Re: [Phys-L] computer programming for kids

["John Clement" <clement@hal-pc.org>]

How do you know it doesn't have transfer problems?

The logical language only develops thinking if it is taught in an inquiry
fashion.  If it is taught as a series of things to be memorized, then it
will just be one more damn thing after another for the kids to learn.  As I
pointed out the research shows that conventional computer science does NOT
improve scores on the PLT.  But if it is used a vehicle for getting students
to think about the meaning of math and how problems are solved, it can be
useful.  I have taught computer science and students reported that the
methods I promoted helped them on the SAT math test.  Unfortunately I have
no way of proving it, so it is purely anecdotal.

But I made students struggle to figure out things rather than having them
memorize statements and syntax.  One student told me that he had to think in
my physics class first period and then he just mentally went to sleep until
my comp sci class on the last period.

I found most of the books to be dreadful in their treatment of CS.  I tried
to get them to let me use a simple direct online text, but the DI picked the
worst of the lot for the new teacher who was coming in to teach it.  I had
to develop my own teaching materials because I didn't see any books which
used inquiry.  Essentially I used the existing book only as a reference and
used my own materials in class exclusively.  Another teacher also used them.
She as far as I know could not program, but a student commented that the
materials made CS easy and transparent.  I once pointed out that the other
teacher could write a program to solve a common administrative problem which
she had as she was registrar.  She could not write a simple program, yet she
was teaching the subject.  I ended up knocking it out in a few hours.  It is
sort of like hiring a coach for basketball who can't play it himself.
Schools do that type of thing all the time.  So if CS is required, you will
have a lot of incompetent people teaching it.  Why would a competent
programmer be teaching in HS????

So my strong recommendation is to encourage teaching by guided inquiry, but
not to require it for all.

John M. Clement
Houston, TX


> I would think the reason to start with programming early 
> would be to learn the logical process of programming.  The 
> language isn't important, as long as the language develops 
> the skill.  Once the skill is developed, it can transfer to 
> other programming languages fairly readily.  Oddly, 
> programming doesn't seem to suffer the same transfer problems 
> that other learning often presents.