David P.
Private tutor in Palo Alto, CA
Education
Stanford University 2014, B.S. Symbolic Systems [[Courses taught:]] Stanford introductory CS curriculum, Various courses from MIT, University of California, Colombia, Bay Area schools including USF, Santa Clara College, Foothill/De Anza community college, AP Computer science at various high schools, Online courses (Udemy, Coursera, CodeCademy), and bootcamps.
Experience
[[ Lesson fees vary based on duration, frequency, and financial need: $120/hr to as low as $80/hr ]] Hello! I will help you learn to code. I've been helping stumped students code for over five years. I'm a persistent tutor. We will fix the bug. We will complete the program. If setbacks and deadlines are driving you nuts, I'm ready to meet you in that state. I volunteer on a crisis hotline. Sometimes programming is a giant crisis. As we work, I will help you restore your sanity. I have most experience teaching Java, C++, C, and Python, and I've helped students in many languages. So send me a message! We will discuss what you're working on, and if it's a good fit we'll get started right away. [[ === NEED DEBUGGING HELP? ===]] Getting stuck on a bug can be maddening. You probably have a good idea of what the program should do, but an invisible error is 100% blocking your progress. I have years of practice analyzing and troubleshooting other people's code. I'll help. As we work, I will teach you techniques for debugging on your own. [[=== LESSONS FOR BEGINNERS? ===]] Software engineering is bamboozling for students who haven't done it before. Professors and teachers heave challenges that are too hard for someone who has no experience. I can orient you to the basics, which you will need to complete elementary programs. Your first fumbles may make you feel "dumb," since the programming tasks sound something like "can you add two numbers?" You are not dumb. Programming tasks that look simple on the surface are not simple to learn at first. I'll help where your professor assumed you were fine. [[=== INTERMEDIATE STUDENTS? ===]] The pace of learning is often fast in computer science courses, especially at college level. You may find that the first few assignments are OK, but midway through the course the challenges ramped up. It's best to catch up on these sooner rather than later, because the course won't wait for you. I teach intermediate topics including: recursion, backtracking, data structures, collections, algorithms, objects, pointers, graphics, events, memory management, unit testing, and more. Just ask! [[=== ADVANCED STUDENTS ===] There is no upper bound to how tricky programming gets. Let me disclaim now that I am not a grandmaster wizard of every programming challenge. But a grandmaster is not necessarily what you want. I am a methodical, patient learner and teacher, with years of experience crawling through puzzles that were over my head, and eventually solving them. If you want, we can be challenged together, research together, and solve a puzzle together. [[=== INDEPENDENT LEARNERS ===]] I am not accepting students who are learning independently, without the structure of a course or established project. At-home learning without the structure of a course is almost impossibly frustrating, in my experience. For this reason I ask students to find a textbook, online course, or online guide, or project and (try to) work through exercises before we start. I also warn that most people cannot learn code casually. You must be ready to invest 10+ hours per week of your own time. Ask yourself why you are learning to code. Is it a good reason? Do you really want to code, or do you want the money or college acceptance letter? Coding is the flashiest skill in the tech boom, and draws many hopefuls, but it is not a productive occupation for most human beings. I can help you decide whether coding, or another craft, is the right choice for your talents and personality.
Availability
Weekdays at any time, Weekends in the afternoon
Can Meet
Up to 1 hour away for no additional charge
Hobbies
Most clients will find that they get along with me because of an easygoing, friendly nature, sense of humor, and general good spirit. I like that I get to meet a lot of people by tutoring in a population dense megametropolis, plus tutoring online. I enjoy working with my hands when I'm not at the screen, so I look for manual labor gigs and backyard tinkering projects. I prefer a bike and public transit instead of a car, but I also love my car.
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