In project-based learning, you are presented with a problem or issue strongly connected to the world beyond your room. In the process of exploring and engaging with the issue, you tend to learn content and skills because they are needed in order to solve the problem or to address the issue.
If you work on projects, you will learn more than by just reading theory. Here’s why:
1) A boost in confidence
While working with real tools and technologies, you will become more confident about your strengths. That is because you will be able to determine your weak points. After doing so, you can easily improve with a little hard work.
2) Experimentation
You will need to acquaint yourself with new tools or technologies while working on any programming language project. The more you learn about the various development tools, environments, or libraries available, the broader will be your scope for experimentation with your projects. The more you experiment with different project ideas, the more knowledge you will gain.
3) A comprehensive knowledge of SDLC
A good comprehension of the Software Development Life Cycle is extremely important for any developer. When you develop a project right from the scratch, you will gain a deeper understanding of how SDLC works. With time you will learn how to plan before writing and executing the code. You will also learn about how to manage the testing process, fix bugs, deploy the code and also update your software product from time to time.
4) Becoming a master of programming concepts
One of the biggest advantages of creating real-world projects is that with continuous practice, you will end up mastering the concepts and patterns of programming in various languages. You will understand the various concepts extensively and will know where to use any concept.
5) Efficiency
Another reason why the project-based approach works is that there's no gap between learning the skill and putting it into practice. You won't waste any time learning irrelevant things. This is because you will be actively trying to learn the specific things you need to build your project.
This also means that you will complete your work faster. If you’re trying to learn Python for data science by building data science projects, you won’t waste your time learning Python concepts that might be important for machine programming but are not relevant to your data science goals.
6) Improvement in your problem-solving skills
Problem-solving is a key skill when working with any programming language. Whilst building a project, you're going to have to come up with various ways for approaching problems and then solving those certain problems using specific codes.
Hence, building projects forces you to practice what is maybe the most important skill in programming. Moreover, additional practice in solving problems with code results in fast development in your skills.
7) Portfolio
The seventh and final reason that project-based learning is quite helpful is that you can get a head start on getting your first job. When employers hire entry-level candidates, they want to know whether you have the skills they need or not. A good way of achieving this is by having a portfolio of relevant projects that demonstrate your skill set.
Conclusion
When it comes to careers in software development or even any other field, it is quite essential for future developers to work on their own projects. Building real-world projects are the best way to hone your skills and to materialize your theoretical knowledge into practical experience.