Am using Kubuntu/XFCE/Kate editor in a Python class. In Kate, it's annoying to have to click Mode and select Python every time I create a new file in a fast-paced class. Teacher uses VIM/Ubuntu and he doesn't need to do this, his new Vim files are automatically Python.

After you configure Kate as you wish, go to "Session" on the menu and "save as" [session name of your choice]. Then, on startup, Kate will ask you what session you want to start. You can have multiple session-types configured.

This is not a feature I use regularly; I stumbled over it a while ago and that's how I know it's there (I do use the "Session" feature in Konqueror). There are probably more elegant ways to do this, but at least this can be a start.

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(Untested)
Press Ctrl+S and in the Save-dialog enter a filename ending in .py

The Python course instructors basically demanded I start using Sublime. Sublime has the terminal command "subl ." (note: that's a space before the period) which causes Sublime to open the current terminal folder, with the first document in the folder open in the Sublime window ready for editing, and a "tree view" in the left bar showing the folder and it's contents. I tried issuing the command "kate ." but Kate objected.

"kate *" opens the current directory with a tree view and the last document in the editing window on my system. It doesn't open sub-directories though.

https://www.sublimetext.com/buy
well is costs $70 bucks

the BEST editor is well a toss up
Emacs -- GUI
VI/Vim -- terminal

but kate and gedit are also GREAT

I am answering this 7 years later in case anyone else has this question and ended up here via a search engine.
For the purposes of syntax highlighting, you can do this in Kate.

Settings -> Configure Kate... -> Open/Save -> Modes & Filetypes -> Filetype: Normal -> set "Variables:" to "kate: syntax Python;"

The filename will not automatically have the extension .py, but you can add that yourself when you're eventually saving the files.
In the meantime, any newly created text files will be highlighted with Python syntax highlighting.

I would have suggested creating the files with "touch" (as in "touch newfile.py") before opening the directory.

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