[Edu-sig] Update: Python & the "Math Wars"

[Alan Gauld]

>days, but how could schools reasonably require that 
>my student have a real computer -- even if we could
>afford one, many other families would be hard pressed."

This is presuming each student needs a computer. Which to some extent reflects
the PC culture of the last 2 decades.

My school had a computer in 1974 - or more accurately 
a modem connection to the local university computer down 
which we could send punch tape messages. Programming 
consisted of punching the tapes then waiting for the 
print out to arrive in the post 2 days later...

We don't need to go that far back but certainly shared 
access to a multi user computer is a possibility - it's 
what X was invented for! One expensive box, lots of 
cheap ones.

>* use some of the money we'd save from not spending 
>  so much on text books to subsidize the purchase of 
>  computers -- provide vouchers towards a computer 
>  purchase

In the UK many supermarkets are doing schemes whereby 
shoppers can collect vouchers to buy comuters for 
schools. This seems to be a popular scheme with 
parents. Note that the PCs are bought for the 
schools not for the pupils...

>* use computers in school but don't assign homework 
>  that presumes access in the home

I strongly believe this is a good way to go for 
programming. It encourages of machine design, something 
that highly responsive RAD/IDE environments have moved
peopleaway from. I increasingly find myself going 
back to doing a paper outline of a design before 
coding and encouraging that kind of approach could be a blessing in disguise!


Also it could focus on the conceptual aspects of 
computers rather than the apparently compulsory 
'hands on' for everything approach currently practiced 
in  many schools (at least in the UK)

>* accept hand-me-down equipment from corporations 
>  seeking to upgrade, and wanting to donate amortized
>  equipment (perhaps for a tax write-off on top of 
>  the amortization), train students to assemble  
>  systems from cannibalized legacy systems

This is actively pursued in the UK. The Government 
has various incentives for organizations to do this. 
Many schools (and voluntary adult education centres) 
benefit from this.

>Basically, I think this is a bigger issue than just 
>whether junior has to have a computer to pass algebra.
>It's about the potential rift in society, between haves
>and have nots in the information age.  

Indeed. The current UK government have pledged to have 
a computer in every classsroom - by when???? Its a 
long way short of perfect but at least the right 
direction. But the other options above should be 
considered too.

>basic tool for navigating our quasi-democracy and
>those with an internet connection have many strategic
>advantages over those without.  If we're to do anything 
>more than give lipservice to democratic ideals, we have 
>to think of ways to make computers available to all who
>want/need them.

Public libraries have allways seemed like likely 
candidates for this on a wider front. But 
interestingly I've never seen a library with a 
PC that did anything other than permitting 
searches of the books in stock....

Alan G.