The PDCA cycle—also known as the Plan—Do—Check—Act cycle—is a continuous improvement framework used in management, manufacturing, and personal productivity. It emphasizes systematic problem-solving by first planning a change or solution, then doing (executing) it on a small scale, checking the results through data and feedback, and finally acting by standardizing the improvement or adjusting the approach for the next cycle. Its iterative nature creates a loop of ongoing optimization.
School 42—also known as École 42—is a tuition-free, teacher-less coding school founded by French entrepreneur Xavier Niel. It’s built on a project-based, self-directed, and collaboration-driven model with no syllabus and no textbooks. Students learn by completing real programming challenges and evaluating one another. Its admission hinges on the intensive month-long Piscine (游泳池), which tests persistence rather than prior experience, and its curriculum emphasizes C programming, algorithms, and fundamental problem-solving before expanding into areas like operating systems, graphics, and cybersecurity.