Module 1: Problem-Solving Framework
Module Overview
Module 1 focuses on understanding the problem-solving framework essential for tackling technical coding challenges. You'll learn a structured approach to breaking down problems, which will help you prepare for the General Coding Assessment (GCA) and technical interviews in your career.
The problem-solving framework consists of four steps: Understand, Plan, Execute, and Reflect. By mastering this framework, you'll be able to approach any coding problem with confidence.
Learning Objectives
- Understand the problem-solving framework
Core Competencies
Solve a Problem - Part 1 - Understand
The first step is to thoroughly understand the problem. This involves:
- Reading the problem statement carefully
- Identifying inputs and expected outputs
- Clarifying any ambiguities
- Working through examples to validate your understanding
Solve a Problem - Part 2 - Plan
Next, develop a plan or algorithm to solve the problem:
- Break the problem into smaller steps
- Consider different approaches and algorithms
- Think about edge cases and constraints
- Create pseudocode before writing actual code
Solve a Problem - Part 3 - Execute
Implement your solution in code:
- Translate your pseudocode into actual code
- Focus on clarity and correctness first
- Test your code with the examples provided
- Debug any issues that arise
Solve a Problem - Part 4 - Execute
Solve a Problem - Part 5 - Execute
Solve a Problem - Part 6 - Reflect
Finally, analyze and improve your solution:
- Review your code for optimization opportunities
- Analyze the time and space complexity
- Consider alternative solutions
- Reflect on what you learned from the problem
Guided Project
In the guided project, we'll get some practice using Python lists and see a few use cases of them. This will help reinforce your understanding of fundamental data structures while applying the problem-solving framework.
Python Lists Overview
Module Assignment
To reinforce your understanding of the problem-solving framework and prepare for technical assessments, complete the following activities:
LeetCode Practice
For this sprint, we'll be using LeetCode to practice our problem-solving skills. You should already have a LeetCode account from Sprint 4.
Assignment Tasks
- Log in to your LeetCode account
- Attempt at least 10 problems on your own, applying the 4-step problem-solving framework
- Complete at least 3 problems from the recommended list below
- Start with problems that involve strings, arrays, and basic algorithms
- For each problem:
- Apply the four-step problem-solving framework
- Document your thought process for each step
- Implement your solution and test it with the provided test cases
- After solving, review the Discussion section to see different approaches
- Analyze the time and space complexity of your solution
- Focus on understanding the problem thoroughly before implementing a solution
- Reflect on which steps of the framework were most challenging for you
- Practice explaining your approach as if you were in a technical interview
Recommended LeetCode Problems
The following medium-difficulty problems will help you practice applying the problem-solving framework:
Regular practice is essential for success on the GCA. The more problems you solve, the more comfortable you'll become with recognizing patterns and applying appropriate techniques.
General Code Assessment (GCA)
As part of this module, you will take the official General Code Assessment (GCA) test on CodeSignal. This standardized assessment evaluates your coding skills and provides a score that reflects your programming proficiency.
About the GCA:
- The assessment consists of 4 programming tasks to complete in 70 minutes
- You should aim for a score of 295 or higher
- Your highest score is tracked in the BloomTech database
Taking the GCA:
For more detailed instructions on the GCA, please refer to the Sprint 4 Sprint Challenge page.
Remember: Regular practice on LeetCode problems using the 4-step problem-solving framework will help you succeed on the GCA. Focus on understanding problems thoroughly before implementing solutions.