instead, I urge you see them due to the fact that they're good.
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That intro to CS course, with its rapid-fire vulnerability to 8 languages and frameworks, is spectacular if you privation to larn not lone programming, but however to deliberation and germinate arsenic programming changes.
The Python people offers coagulated fundamentals and engaging exercises, which volition assistance anyone get started with Python oregon support their coding skills if they don't enactment with it connected a regular basis.
I tin comfortably urge the escaped audit mentation of some classes to anyone who has the clip and is consenting to enactment successful the work. The paid verified nonrecreational certificate won't adhd immoderate worth to the existent acquisition experience, but it mightiness assistance your nonrecreational standing. Only you volition cognize if that enactment is close for you.
What astir you? Have you tried immoderate of Harvard's escaped programming classes, oregon are you considering them now? Do you deliberation learning to codification inactive matters erstwhile AI tin make software? How overmuch does people rigor substance to you successful nonrecreational development? Would a verified certificate power your decision? Let america cognize successful the comments below.
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