[Edu-sig] RE: Learning Python

[Gerrit Holl]

<quote name="David Ascher" date="951942084" email="DavidA@ActiveState.com">
>
> Indeed.  I think we mention that in the introduction.  _Learning Python_ was
> not intended to be a book used to teach programming, but one intended to
> teach programming in Python, assuming that some general programming concepts
> are known.  While I do hear occasional reports from some motivated and
> bright readers who claim to be learning how to program from LP, it's not its
> intent.
> 
> I would love to do a true introduction to programming with Python, but I
> refuse to do so until I spend a few semesters teaching it to true novices.
> I've been programming since I was 13 or 14, and I'm just too far removed
> from the experience to be a good teacher at that level.

</quote>

Maybe it helps if I tell how I learned programming (I'm 14).

Some years ago, when I was 9 or 10, I got a book as christmas present,
called "Programmeren voor kinderen met Superlogo voor Windows" (programming
for kids with Superlogo for Windows). This book, written by Addo Stuur,
tried to teach the programming basics, but I think it fails. It was not
too hard, no certainly not! Telling how to click on an icon and how to
change 'voruit' to 'vooruit, it seemed to not even assume a basic computer
knowledge. It started with instructions on how to move the turtle, which
already was during half the book! It explained something on procedures
afterwards. But the main problem with that book was that it doesn't
teach programming - it teaches an extremely basic language where all
programs need to be run from the IDE and without any libary/packaging
system. This stopped me from wanting to learn programming - actually,
I didn't even realize I _was_ programming!

We must certainly not copy Addo's fault.

A few years later, I discovered Linux, the shell, started using Perl
but couldn't understand a single bit, started reading "Programming Python"
(my father, an experienced programming and Unix guru, bought it),
(Learning Python wasn't there yet) but found it very difficult too;
after half a year, I did understand Programming Python but did not
understand OO yet; I bought Learning Python and got the concept of classes.

regards,
Gerrit.

-- 
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