Re: [tlug] What is Code?

[Raymond Wan <rwan.kyoto@example.com>]

On Mon, Jul 13, 2015 at 6:37 PM, Claus Aranha <caranha@example.com> wrote:
> To bring this back to programming, I am trying to use the idea above
> in a course I am teaching to CS undergraduates. The course has almost
> no lecturing, and is mostly having the students solve dozens of
> simple/short programming problems taken from programming marathons.
> This is of course an approach that might not work for someone with
> zero programming knowledge (maybe? project Euler?) but when I started
> teaching I was surprised at the amount of CS students who would get
> stuck at the idea of starting to write a simple script.


Here in Hong Kong, they've just started the "Hour of Code" [1] -- an
event or "movement" (???) that started in the USA, I think.  Anyway, I
went to one session and they used CodeCombat [2].

Just a suggestion...but I thought it was pretty fun and if there is no
lecturing, it's probably better than questions from programming
marathons.

I can see the value in programming marathons, but it's almost like
taking someone with no Japanese ability (for example) and throwing
them in a small town in Japan.  Or throw them into a baseball game and
not tell them any rules.  Maybe some will learn Japanese or baseball,
but many might be discouraged...

Speaking of which, the IEEE has a 24 hour xtreme programming
competition.  I also think that's too harsh, even for university
students.  I suppose just as there are many who run around the track,
a certain few enter "ironman" competitions...


> So I wonder if just MAKING them write code would help break that
> barrier. They know the algorithms (very well, in theory), but many
> couldn't debug an infinite loop to save their life :-/

Force usually makes people (not just students...adults, too!) reject
what they are learning.  Probably a carrot approach is better than
sticks...  But that's just me.  ;-)

Ray


[1]  http://www.hourofcode.hk/
[2]  https://codecombat.com/
[3]  http://www.ieee.org/membership_services/membership/students/competitions/xtreme/index.html