<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After discussions with a teaching assistant and two engineers at Big Tech companies, I\u2019ve reached a clear conclusion: you simply cannot learn programming without writing code yourself<\/strong>. Just having concepts explained to you, or watching AI generate solutions, won\u2019t teach you to program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Learning to program is exactly like training a muscle at the gym. Real progress only happens when your mind struggles to create a solution from scratch. This mental effort is what activates the higher levels of thinking in Bloom\u2019s Taxonomy \u2013 Application and Creation \u2013 which are essential for deep understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you let AI do this heavy lifting for you (and sometimes it doesn\u2019t even succeed), you end up in the situation from a famous joke: \u201cI\u2019ve been paying for a gym membership for a year and haven\u2019t lost any weight. I think tomorrow I\u2019ll go there personally to see what the problem is!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As long as AI is \u201cthinking\u201d and writing the logical parts of programming (not just boilerplate code), the user cannot learn this thinking process simply by analyzing the generated code. The only exception would be if they already have well-developed programming thinking patterns and mental models \u2013 but then they wouldn\u2019t need the AI in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My first steps in programming came from reading an algorithms book and learning C. Until I put the concepts into practice, I didn\u2019t truly understand them. More importantly, I had to practice repeatedly, in many different situations, before I could grasp concepts well enough to apply them independently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had the same experience with students I coached for programming competitions. Until they used a concept, technique, or pattern repeatedly in different situations, they weren\u2019t capable of understanding and solving something new at first sight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the US, expensive coding bootcamps ($20k-$50k) are popular. Most graduates I\u2019ve spoken with knew how to build basic applications (slightly above boilerplate level), but when faced with real problems, they were completely lost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What I call \u201cvibe coding\u201d \u2013 relying on AI to generate code while you watch and try to understand \u2013 creates an illusion of learning. You might feel like you\u2019re absorbing knowledge, but you\u2019re missing the crucial cognitive struggle that builds actual programming skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When AI writes the logic for you, several critical learning processes are bypassed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This doesn\u2019t mean AI has no place in learning programming. AI can be incredibly valuable for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The key is to maintain the struggle. Write the code yourself first, get stuck, work through problems, make mistakes, and debug them. Only then should you turn to AI for guidance, explanation, or optimization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Programming is fundamentally about developing a way of thinking \u2013 computational thinking. This cognitive skill can only be developed through practice, repetition, and the mental effort of solving problems yourself. Just as you can\u2019t get physically fit by watching someone else exercise, you can\u2019t become a programmer by watching AI write code.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The struggle isn\u2019t a bug in the learning process \u2013 it\u2019s a feature. Embrace it, because it\u2019s the only path to genuine programming competence.\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After discussions with a teaching assistant and two engineers at Big Tech companies, I\u2019ve reached a clear conclusion: you simply…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8135,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-problem-solving"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8130"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8130"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8131,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8130\/revisions\/8131"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/algocademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Programming is Like Training a Muscle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Critical Gap in AI-Assisted Learning<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Real-World Evidence<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Personal Experience<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Teaching Experience<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Coding Bootcamp Reality Check<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Why \u201cVibe Coding\u201d Doesn\u2019t Work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The Path Forward<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The Bottom Line<\/h2>\n\n\n\n