James Dabbs
james@theironyard.com
(706) 426-1618
Often on HipChat
In general, I'll be treating you like autonomous adults, which does mean you have plenty of rope to hang yourself. There are a few things we need to make explicit though -
You should receive a .pdf of the official class schedule on the first day. Attendance is expected every day class is in session, but not required. If you miss more than 4 days, your job placement may be forfeit.
Homework will be assigned daily, and usually reviewed the next day. It is your responsibility to be sure you're keeping up with the homework and seek out help if you're struggling.
The course will culminate in a large capstone project, the topics of which should be decided by the end of week 9. The last weeks of class will focus mostly on preparing those, with lectures being tailored to the needs of the projects. I'd encourage everyone to start thinking about what they'd like to accomplish here, as this project will likely be the anchor of your portfolio and an important part of your hiring success after graduation.
As much as possible, we'll try to steer earlier lectures towards areas of interest, so feel free to suggest other projects earlier.
In short
In long
Like the technical community as a whole, classes at The Iron Yard are made
up of a mixture of people from all different backgrounds.
Diversity is one of our huge strengths, but it can also lead to
communication issues and unhappiness. To that end, we have a few ground
rules that we ask people to adhere to when they're taking a class at
The Iron Yard. These rules apply equally to teachers, students, other staff,
and guest lecturers.
This isn't an exhaustive list of things that you can't do. Rather, take it
in the spirit in which it's intended - a guide to make it easier to enrich
all of us, the technical communities in which we participate.
This code of conduct applies to all communication: this includes in class,
HipChat, email, and other forums such as Skype, Google+ Hangouts, etc.
If you believe someone is violating the code of conduct, we ask that you
report it by talking to your teacher. If you do not feel comfortable talking
to your teacher, speak with any Iron Yard teacher or campus director.
Be welcoming, friendly, and patient.
Be considerate. Your work will be used by other people, and you in turn will
depend on the work of others. Any decision you take will affect your
colleagues, and you should take those consequences into account when making
decisions.
Be respectful. Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no
excuse for poor behavior and poor manners. We might all experience some
frustration now and then, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into
a personal attack. It's important to remember that a community where people
feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. Members of the
Iron Yard community should be respectful when dealing with other members as
well as with people outside the Iron Yard community.
Be careful in the words that you choose. Be kind to others. Do not insult or
put down other people. Behave professionally. Remember that harassment and
sexist, racist, or exclusionary behavior are not appropriate for this class.
This includes, but is not limited to:
- Violent threats or language directed against another person.
- Sexist, racist, or otherwise discriminatory jokes and language.
- Posting sexually explicit or violent material.
- Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms.
- Unwelcome sexual attention.
- Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.
- Repeated harassment of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop,
then stop.
When we disagree, we try to understand why. Disagreements, both social and
technical, happen all the time and The Iron Yard is no exception. It is
important that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively.
Remember that we're different. The strength of The Iron Yard comes from its
varied members, people from a wide range of backgrounds. Different people
have different perspectives on issues. Being unable to understand why
someone holds a viewpoint doesn't mean that they're wrong. Don't forget that
it is human to err and blaming each other doesn't get us anywhere, rather
offer to help resolving issues and to help learn from mistakes.
Adapted from the Django project
Here's a tree of Rails-related concepts (from Why Learning Rails is Hard)
We probably won't cover every leaf, but we will at least visit each branch. Our path should look something like this.