FAQ 39.06 Can OOC be learned from a course?

FAQ 39.06 Can OO/C++ be learned from a course?

No. Courses are like books, helpful only if the objective is very limited.

We have found that courses are a great way to learn specific skills, such as how to use a tool. But they can't convey the depth of knowledge that is needed for learning something as deep as OO and C++ in a reasonable time frame. Most of the instructors aren't up to the task technically (they are educators, not developers, and lack the experience and scar tissue that is needed). Even if the instructors are great (we think we've been pretty good instructors ourselves) and the material is wonderful (but when was the last time a great developer knew how to develop great pedagogical material?), the key is still to do something real.

One of our classroom experiences was predictable: we preached the gospel about OO design and the students nodded their heads approvingly. But when we gave them their first miniproject, they did things the way they always had. It takes time and repeated effort to break old habit patterns.

In our opinion, it is possible to get a talented person to level 1 with a combination of good courses and good books, but it takes both ingredients.