[Edu-sig] Proposing / defending Python in a curriculum

[Kirby Urner]

If you're allowing 2 languages, you could opt for
Python & C/C++ (cheating?), thereby getting the 
benefit of Python for learning thought patterns
and the OO paradigm (ala Eckel's upcoming 'Thinking 
in Python' [1]), then going forward in C to get a 
mainstream language.

The benefit of this combo is of course that Python
is written in C, so when learning C, having learned
Python, you could learn how to extend Python in C.

Of course Python & Java is another useful combo 
and there's a lot to be said for it, especially in
light of Jython.[2]  Students now have the CPython/C 
option and the Jython/Java option -- either of which'd 
be better than "just C" or "just Java" IMO.

Kirby

[1] http://www.eckelobjects.com/Python/ThinkingInPython.html
[2] http://www.jython.org/ (Ver 2.0 released Jan 17, 2001)