I'm excited to share that the second iteration of the R for Data Science online learning community is gearing up for the new year! There's a lot of information in the linked post, so I'll keep my comments here brief:
- The group operates out of Slack, with the goal of bringing learners and mentors together to work through the R for Data Science text.
- We've found that those who choose to identify as "learners" are very often true beginners, with no background in programming, let alone R. These members benefit from having friendly people walk them through things like installing R/RStudio, explaining the basics of R, and even computers/computer science 101.
- I've personally come to think of the group as a great place for people to start their R journey - it helps learners discover the resources available to them, and demonstrates a sense of community and belonging in a very real and tangible way.
- During most weeks, at least 50% of conversations are happening in private messages - there is a list (that I'm sure will be updated!) of mentors who are willing to answer questions one-on-one, and members have really taken to that. It can be incredibly difficult to ask a question in a public forum, especially when you haven't yet formalized the semantics and concepts of R.
Please feel free to reach out with any questions, and consider joining us!