Go Programming for Beginners in Uganda & Africa

Course outline and learning expectations

This is a tutor-led course. The outline shows what your tutor will cover; teaching materials and examinations are provided directly to enrolled students.

What you will learn

• By the end of this course, the learner will be able to:
• Explain what Go is and how compiled Go programs work.
• Install Go and use the Go command-line tool confidently.
• Write, format, run and build simple Go programs.
• Declare variables and constants and select suitable built-in data types.
• Use operators, conditions, loops and `switch` to control program behaviour.
• Create reusable functions with parameters, return values and multiple results.
• Store and process data with arrays, slices and maps.
• Work safely with strings, bytes and Unicode runes, including African names and text.
• Model everyday information with structs, methods and pointers.
• Recognise common compiler and runtime errors and correct them systematically.
• Organise a small program as a Go module.
• Build a complete beginner command-line project in Go.

Modules

1. 1

   Getting started with Go programming

   What Go is and where it is usedGo versus the search term “Golang”Installing Go and checking the installationUnderstanding source code, compilation and executable filesCreating a first `main` packageUsing `go run`, `go build`, `go fmt` and `go help`Reading compiler messages
2. 2

   Variables, values and basic input/output

   Identifiers and Go naming rulesVariables, short declarations and constantsIntegers, floating-point numbers, booleans and stringsZero values and type inferenceType conversionArithmetic, comparison and logical operatorsConsole input and formatted output with `fmt`Practice project: East African currency and unit calculator
3. 3

   Decisions and repetition

   Boolean expressions`if`, `else if` and `else``switch` statementsThe Go `for` loop`range`, `break` and `continue`Variable scopePractice project: school grading and eligibility checker
4. 4

   Functions and reusable logic

   Declaring and calling functionsParameters and return valuesMultiple return valuesNamed results and when to avoid themVariadic functionsFunction scopeThe `defer` statementPractice project: mobile-money fee estimator using sample rules
5. 5

   Arrays, slices and maps

   Fixed-size arraysCreating and updating slicesLength, capacity, `append` and `copy`Iterating with `range`Creating, reading, updating and deleting map entriesChecking whether a map key existsChoosing between arrays, slices and mapsPractice project: market-price summary
6. 6

   Strings, bytes and Unicode text

   How Go represents stringsBytes versus runesUnicode-safe text processingUseful functions from `strings`Converting between strings and numeric valuesCleaning and validating user inputPractice project: name and location formatter for African datasets
7. 7

   Structs, methods and pointers

   Creating custom typesDefining and initialising structsAccessing and updating fieldsValue and pointer semanticsDefining methodsValue receivers versus pointer receiversCombining structs through compositionPractice project: customer and product records
8. 8

   Modules, errors and beginner capstone

   Creating a Go module with `go mod init`Separating a small program into logical filesUnderstanding returned errorsHandling errors with clear user messagesBasic debugging and code-reading habitsWriting useful comments and a project READMECapstone: build a command-line household budget or small-shop sales calculatorCapstone review: correctness, readability, formatting and usability