Description
Many of us have been drawn to the Python community because it has welcomed us warmly and has shown us many high quality learning resources. We can further develop this aspect of our community by being aware of the potential barriers to learning when contributing new informational resources like conference talks, tutorials, documentation, or even just conversations at community events. This is especially important if you're interested in engaging people who are different than you.
Any time we are faced with the need to learn a new skill, we may experience a variety of emotional responses ranging from energised interest, a bit of frustration, or even extreme intimidation. It can be even harder to learn successfully when you don't feel welcome in learning communities or when available resources don't cater to your level of experience. You can make learning more accessible for your audience by considering the different thinking styles, backgrounds, and the contexts in which learners are seeking information.
In the first part of this talk, I'll give some reasons you might want to put some extra effort into addressing the diversity of your audience. Then I'll outline some ways I've found to help make learning more accessible and less intimidating for different types of learners.