Deep Dive: Why Practice Your Coding Skills Online with Codewars?

Learning is supposed to be fun. That’s why your math teachers used games when teaching basic arithmetic operations. That’s also why gamification was academically recognized in the early 1980s and considered an effective learning strategy. There are countless educational games online, and now, there’s even a game for those learning how to code.

Codewars is a platform for software developers to practice their coding skills in a martial arts setting. At Codewars, you’ll work your way up from a white belt to a black belt as you complete challenges. Can’t imagine how it works? Read on to get a deeper look into how Codewars make learning how to code fun, fulfilling, and effective.

What Is Codewars?

Codewars is an online platform that provides coding challenges called kata, a Japanese term for a set of martial arts movements that can be practiced alone or in groups. True to the essence of kata, Codewars lets you practice coding through repetition and with other peers.

It’s the perfect place for software developers who are taking up online courses, attending coding bootcamps, or other training programs to supplement their learning and put their skills to the test.

Beyond challenges that help you practice, you can also share your code with your peers and vice versa. This way, everyone gets the chance to review one another’s work and learn different approaches to a problem.

Users design the challenges, which are ranked from 8 to 1, following the kyū or dan ranking system used in martial arts or in the Japanese game “Go.” The number shows how close you are to the black belt or mastery. The lower the number, the higher your rank. Put another way, as the kata number ascribed to a challenge decreases, the difficulty increases.

Codewars supports over 50 core languages and beta languages. So, you can practice and improve your skills by solving coding tasks of varying types and levels. The platform is free, but premium versions let you compare code with other users. Codewars also has discussion forums, leaderboards, and a wiki for you to learn more.

How Does Codewars Work?

Upon signing up for Codewars, you’ll get your first challenge in the language of your choice. You must complete this task to finish your registration. Don’t worry about doing it perfectly on the first try. If you make a mistake, you can try again and fix your solution. Once you succeed in your task, you may proceed to set up your account.

You may customize your account and training to get the most out of Codewars, like forming a clan with your friends or organization in your account settings. You can also sign up for a newsletter with Codewars tasks of varying difficulty in the training setup, where you also select the languages you want to practice. Of course, you can change them later.

To start the challenge, you can use the personal trainer, which will recommend a kata depending on your chosen language and focus area. It’s best for beginners to start with the Fundamentals focus track, while experienced developers can choose Rank Up, which entails easy- to medium-level challenges. You can always ignore suggestions and return later, or you can use the kata search, newsletter, and collections to find challenges.

The best way to learn is to check accepted solutions since other users may have tackled a similar task in a simpler or faster way. Better yet, if a solution catches your attention, you can bring it up on the discussion board or vote it for best practice.

Of course, adding to the excitement of solving challenges are the ranks, honors, and privileges. You level up when you solve a kata and you get honor points for activities like finishing kata, translating them, and voting. Earning Honor points gives you privileges like getting the chance to write new kata, curate content, or moderate discussions.

Authoring Kata

You must obtain the Create Kata privilege before you can author a kata, which can be acquired after earning enough Honor points. You then gain access to the kata editor in your profile menu and create a new challenge by selecting New Kata. Of course, you must adhere to the authoring guidelines. Your kata will also be subjected to beta testing and evaluation.

5 Reasons to Practice Code Online with Codewars

Codewars lets you do repetitive coding tasks without draining you. Instead, you have fun as you grow your skills. If that’s not enough to convince you, below are more reasons to practice at Codewars.

• Instant feedback. When attempting to solve a challenge, you can either create your own code or use pre-written tests. You can perform as many tests as you wish to determine whether you have accomplished a challenge.
• Pick up a new coding language. You can return to a task and complete it using a different coding language. Doing so challenges you to quickly pick up languages you have been wanting to learn and expand your toolbox.
• Learn at your own pace. Codewars’ self-guided approach allows you to own your learning. You can move from challenge to challenge, spending anywhere from 30 minutes to hours on each task, without the pressure of sticking to a schedule. You can either revisit challenges to apply new solutions or move on to new ones.
• Discuss solutions with peers. While learning is self-paced, peer interaction is still possible with Codewars. Through code reviews, you can compare your solutions with others and see the differences or similarities in your approach. This is a great opportunity for you to either pick up new strategies or share your knowledge with your peers. You can also connect with fellow developers through Discord. Pick their brains about certain coding challenges or share your coding experiences.
• Learn in a fun way.  Codewars is the perfect training ground for those looking to learn how to code beyond pre-recorded tutorials and written blocks of texts. Every time you complete a challenge successfully, you go up a level and the community can rate your solutions for best practice or cleverness. Even top managers and engineers play Codewars to keep their skills sharp.

Reinforce Bootcamp Learning with Codewars

Mastering a certain skill requires not just training but also continued practice. Codewars reinforces this through a problem-based approach designed to fuel problem-solving, critical thinking, and collaboration skills among software developers, no matter their expertise level.

Join Codewars today and level up your coding skills!