Mentoring in the community
The project grows when contributors bring in new contributors. Mentoring does not need a program: it is one experienced member helping one newcomer through their first few contributions.
Contents
What a mentor does
- Helps choose a first task that can be finished.
- Answers "where is ..." questions that the documentation does not.
- Explains the review rounds before they happen, so they do not discourage (Reviewing and being reviewed).
- Does not do the work for the mentee.
Choosing the first task
| Good first tasks | Why |
|---|---|
| A help page fix | Small, visible, no code |
| A missing translation string | Small, teaches the workflow |
| A test for a fixed bug | Teaches the test suite |
| A bug the mentee found themselves | They understand it already |
Avoid large features, refactorings and anything that touches security as first tasks.
A four-week plan
| Week | Mentee | Mentor |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sets up a test installation from a Git clone, runs make hooks, reads CONTRIBUTING.md | Answers setup questions; agrees the first task |
| 2 | Makes the change, commits with a prefixed message, updates the manifest | Reviews it privately before the pull request |
| 3 | Opens the pull request, answers review comments | Explains comments that are unclear; does not answer for the mentee |
| 4 | Squashes, rebases, sees it merged; chooses a second task alone | Suggests the next area; steps back |
The step-by-step guide for the first pull request is Mentoring a first contribution.
Boundaries
- Agree how and when you can be reached; you are a volunteer.
- Keep conversations about the work in public places where possible (the pull request, the forums), so others learn too.
- Follow the code of conduct; meeting one to one does not change it.
- If the mentee asks you to review a security finding, send them to the private channel (
SECURITY.md).
Related pages
- Helping others in the community
- Mentoring a first contribution
- The maintainer path
- From contributor to maintainer
- Free documentation: this page is free to copy, translate and improve under the GNU FDL 1.3.
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