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• Thursday, September 14, 2006 07:36 AM

  Because Johnny's Teacher Can't

  The problem, I think, lies in our attitude towards computers today. What is your answer to the question: "What are computers for?"

  Are they for programming?

  Upon learning that my child's elementary school class had a cart full of computers - one laptop for every child - I excitedly volunteered to teach a class on programming. It could be in any educational language their school preferred: Logo, BASIC, whatever.

  Imagine my dismay when the staff explained to me that they did not have any programming language software that could be installed on their computers. These days, computers in the classroom are for "Multimedia Learning". They are used as mere videogames, only marginally better than a VCR.

  The world has forgotten the magical activity of programming a computer. Programming is an open-ended, creative activity that can be incredibly rewarding for a kid. Learning a little programming can help crack the mystery of how the modern world works.

  I eventually did get around to teaching some programming, on two different occasions. BASIC is not the missing ingredient. The six-year-old bunch took to both Logo and python very well.

  (One story here http://davidbau.com/archives/2005/07/27/a_programming_question.html)

  Perhaps the problem is that Johnny's teacher does not know how to program. With BASIC having gone out of fashion, training in programming is no longer standard fare for teachers.

  Should the educational community choose a new standard-bearer for educational programming? Maybe Johnny's teacher should learn python. Once teachers have a bit of common knowledge, perhaps they will be able to share the magic with the kids.

  —David Bau
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