Democratised in France by Xavier Niel and the 42 school of which he is the founder, the "Piscine", or swimming pool in french, is not strictly speaking a physical place. It is a moment, an ordeal, which generally begins at the very beginning of a course of study, that students at a school must face before continuing their training. It is so called because students are "thrown into the water" and their skills are tested.

Ironically, it is a technique often used by lifeguards to teach young children to swim.

The "Piscine" is not necessarily synonymous with eliminations for students. It is mainly a way of testing one's level in a short period of time.

How to avoid 'drowning' in the pool? 🤿

No matter what the student's background is, programming, Nocode, design, accounting... those who manage to swim above the waterline are not necessarily the best in their field of learning. It's mostly team spirit and resourcefulness that gets you through. 🧐

For example, at Alegria.academy, students are exempt from lectures. Each Nocoder apprentice must succeed in completing the exercises that are proposed to him. And teamwork is more than encouraged. In a swimming pool, there are no real rules to succeed in the proposed tasks. Students are allowed to propose their answers and research on the internet, books, podcasts, video, etc. is allowed. There is no such thing as cheating, only success and the learning curve count.

" A third is admitted, a third is not retained, and a third gives up before the end of the Pool" confided Franck Lourme, educational team member at 42, to Les Echos.

Many top schools have their own pool. At Harvard, only 6% of students pass the challenge in their first year.

Note: The Alegria.academy "Psicine" is not eliminatory and is an integral part of the training, unlike the one at School 42, Phew 😇

The "Piscine", the test of fire 🔥

The many testimonies of students who have lived the experience of the pool define this moment of their lives as "intense". A pressure that "transforms coal into diamonds", instilling in future graduates the basic notions to learn. As well as the perseverance and resourcefulness that will be essential for them to succeed in their studies, but also in the professional world.

The "Piscine" is therefore not intended to dry up the energy and motivation of the participants, but aims to whet their appetite and knowledge to prepare for what comes next, as a rite of initiation into working life. 🐣

It is a rollercoaster-like experience where there are moments of doubt, but perseverance is rewarded when the solution is found during a phase of the training, which then becomes a moment of joy shared by the whole group.

Nocode and "Piscine" = ❤️

Nocode allows everyone to become a real "Geo Trouvetout", capable of creating a concrete digital product from a simple idea. Nocode is also a community of makers, professionals and non-professionals, who together share their tips and techniques for designing applications. It is therefore understandable that the pool seems to be the most suitable method for learning Nocode because of the values associated with it.

So yes, the "Piscine" is hard, like learning to swim for the first time. 👍

But it's also a rare moment in life, when you can't succeed alone and you are forced to take an interest in others. A time when your brain is in turmoil, when all your creativity is exacerbated and when you learn a lot of things very quickly. And that's good timing, because one of the special features of Nocode is that you can quickly train for digital jobs.
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