Teaching python (programming) to children

[Sheila King]

On Sat, 10 Nov 2001 00:42:57 -0500, "Arthur Siegel" <ajs at ix.netcom.com>
wrote in comp.lang.python in article
<mailman.1005371293.20532.python-list at python.org>:

:My deepest objection - and why I'm consistently nasty when 
:getting near this subject - is that it always seems to be the tool in play 
:< LOGO/MindStorm/Alice, etc and etc> and its creators/advocates 
:that are hogging center stage. And off in the corner somewhere is
:the happy student,  and somewhere backstage, a subject matter.
:
:God, I'm tired of going around in this circle.

If you were in the classroom working with students, this wouldn't be
important at all.

At least, for me, it never was. In a way, it is nice for people to be
out there expounding on their pet theories and pet methods. At least if
they are vocal enough about it, the educator may become aware of them,
and hopefully several alternatives. Then it is up to the educator to
decide what to implement in the classroom.

For years I taught AP Calculus, and the "reform" and "graphing
calculators" are all the rage, and proofs are down, and algebraic
manipulation is down. But I listened to all of this. I got copies of the
reform textbooks. I participated in the mailing lists on this topic. I
went to the workshops and conferences.

And then I went off, alone, to my own corner, and decided what, if any,
of this stuff I wanted to incorporate into my course, and how I wanted
to present the material in my classroom.

I don't see why this "circle" would bother any classroom practitioner at
all. Because teachers really do get to decide what they want to do, to a
large extent, when they go into their classroom with their students and
close the door.

--
Sheila King
http://www.thinkspot.net/sheila/
http://www.k12groups.org/