Reading other peoples code is a great way to learn, but often other peoples code is not very accessible. How often do you look at the code written by a star dev in another department on another project. I can't:
-identify star devs unless I work with them directly,
-look at the code base of the project they are working on if I am not also working on it,
-find out which portions of the code they wrote (without looking through commit logs)
In many places a <i>healthy culture of interaction between "junior" and "senior".</i> is not facilitated by the employer.
In my experience, it happens through personal interaction and is a matter of culture. Facilitated by employers? Most employers are decades away from knowing how to do that. Or rather, most employers that exist today will never do it.
The interesting question is how many good programmers would be happier working in such a culture. I believe the answer is significantly many, and that this is a competitive edge waiting to be exploited. We hear so much about perks and benefits. My programmer soul says: fuck perks and benefits. Give me an environment that is teeming with creativity where I get to work with great people that I learn from and am inspired to do what seemed impossible.
-identify star devs unless I work with them directly,
-look at the code base of the project they are working on if I am not also working on it,
-find out which portions of the code they wrote (without looking through commit logs)
In many places a <i>healthy culture of interaction between "junior" and "senior".</i> is not facilitated by the employer.