Real Python: How Long Does It Take to Learn Python?

You’ve probably found at least one blog post where the author reveals that they learned Python in a handful of days and quickly transitioned into a high-paying job. Some of these stories may be true, but they don’t help you prepare for a steady learning marathon. So, how long does it really take to learn Python, and is it worth your time investment?

In this article, you’ll learn:

• What “learning Python” means and how you can measure your progress
• What different reasons there are for learning Python
• What background factors affect your learning approach and outcome
• How much time you’ll want to invest in learning Python at different skill levels
• Which resources you can use to improve your learning process

To get started, you’ll go over some different reasons people want to learn to program in Python. Keep your personal motivations in mind and identify where you place yourself. Your reasons for learning Python will impact both your approach and the amount of time you’ll need to set aside.

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Why Would You Learn Python?

You might be completely new to programming and on the fence about whether or not you should invest your time into learning Python. In this first section, you’ll think about the different reasons people want to learn this programming language. Take note of the one you identify with the most:

• Career and job opportunities: Maybe you want to start a new career as a software developer. Maybe you want to keep working at your current company and transition into a more technical role, such as data analysis. Programming proficiency is an excellent addition to any skill set you already have. Once you have the Python skills you need, you can ace your Python coding interview to get your dream job.

• Automation: Python can help you automate repetitive tasks that you regularly do in your job and private life. You could learn to automate your work with Excel spreadsheets, build a web scraper to access public data from the Internet, create command-line interfaces, or build bots for Twitter or Discord that take work off your plate.

• Curiosity: Digital products are everywhere, and you probably use them daily. You might want to know how your digital thermometer works, how a popular website is built, or how your favorite computer game would look if you digitally took it apart.

• Creativity: You might have some fantastic ideas for your own games, and you could build them with Arcade or with Pygame. Or you may want to get started with programming hardware for home automation, Internet of Things (IoT), or embedded game development.

All of these are great reasons to get into programming! Your personal motivation for starting on this journey will affect how fast and how deeply you’ll learn Python. It’ll also influence which aspects of the language will require your focus. If you’re looking for inspiration on topics to tackle, then you can read about what you can do with Python.

What Does “Learning Python” Mean?

Learning Python means more than just learning the Python programming language. You’ll need to know more than just the specifics of a single programming language to do something useful with your programming skills. At the same time, you don’t need to understand every single aspect of Python to be productive.

Learning Python is about learning how to accomplish practical tasks with Python programming. It’s about a skill set that you can use to build projects for yourself or an employer.

How Can You Measure Your Learning Progress?

It’s often hard to say at what point you’ve fully learned something. Do you know Python when you know its syntax? Have you learned it when you know how to use a popular library without looking it up online? Or do you need to know all the ins and outs of the Python ecosystem to be able to say that you’ve learned Python?

Realistically, you’ll probably never learn all there is to know about the Python ecosystem. There’s too much to know! Therefore, it’s helpful to separate your journey into different segments. This approach makes it easier for you to keep moving in the right direction.

When you think about different skill levels, you might think of three traditional categories:

1. Beginner
2. Intermediate
3. Expert

However, it’s hard to define when someone stops being a beginner, and even experienced programmers often don’t consider themselves experts. On the other hand, some programmers with low ability may think of themselves as experts, a cognitive bias known as the Dunning-Kruger effect. With that in mind, mapping out your progress following this type of traditional classification might not be that useful for you.

The Four Stages of Competence

Instead, you’ll use a different framework that follows the four stages of competence for assessing your learning progress:

To make the four stages of competence more accessible, you’ll see the following short names to refer to each of the four stages:

1. Unawareness for unconscious incompetence
2. Awareness for conscious incompetence
3. Ability for conscious competence
4. Expertise for unconscious competence

Read the full article at https://realpython.com/how-long-does-it-take-to-learn-python/ »

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