Programming concepts are best learned by practicing them. Each week, I will ask you to attempt exercises outside of class. Since I will also post my solutions as online videos, watching screencasts becomes an important part of your learning.
A very significant essay in hacker culture is “How to ask questions the smart way“, which provides important tips on how to utilize the online community efficiently and effectively. This page provides tips on how to watch screencasts the smart way.
Since you can watch the screencasts at a time and place of your own choosing, it is tempting to watch them while also doing other activities: watching TV, texting, talking to friends, playing online games, reading FaceBook. However, your goal is not to simply have watched the material, but to have actually learned the material, and there is mounting scientific evidence showing that multi-tasking impairs learning ability.
For these reasons, it is in your best interest to block all other activities while watching the screencast. Since most screencasts are less than 20 minutes long, this should not be a huge imposition.
When material is already recorded and available at any time as a screencast, you might not think to take notes because the material is always accessible online.
However, to maximize the efficiency with which you learn the material, you should take notes on the screencast, because note taking stabilizes information for retrieval at a later date. In other words, your ultimate goal is to not have to re-watch the lecture every time you need the information, and note-taking helps you achieve that goal quickly and efficiently. Since you are not multi-tasking (see heuristic (1)), you will have the time and space necessary to take notes on the lecture.
Finally, by recording the elapsed time into the lecture associated with the material represented in the note, you can use your notes to later rewatch portions of the material quickly and efficiently as needed. You can also use your notes to record questions you have about the material for later discussion.
To learn most efficiently, you should record questions you have as you watch the screencast, then post those questions to the discussion group. Don’t assume that your questions could be resolved by taking more time to re-watch the screencast at some future date. What if you don’t understand it then either, and it’s too late to ask questions? Trust your current abilities: if you didn’t get it this time around, don’t wait – ask.
Many of the screencasts involve demonstrations. You should watch these lectures in full screen mode in the highest resolution possible (typically 1080) to clearly see all the user interface elements and be able to understand the procedures most easily.
Watching in full screen mode also prevents you from seeing other windows, thus helping to minimize multi-tasking.
If you have other tips for watching screencasts the smart way, please email me.