[mespe]

"I know what is easier to teach, understand and use"

I think this really depends on the end point. If you want to learn to read data into R and do basic manipulations, plotting, modeling, etc., the Tidyverse absolutely has a lower bar to entry. Once you get into writing functions, it gets a little trickier. Knowing some of the base R programming concepts and skills will make you much more efficient. If you start debugging and profiling code, only knowing the Tidyverse becomes a liability because you fundamentally do not understand R's computational model (the Tidyverse does not follow it). Hence, if your end goal is to write and debug functions in R, the steeper learning curve of base R can more than pay off. If not, then the Tidyverse's low bar to entry can be more attractive.