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Idiot Extraordinaire-Senate of Kentucky

Started by Dallas Wildman, February 05, 2014, 01:57:38 PM

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February 05, 2014, 01:57:38 PM
Working every day to expose the terrible price we pay for government.
February 05, 2014, 02:00:19 PM #1
"When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world—'No. You move.'"
-Captain America, Amazing Spider-Man 537
February 05, 2014, 02:07:36 PM #2
It's about friggin' time! Shoulda been done decades ago. I HATED the fact that I was taking courses learning C and all sorts of other languages and STILL had to take a foreign language.

In fact, I can MUCH better make the case for learning a computer language than a foreign language!
February 05, 2014, 02:44:53 PM #3
Oops, I misread the headline.  I thought the proposal was to teach programming languages AS foreign languages.

<facepalm>
Working every day to expose the terrible price we pay for government.
February 05, 2014, 02:50:08 PM #4
Quote from: Dallas Wildman on February 05, 2014, 02:44:53 PM
Oops, I misread the headline.  I thought the proposal was to teach programming languages AS foreign languages.

<facepalm>

It's a subtle distinction; they're saying that taking a computer language should qualify for foreign language credit.
February 05, 2014, 03:22:23 PM #5 Last Edit: February 05, 2014, 03:28:15 PM by Travis Retriever
Quote from: MrBogosity on February 05, 2014, 02:07:36 PM
It's about friggin' time! Shoulda been done decades ago. I HATED the fact that I was taking courses learning C and all sorts of other languages and STILL had to take a foreign language.

In fact, I can MUCH better make the case for learning a computer language than a foreign language!
w00t! So I'm not a weirdo or a woo. X3  May I hear these reasons and case? :D
"When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world—'No. You move.'"
-Captain America, Amazing Spider-Man 537
February 05, 2014, 06:10:02 PM #6
One reason is that English is perceived (at least) as the Lingua Franca of programming languages.  There have been programming languages built on other languages and alphabets, but they're not as predominant. 
As it stands the IEEE (a western organization) has created standards that allow any software application to be adopted for markets anywhere around the globe.

In short it's a much more efficient use of information capital (information as in neurons or hard drive sectors) to carry out transactions through software rather than having space devoted in the brain for another language.

To that end I think a better idea would be to teach the fundamentals of computer science not just specific languages, as each and every language is built to satisfy a particular purpose.  I.E. Java is not preferred for AI/robotics because of the built-in garbage collection routines in the virtual machine, whereas it's the go-to language for web and PC applications courtesy the javax package.
SQL and it's cousin (per se) MySQL are referred to database languages even though it's theoretically possible to build databases with C/C++.
Working every day to expose the terrible price we pay for government.
February 05, 2014, 06:37:25 PM #7
Quote from: Travis Retriever on February 05, 2014, 03:22:23 PM
w00t! So I'm not a weirdo or a woo. X3  May I hear these reasons and case? :D

I think the reason they gave in the article is the weakest. The best is that it's impossible to learn a computer language without learning logic, problem solving, and organizational skills. Also, if you integrate it into the math curriculum, you learn REAL math, and not just calculating.
February 05, 2014, 06:43:29 PM #8
Quote from: MrBogosity on February 05, 2014, 06:37:25 PM
I think the reason they gave in the article is the weakest. The best is that it's impossible to learn a computer language without learning logic, problem solving, and organizational skills. Also, if you integrate it into the math curriculum, you learn REAL math, and not just calculating.
Very good points. :)
That was something that bothered me about my math classes even at the borderline graduate level:  even if they stressed the logic and concepts and theorems, etc, the actual homework and stuff they test us on?  Computation.  And when I see this, I'm like, "Seriously?"
"When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world—'No. You move.'"
-Captain America, Amazing Spider-Man 537
February 05, 2014, 07:07:13 PM #9
Quote from: Travis Retriever on February 05, 2014, 06:43:29 PM
Very good points. :)
That was something that bothered me about my math classes even at the borderline graduate level:  even if they stressed the logic and concepts and theorems, etc, the actual homework and stuff they test us on?  Computation.  And when I see this, I'm like, "Seriously?"

That's what you get when you use an educational system designed in the early 19th century.
February 05, 2014, 07:15:35 PM #10
Quote from: MrBogosity on February 05, 2014, 07:07:13 PM
That's what you get when you use an educational system designed in the early 19th century.
I was talking about my university too!  And yeah, in their case, the dark ages/middle ages, based on the old guild system.  So bogus.
"When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world—'No. You move.'"
-Captain America, Amazing Spider-Man 537
February 05, 2014, 08:27:14 PM #11
While learning programming principles/ a programming language is indeed more valuable than a foreign language in today's market; I am of the opinion it should be presented as a maths, or a trade skill, or something like that. I suppose one could make the argument that a certain amount of it should be required.
---
Given that after 4 years of studying say French, you don't have the language skills of an average native speaking two year old, and almost everybody you're likely to be doing business with speaks English almost as well as you - maybe we should consider dropping the foreign language requirement and replacing it with something that might be of some use, like say fundamentals of finance or law or heavy machinery operation.

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