Twinkl: a Culture of Curiosity and Learning
Javiera works as a Data Scientist on the Twinkl Key Algorithms team. She reflects on the culture of curiosity and learning within the data team
Originally published by Javiera Leemhuis, Data Scientist at Twinkl, at https://www.twinkl.co.uk/blog/twinkl-a-culture-of-curiosity-and-learning
Curiosity is an integral part of education. It sustains and encourages learning, it activates the mind and opens up new worlds and possibilities. Twinkl’s vision is to nurture a love of learning, and what is learning without curiosity? Twinkl values and rewards the curiosity of all its employees, and this is especially important in the Data team.
The variety of projects I have been exposed to have allowed me to cultivate my curious nature, and it is one of the things I love the most about my job. Each week is different. In the few months I have been at Twinkl, I have worked on a range of projects spanning different domains of the website. Some examples include improving the personalisation of resource recommendations for the homepage, or suggesting the most relevant categories for a resource. Most of these projects involved coding in SQL. I started off with no prior knowledge of SQL, but in a matter of weeks I was writing complex algorithms and navigating the Twinkl database with ease. My previous knowledge in Python has also come in handy: it has been a great tool for string manipulation and data visualisation.
As I am writing this blog post, I am starting a new project that requires knowledge of ElasticSearch, a NoSQL database. To learn more about how to use this search engine, I have relied not only on my own research online but have also drawn from the pool of team training videos about this topic that have been created by my team members here. These recordings have been particularly helpful for learning from hands-on examples in the context of Twinkl. I enjoy being part of a team that is so friendly and helpful: we are all happy to share our knowledge and expertise! Together we create a supportive community of teaching and learning.
A data scientist is a life-long learner. It is our curiosity that drives us to engage in new opportunities and challenges, and allows us to grow. In the words of educationalist Ken Robinson, “curiosity is the engine of achievement.”.
If you like the sound of what we do here, then you’ll be happy to know that our Data Scientist team is currently hiring.
Check out some of the other posts from members of the data team.
And why not try out these changes for yourself? Below, you’ll find a handy little video that will help you navigate the Twinkl website, allowing you to find what you need with just a few clicks. And make sure to browse for anything specific with the handy search bar!
