How to choose a teaching language
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If you were teaching a programming course, what language would you teach it in?
"You create a universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you."
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If you were teaching a programming course, what language would you teach it in?
"You create a universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you."
English. Duh. :rolleyes:
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lambda caluclus
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
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a key requirement for a teaching language is simplicity
Yes.
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All in, I think Python is a great choice for an early introductory course,
Yes. Start simple and build your way up. A professional developer should have experience in several languages; not just the language-du-jour.
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If you were teaching a programming course, what language would you teach it in?
"You create a universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you."
I don't think choosing a language is as important as it might seem. Almost all modern languages share the same concepts, such as conditional statements (if/then/else), loops (for/do/while), subroutines and object oriented concepts (such as classes and polymorphism). Think of teaching programming similar to how you'd teach an automotive mechanic course. The concept of how most cars work (internal combustable engine) is the same whether its a 1963 Ford Mustang or a 2014 Nissan Sentra. There may be some variances between different cars, but they all work basically the same way (spark plugs, engine, pistons, etc). That being said, I would choose a language that you are comfortable with and just use that (assuming its not some outdated or weird language, such as Cobol or LolCode). Focus your teaching on programming concepts rather than the semantics of the language. I hope this helps!
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I don't think choosing a language is as important as it might seem. Almost all modern languages share the same concepts, such as conditional statements (if/then/else), loops (for/do/while), subroutines and object oriented concepts (such as classes and polymorphism). Think of teaching programming similar to how you'd teach an automotive mechanic course. The concept of how most cars work (internal combustable engine) is the same whether its a 1963 Ford Mustang or a 2014 Nissan Sentra. There may be some variances between different cars, but they all work basically the same way (spark plugs, engine, pistons, etc). That being said, I would choose a language that you are comfortable with and just use that (assuming its not some outdated or weird language, such as Cobol or LolCode). Focus your teaching on programming concepts rather than the semantics of the language. I hope this helps!
icemanind wrote:
Focus your teaching on programming concepts rather than the semantics of the language.
:thumbsup: That's the main point.
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If you were teaching a programming course, what language would you teach it in?
"You create a universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you."
For some reason I read the quote as "Jon Skeet Tech Blog".. :doh: For the entire time reading through the blog, I was really wondering what was going on.. :doh:
Your time will come, if you let it be right.
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For some reason I read the quote as "Jon Skeet Tech Blog".. :doh: For the entire time reading through the blog, I was really wondering what was going on.. :doh:
Your time will come, if you let it be right.
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For some reason I read the quote as "Jon Skeet Tech Blog"..
:laugh: me too.
Wonde Tadesse
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If you were teaching a programming course, what language would you teach it in?
"You create a universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you."
As with everything It depends. If it is a beginners course then use something that does not require them learning more than they need to just to get something simple to work. Like C/C++ you need to know compiler settings and the includes etc.. Java script you need to build a container with something else. WPF you need to lean the WPF syntax and the underlying Language like C# or VB.Net.(It is sorta like trying to learn HTML and Java Script at the same time.) So stick with something that you can quickly demonstrate the "basic concepts" that will later translate to any language. If it is more advanced then that is the answer, use the specific language for the task that needs solved. You also have to take in consideration your students and how advanced can you start them out at. If it is to easy they will get bored. If to difficult then they will get frustrated and give up on it.
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If you were teaching a programming course, what language would you teach it in?
"You create a universe by perceiving it, so everything in the universe you perceive is specific to you."
IMHO it should depend what you're trying to teach: Quick intro: go high-level. Python. Theoretical Grounding: Go functional: Scheme or Haskell. Low-Level: C and Assembly. I wouldn't want to see a course in O/S taught using Python or Haskell, or a course on computability using C. Horses for courses.
"If you don't fail at least 90 percent of the time, you're not aiming high enough." Alan Kay.