As a student who majors in Computer Science and has completed a co-op as a software engineer, I truly believe that experiential learning is the best learning environment when it comes to learning coding. 

Back in my first year of university, this is exactly how I learned coding. During class time my professor would give us tasks and would instruct us to solve problems. These tasks would allow students like myself to engage in hands-on experience and reflect on why the Python program worked/failed.

The experiential learning environment that the professor had put in place not only helped me experiment with the Python code, but it also helped me overcome the learning curve that new coders often face. The inclination to participate in class work and see what worked and what didn’t with my code greatly deepened my knowledge in Python.

As someone with ADHD I also find this learning environment to be the most accessible. I often find myself carelessly getting distracted during lectures, even if the professor makes it extremely interesting. I always find myself much more engaged and committed when I have the opportunity to partake in classroom activities. This feeling of being fully committed to the work I am doing helps me remember and excel at the concepts that are taught in class.


When individuals are put in an environment where they are given the chance to experiment with guardrails and instructions, then they are able to fully apply themselves and learn from experience. This experience then carries over to the real world, they are able to recall certain situations they were put in in class and assert if their thinking is correct or wrong.

During my tenure as a software engineer, I often found myself referring back to old lectures whenever I was faced with a challenge. These challenges are oftentimes the same ones that I would engage in during class time.

In summary, the best learning environment when it comes to learning how to code in python is the experiential learning environment because of the experiences it offers learners.